Communication Strategies

Organizational structure and strategic objectives have shown a great evolution in competitive industry situation. Organizations now foster their initiative culture to get competitive edge over competitors and build a credible market reputation. Organizations long term goals and strategic objectives that support the mission and vision of an organization emphasize on the achievement of goals with great decisions involvement. Recent restructuring of organizations in consideration of long term vision and sustainability is solely based on the human capital of an organization. Organizations have given more importance on human resource management for successful accomplishment of their goals.

Human resource management serves the interest of the organization in relation with the human capital that defines the ability of an organization for prosperity and growth in various market circumstances (Armstrong, 2000). In knowledge based economy human resource management has emerged as a paramount to facilitate the organization functioning by a particular set of strategic plans. Firms are becoming more sensitive towards the effective implementation of strategic objectives. This is based on the development of consistent and associated set of policies, programs and procedures that guide the principle objectives of an organization (Harrison  Kessles, 2004).  It is necessary for an organization to develop an appropriate fit to maintain its effectiveness in conditions severe to the industry growth, due to random occurrence of potential factors. In such conditions, organization requires to utilize its human resource management practices productive towards performance inclination and have strategic focus for system and people.

Strategic Positioning of HRM in the Knowledge Based Economy
Human resource management characterized as a supportive pillar of an organization functioning is essential root towards organization development in knowledge based economy. Determination of strategic characteristics of an organization that defines the capability and potential competence with respect to organization long term visionary goals is relative to human resource functioning (Beardwell  Claydon, 2007). Knowledge based economy, unlike traditional economy system which had operational focus towards system and people development, is more oriented towards strategic focus towards system and people. Knowledge based economy emphasize on skills, capabilities, performance, and information processing for the accomplishment of organization objectives (Thite, 2004). It has more concern towards the formation of policies and procedure in alignment to overall goal of an organization thus defines the role of strategic partnership and change agent in environment and culture for organization effectiveness.

Human resource management role in knowledge based economy is based on the willingness and capability of an organization to support the strategic collaboration in its respective environment. However, HRM in knowledge based economy place emphasis on two factors which include human capital and knowledge facilitator (Lengnick et al, 2003). Each of these factors has inter-linkages with the organizational goals that highlight the desired standard with respect to industry convergence. Human resource management in knowledge based economy has a strategic perspective that helps align the organizational procedures and policies formation which enable organization to get competitive advantage through effective utilization of resources (Svetlik  Costea, 2007). HRM focus on strategic issue instead of operational issues solely, which facilitate the mission and objectives within a larger framework (Leibold et al, 2005).

Human Resource Roles in Knowledge Based Economy
HRM typically perform two roles as an integrator for organization vision which place substantial consideration on human capital (knowledge based personnel) and its strategic roles as knowledge facilitator by policies and predefined procedures. HRM creates an environment for specialized and talented individuals to exhibit their skills and contribute towards organization advancement through their skills, ideas and energy in work. Such culture not only influences the cognitive capacity of an individual but also regulates the information processing essential for rapid progress with acquisition and dissemination (Raich, 2002). HRM as a knowledge facilitator secure the knowledge and skills necessary to restrict the information reliability and identification of skills that allow relevant information to be acquired in real time by individual and incorporated in the structure with proper dissemination across the channel. It is necessary to incorporate knowledge facilitator role in strategically designed employee development plan. Therefore strategic HRM enables the organization to achieve operational excellence in skills acquisition necessary to advance strategic principles focus on organization growth.

HRM helps organization build relationship in structuring that links the principle tasks across the members with appropriate skills and develop structure and work practices that support team work and collaborative activities (Marchington  Wilkinson, 2005). This provides the organization opportunity to accomplish tasks that require multiple set of skills and hence able to support complicate tasks structures. This builds network structure that aimed at strategic objectives of an organization. HR integration and organization restructuring has enabled the organization to have flexible organic structure that creates adaptable structure and systems (Millmore, 2007). Such culture embraces flexibility in decision making and involvement of necessary knowledge particulars (in the form of personnel knowledge) on the principles of empowerment to support productive and proactive change in consideration of notable changes in the market need by HR support.  Restructuring can be global to organization and implemented at all, strategic apex and knowledge level, with strategic focus on refining of redundant procedures and activities that allow organization to have adaptable culture and access to necessary knowledge for proper functioning.

Strategic HRM Positioning and Implications for Knowledge Based Organizations
Strategic HRM role has led towards the establishment of strategic relationship with knowledge sources (skilled and specialized personnel). This strategic integration of the system is based on a set of factors provided that organizational changes are deemed necessary and organization understand the need for change. Solely disserting the change at operational level that affect the strategic goals and objective creates discrepancies and may raise conflict at inter-department or at decision level. Therefore, HRM involve the personnel as premeditated resources in knowledge based organization. It facilitates the goals achievability by relevant knowledge involvement in the selection and defining of root channel for strategic focus. It is essential for an organization to adapt a set of competencies for effective utilization of resources in consideration of opportunities that are explained below.

Many organizations have seen a considerable decline irrespective of the market growth. This identifies principles determination and role of HR in achieving the organizational goals by strategic contribution with employees. Development of strategy creates a set of relevancies between information resources and knowledge level of an organization. However, employee skills involvement with specialized functioning resources is valuable for strategic characteristic approach of an organization. In certain scenarios, rapid growth and change creates disturbances and ambiguity for goals accomplishment which requires critical analysis of market knowledge and available capacity of an organization. HRM enable the strengthening of information acquisition which helps determine the appropriate procedures and set objectives providing the resource constraints for an organization (Rodwell  Teo, 2004). This identifies the necessary skills for an organization for which considerable and measurable emphasis in depicted in HR programs and policies. HR programs and policies help distinguishing the employee roles based on their skills level and knowledge characteristic. It helps identification of principle and procedures regarding serving the internal customers through effective and efficient programs. However technology use in human resource management extensively accommodates the need for proper and alternatively defined policy and programs which modify the task structure and organization cultural setting norms.

Outcomes of Strategic Human Resource Management in Knowledge Based Economy
Strategic HRM not only defines the policies, programs and procedures but also increase the employee performance, customer and employee satisfaction, and shareholders value achieving the strategic goals of a organization which characterizes its standard and market position. Therefore, strategic human resource management flourish the organizations goals by the collaboration of employees that act as knowledge centre and possess skills necessary for accomplishment of objectives (Schuler  Jackson, 2007). Access to knowledge centre is limited by reach and extent of effectiveness HRM defines the skills and knowledge need and then develop proactive plan for identified market opportunities in consideration of organization knowledge resource. This is based on effective management and staffing system to retain specialized employees that fit with strategy and organization culture.

HRM locates the knowledge centre identify the skills requirement and access the human capital to support the organization strategic objectives and goals (Schuler  Jackson, 2007). This requires integrated HR programs and policies to support organization vision and thus motivating the existing human force to adapt relevant master skills. Organization change requires facilitation with respect to organizations current competencies and knowledge level possess by employees for identification of necessary change characteristics and effective implementation through strategic support (Raich, 2002). Extensive focus on emerging markets and opportunities for organization demands the availability of quality human resource with high specialized skills, as deemed necessary for industry and external environment of an organization, therefore puts pressure on organization to incorporate relevant structure change that increase the employee performance, shareholder value and organization functioning.

Organization knowledge development requires access to labour markets and screening of competent employees with high cognitive abilities that enables the organization to prosper certain required knowledge skills due to internal abilities of employees (Sheehan, 2005). However internal labour markets can contribute directly to enlargement of organizations knowledge assets (human capital) to improve knowledge need and persistent performance with respect to competitors strategies. Recent advancement in industries and modifications in organization structure requires a set of standardized skills that offer flexibility in decision making and formation of work setting around corporate teams comprise of a number of people specialized in different skills (Starkey et al, 2004). Such team structure is most suitable for organization operating in intensive competitive and requires rapid analysis of conditions that help facilitate the organization functioning and enables the organization to form a proactive strategy for market penetration to support growth objective. Such cross-functional and inter-organizational teams can be utilized for collaborative and strategic partnership responses towards organization advancement and growth.

Strategic role of human resource management depends on organization work design, processes and culture (Armstrong, 2000). Proper assessment of organization on above stated perspectives is essential for the dominating role of HRM in knowledge based economy. Skills demand and current knowledge level of an employee is essential for the HR program and policy formation to effectively support the organization principle goals. Such goals are the guidance mechanism for defining the strategic HR planning in consideration of work environment and organization culture that foster continuous learning principles and reduces ambiguity over decisions and work foundation principle rules.

Strategic positioning of human resource management in knowledge based economy provides an organization, operating in such environment, to develop consistent program in relation to the market factors. Cultural change forces eradicate the traditional approach towards organization mission and objectives by solely having operational focus (Harrison  Kessles, 2004). Administrative structuring lead the influential changes, promotes the concept of market opportunity evaluation and organization responses towards such environment factors by utilizing the knowledge resources in the form of specialized human capital factors that act as raising agents for the organization goals cultivation (Leibold et al, 2005).  Strategic human resource management applies two featuring aspect, content and process, which help designing the tasks, programs and procedure reactive or proactive to environmental change factors (Schuler  Jackson, 2007). Therefore, human resource management has been positioned strategically to influence the organizational functioning and deriving the change forces of organizational culture. Human resources capitalization for skills and knowledge and designing programs to encourage the employee participation in decision making for the setting of objectives and goals of an organization incredibly support the operation and strategic focus of growth orientation.

Strategic positioning of human resource management in knowledge based economy is based on the environment factors that direct the goals setting and objectives of an organization involving human capital as input for strategies transformation into achievable practices. Strategic human resource management analyze the skills and act as knowledge facilitator, while increasing the sustainable competitive edge through relying on personnel skills and role of external factors in affecting organization procedure. HRM system should have distinctiveness and consistency that is driven by strategic goals and values of an organization.

The Housing and Urban Development (HUD) defines the word homeless as an individual who lacks a fixed, regular, and adequate nighttime residence an individual who primary nighttime residence is (a) a supervised publically or privately operated shelter for temporary accommodations (b) an institution that provides temporary residence and (c) a pubic or private place not designated for, or ordinarily used as, a regular sleeping accommodation for human beings (2009).  The phenomenon of homelessness is not new, homeless individuals have been around since before the 1900s.   The problems of homelessness is not simply not having a place to live but numerous other challenges and threats are that are closely associated with the homeless.  Many homeless people are there for reasons such as poverty, lack of affordable housing, low-paying jobs, mental illness, unemployment, domestic violence and substance abuse.  Homelessness has no designated culture, race or ethnicity people are homeless all around the world.  Many programs have attempted to cure the homeless epidemic, but the problem still exists.

In the 1870s, New York City found many young boys sleeping on the streets and the New York City Rescue Mission was established as the first of many such organizations seeking to rescue (Wiki, 2010).   All of America, had hobos, who lingered near the trains, hopping, moving and living near those areas and usually forced to keep moving by local authorities.  Following the Civil War and the Great Depression, found millions of individuals hunger, hopeless, and homeless.  From then to the early 1960s not much of a focus was on the homeless because the economy was thriving, people were working, enjoying the American dream of owning a home, raising a family, and retiring complacent.  During the early 1960s, large mentally ill populations were released from institutions and were suppose to re-enter a community mental health setting for treatment and follow up but the community programs never evolved to the point that it eliminated their need to live on the streets.   Since, modern homeless began a resurgence as a result of the weaken economy and the lack of available affordable housing.

Sitting back in our homes, we wonder how people become homeless.  Now many of those same people, with the epidemic of foreclosures and massive loss of employment opportunities, people are finding out first hand, how and why people become homeless.   Some have lost their jobs, could not find a new one, thus could not pay the mortgage or rent on the residence and have been forced to vacate the premises with no where to go.

Times changed and places where individuals used to be allowed to loiter, such as churches, public libraries, and cavaedia began to fill up with homeless people forcing local governments to enforce new public policies, like no eyes shut, and churches locking their doors when services are not being held.  Privately hired security guards were used to enforce these new policies, thus creating a social awareness.  These closed doors forced the homeless population to live on the sidewalks, in the parks, under bridges and thoroughfares, in subway, and railroad terminals.  The apparent effect of this was their becoming invisible to society.  Just as Voltaire said, we became tolerate of them but blind.

Soon temporary housing, boarding rooms and emergency housing began to offer temporary housing programs and the like to the homeless population.  These facilities only allowed the individual(s) to sleep overnight during the day light hours or just offer one night shelter opportunities. When the homeless had to leave the facility they were to take whatever belongs they had as well.  If the temporary shelter filled up, reached capacity or if the individual was not eligible to utilize the facility they were turned away.

After careful review, lack of funding or hard rules and regulations, the public has observed that these temporary measures have not been successful.  They are not capable of dealing with all the obstacles and challenges of the homeless, they are only providing a nightly sleeping area, providing a meal or two, yet the individuals served are still considered homeless and still crowding the streets, receiving minimum assistance, and increasing public concern.

Homeless Solution
If given the opportunity and the resources to solve the problem, I would take a holistic approach. Taking the stand that just providing a home for the homeless, does not address the other issues I would develop a program that would address all the issues and concerns of the homeless.   Our program, Development of the Upliftment of the Homeless (DUH) will accept all homeless individual and families.  The program is outlined in Phase I, Phase II, and Phase III.

DUH would be located on several large parcels of land and the government would back the program financially with the assistance of other philanthropy means. Each parcel would be utilized as a helping part of the homeless community.  The community would consist of a medical clinic, training centers, gas station, grocery store, other small establishments, a cafeteria, recreation center, auditorium, rent-free housing, and subsidized housing.  It would also include several motor pools for the necessary transpiration of the individuals. The vision is to have this community to be totally manned by the homeless with the assistance of an executive director, a program director and highly trained and skilled personnel.  The plan would include rehabilitation, vocational and career development training, and life skills instruction in an effort to bring forth self sufficiency.

Phase I of the program will begin the process of learning about the homeless individual.  Each participant (homeless) would complete an application and began the process of evaluation.  During the application process all personal information, needs, mental and health conditions, and goals will be assessed and an Individual Management Plan (IMP) will be designed.  The goals and objectives of the program will be outlined and the individual would be mandated to sign a contract agreeing to allow the program to develop himher to be a viable and productive individual.  Those that are identified as mentally ill or victims of substance abuse, would be transferred to DUH Mental Health Facility immediately to begin the process of identifying the illness, substance abuse, and begin treatment.  Those that are without illnesses would be assigned housing, supplied with four changes of clothes if needed, supplied with personal hygiene items, tested to determine literacy, and counseled on setting goals for their sustainment.  

This phase of the program will provide rent free housing and training to the individual.  They will be responsible for maintaining their living quarters and other duties that will be surrounding the maintenance and operation of DUH.  The duties and responsibilities would be outlined and those individuals needing assistance or training on chores, life skills and such, and will be provided by the program personnel.
There will be 3 sections of the free housing projects, (a) single males, (b) single females, and (c) families.  The single units will house 6 individuals to a room, with each having a bed and a dresser.  The other facilities will be located on the floor for all personal hygiene functions.  The family units will consist of similar items, but room size will be determined by family size.  The aptitude of the adults will be determined and the program will work towards that end.  The adults would, therefore, have options on receiving vocational and career development assistance and will attend training during the weekdays.  The children will be registered and taken to and from school by the DUH School Bus.

During the training process, the adult individuals will receive a stipend on a weekly basis that will be placed in a saving account, made available after their training is complete and they have moved on to employment.  Those individuals that progress to this level will be moved on to Phase II of the program.  Those that require additional training or medical care will receive that until they can qualify for the next level.  An individual will be limited to 180 days placement in Phase I, should an individual not be able to move from Phase I to Phase II, additional mental and physical testing will be done to determine the cause.  DUH will partner with local businesses and employment opportunities will be available within the community to the individuals that graduate and make progress into Phase II.  Additionally, the compound will consist of various opportunities for the trained individuals.  There will be small shops or businesses that the individuals may open and operate utilizing their skills learned in vocational training andor enhanced through career development.  The grocery store, gas station, cafeteria, the recreation center, and the auditorium will have some paid employment opportunities as well.

Phase II will include individuals who have had training, have employment or are self employed and are now qualified for the DUH Subsidized Housing (SH).  In the DUHSH, they will be responsible for the upkeep of the house, maintaining their employment, and continue to donate time to the operation of DUH.  Rental payments will average 30 of their wages or less, according to what is reasonably affordable per personfamily in the housing unit and these living accommodations are available for a total of 365 days.  During this year, the individual will receive training on budgets, parenting, life skills, and counseling as needed.  During the last quarter of this stay in SH, the individual will be supplied with an opportunity to purchase a vehicle from the DUH Automotive Academy for a subsidized amount determined by income.  Also as part of DUHs vision, all Phase II adult participants (one per family) will be supplied with a cell phone for communication purposes, at a subsidized rate.  The program will cost the participant 30 per month and that will be stable for the following three years.  After three years, they will return the phone to the program.

The children in the program must attend school, must maintain average grades, and must participate in an organized sport. Tutors and mentors will be available and they will be encouraged to further their education with the assistance of grants and scholarships.  They will be rewarded for better than average grades with opportunities to participate in Olympic type events, opportunities for movies, and video games.  Should any child have discipline problems and the parents feel they cannot handle alone, that child will have to participate in DUHs Military Camp during weekends to help the child and parent(s) identify and work through those issues.

Just as there are incentives for the children to do well in school, incentives are built into the program for additional motivation for the adults.  During Phase I the incentive will be Gift Cards for outstanding performance in the training program, perfect attendance in the training program, and for completing all required follow up dates.  Follow up dates in Phase I are done every 15 days, in Phase II every 30 days and in Phase III every 90 days.

Phase III would be for individuals and families that have left the compound and are successfully living and working on their own. These individualsfamilies have graduated from Phase II and received assistance locating housing and employment off the compound. Phase III will run for 365 days and the individual and families are required for follow up every 90 days.  For every follow up made, a stipend of 100 will be made available to assist in rent or utilities.  The individuals will also be allowed to use the program for the next three years for assistance in school supplies, holiday gift baskets, and other emergencies that may occur.  Each individual will be allowed a maximum of three emergency vouchers for assistance.

DUH will maintain a set of quantitative measurements and complete a needs assessment annually.  DUH would stay connected with past participants to ensure that they are sustaining. Upon program completion each participant would be encouraged to complete a survey, evaluating did the program assist them and how, any questions, concerns, areas of improvements and so on.  Measurement of the program will be mandatory.  Using a balanced score approach, HUD will constantly look for the most efficient and best practices in working with the participants and this approach will allow HUD to make upgrades and adjustments as needed.

The majorities of people are not homeless because they want to be circumstances, many times was the driving force.  A major problem with homeless programs is that they have no evaluation or measurement program in place.  Evaluation can help programs determine which programs (or parts of programs) are effective with particular clients said Winship (2001).   DUH wants to know if the program is achieving the goal.   We dare not look at our program as Machiavelli, for empathy is needed, and he did not show that for humankind.  DUH wants the homeless to have a voice, to become viable, and sustainable adults.  As Plato, thoughts through Socrates, the homeless must leave the cave and walk into the light of society.   To be recognized as viable, productive adults, only needing the chance, training, and the opportunity for a second chance with help.  Homelessness has no prejudice or bias, it can be afflicted upon anyone, anytime, and anyplace.  

Is there any way I can have friends without having to approach them face to face Can I have friends from other countries and cultures These are some of the questions which have been answered by the introduction of the social media, popularly known as the social networking sites in the world today. Social networking is a very recent invention which has a large popularity. It has succeeded in bringing a very large social group together and giving them the grounds to interact (Everyday Wisdom, 2010).As a result, there has been a large increase of communication in and between nations and continents. This essay is aimed at showing that social networks are very effective as far as transnational communication is concerned.

Thurlow, Lengel  Tomic (2005), state that social communication all started as a result of the functions of the invisible mouse. A great deal of involvement in social networks has resulted, which have impacted the life of the human beings directly. The emergence of an electronic global village in the recent years is a section which has caught the attention of the media. This has been as a result of Computer Mediated Communications (CMC), for instance the World Wide Web and the internet (Ess, 1998).

The Cosmopolitan Approach Its relation to communication
This assumption is described as one which appears to presume a universal and universally intelligiblecommunicable humanity (Ess, 1998). It values democracy, where all the participants have a right to enjoy equality, free information flow as far as speech is concerned, and prosperity in terms of economics. The approach argues that all human beings are equal, their cultural distinctions and differences not withstanding. Therefore, it is against the notion of ethnocentrism, which assumes that one culture is better than another. Pertaining to social communication, the cosmopolitan approach aims to bring the rise of a new global village in a political, ethical, economic and social community, which will prosper all nations. Overcoming all the natural limits of communication is one of the values held highly by the American democracy. The cosmopolitan view aligns to this. Additionally, the CMC technologies are in favor of all cultures of the world (Ess, 1998).

According to Standard Education (2002), the cosmopolitan approach is used to show that there are various important views in the socio-political and moral philosophy. The idea shared by these views is that all the human beings in the world, regardless of their political affiliations are from one community.

Response of organizations in increase of the internet use
The World Bank has had several initiatives that have aligned with the cosmopolitan approach in regard to communication. These actions are those of ensuring that there is equality of all members of the global village. Several measures have been undertaken in a bid to support countries in the world so as to equip its telecommunications system. All this has been done so as to improve the effectiveness of the countries in transnational communication (Larsen, 2009).

Last year, the World Bank endorsed a total of two hundred and fifteen million to a program known as the Central African Backbone program (CAB) program. The program is meant to provide high speed telecommunications in all the countries of central Africa. This is an action which will ensure that there is a high speed internet, and that the prices of accessing the internet by the users are reduced. Additionally, it is an initiative which aims at harmonizing the regulations and laws that are responsible for the ICT sector. It also aims at improving competition and ensuring that there is increased private investment in the private sector (Larsen, 2009).

This initiative will be of a great benefit for the Central African nationals. In the whole of the African continent, this population is disadvantaged, in that it pays twice of what the other African countries pay for the internet, and thrice of what the other world countries pay. Once the internet is made effective, the user will be able to engage in the social media form of communication, therefore increasing transnational communication. The Director of the World Bank in Cameroon stated that The CAB Program is very important for the countries involved and lies at the heart of their development strategies. It will assist countries to strengthen their enabling environment, create competition and, ultimately increase access and lower the costs for end users, (Larsen, 2009).

The rise of social networks
Before the onset of the social networks, there was a move from the industrial to the post industrial era, also known as the informational societies. The internet made it possible for the dissemination and publication of data in the world communication sector. There was no need of direct contact with the service providers. It therefore ensured that there was worldwide interaction among all users in a person to person basis through chatrooms and emails (Block, 2004).

Computer mediated communication has been a topic which has been debated for a long time. This is in relation to the social purpose it has. A major area of interest in the field is whether the communication in the social networks is real. Several researchers have supported the use of the CMC in communication, while others have opposed it (Bernie  Horvath, 2002).

According to Boodle, (2009), social media is the source of innovative tools for communication dynamic forms. These forms alter other means of communication sharing and circulation. Additionally, it is an agency which can be afforded by many citizens and users. The social media services and sites, also known ads microblogs, have been recognized as crucial tools for reports distribution, government censoring, creating public awareness and promoting democracy which involves a larger public sphere. The dynamics of communication have been a great way of helping the citizens to disseminate all the information they need to communicate to the International community (Boodle, 2009).

The social media, in relation to the cosmopolitan theory has led to democracy promotion in several countries, as the approach dictates. For example, the post election protests that occurred after the elections in Iran led to the citizens communicating through facebook and twitter, which was termed as the Twitter revolution (Boodle, 2009). The social media has also been defined as one which initiates a connection of all members to the state. The Barrack Obama campaigns in the U.S. were also characterized by extensive use of the various forms of social networks (Boodle, 2009).

There are group and individual uses of the social media. These include intimacy building, identity construction, entertainment, advertising, therapy, self expression and branding. Additionally, it is used in advocacy, governance and political activism. The social network sites which are a subset of the social media are sources which provide transparency and makes networking transparent. There is a wide range of participation in the social media. This is in either the active and passive form. These sites provide opportunities where people build their power, reputation and popularity. The young people have a new way in which they use the social media, such as access to computers and digital initiatives (Boodle, 2009).
Social networks also facilitate the human interactions. These are described as places in the cyberspace where the people communicate .It is one of the very many subsystems of the internet means of communication. There are many factors that influence communication in the social networks. The age of the participants determines the length of participation. The young people are mostly known to be experts in the social network communication. The length of communication is a determining factor on the nature of the relationship of the two participants in any social network communication process. Additionally, the attitude of the communication participants towards a certain social network also determines the participation levels (Thurlow, Lengel,  Tomic 2005).

Characteristics of social networks
A study conducted by some students of Rice University in Maryland revealed that the most frequent users of the online networks are those who have established a strong link and connection of friends. This meant that once a person is close to the segment of the network, he or she is able to access a wider network of friends. One of the characteristics of the social network is that it is user-based. The online social networks are different from the ones used in the yester years. This is because the users are the ones who direct and build the links. Without the presence of the participants, the network would not be present (Adomaitis, 2010).
 The users are the ones responsible for the content that is in the social networks. Secondly, the social networks are interactive. They are not just a group of forums and chatrooms. Rather, they are sites where two participants can play poker together, or any other sort of game. It is more than just a form of entertainment, because it is also a way in which friends connect and enjoy their time together. Community driven, (Adomaitis, 2010) is their next characteristic, which means that they are based on the principle that social groups and communities have the same hobbies and beliefs (Adomaitis, 2010).
 
Additionally, the social networks cannot survive in any other way other than thriving in relationships. Its formation is more like that of the pyramid schemes, where one friend connects another to other friends. Lastly the social networks are a good source of emotional security. Emotional security is provided fully, such that no matter the circumstances someone is going through, the friends can be reached any time. For example, when a friend has lost a loved one, the person receives a lot of support (Adomaitis, 2010).

Facebook and Twitter
Facebook is a social site which was invented by a young man who was then a student at Harvard, known as Mark Zuckerberg. He used it to run his hobby projects through getting support from a person called Eduardo Saverin. The idea of facebook spread in the Harvard University within a very short period of time. It was received warmly, and it soon spread to Yale and Harvard, where it received full endorsement (Yadav, 2006).
 
The young man collaborated with other students who were specialists in the technology field so as to increase it to a higher level. The social network was so involving such that they had to drop out of school. In 2005, the social site officially received its name, and the social network was purchased for two hundred thousand U.S. dollars. Currently, it has more than thirty thousand million members. Most of them are in their youthful ages in colleges, organizations and universities. All what is required so as to join the social network is to have an e-mail ID and a password (Yadav, 2006).

The Twitter social network was created by Jack Dorsey. Twitter is efficient as it enables its users to read and send updates to each other, commonly known as tweets. The tweets are composed of one hundred and forty characters, which are normally displayed on the profile page and sent to the other users. The users who have subscribed are known as followers. It is also possible to use the phone so as to send short text messages. Because of the characteristic, it is widely referred to as the sms of the internet. In 2009, twitter was ranked as the third mostly used social network (Twitter, 2010).

Advantages of social networking
Several people use the internet so as to apply for jobs in their places of interest. The social networks are also very good sites of getting jobs, whether national or international. In the recent days, the major companies have employed highly trained people on the Human Resource sector. The work of these Human Resource specialists is to recruit more people in the company based on their qualifications. The job seekers also create profiles, where they include their resumes and the experience they have, both academic and professional. Through this, a company can discover someones profile and recruit him or her, regardless of the culture or country. Therefore, transnational communication takes place. There is a high level of democracy, as this form of employment does not limit on country, culture or race (Sucesso, 2010).

As the saying goes No man is an Island. Therefore, man has always been pushed by an inner need of meeting new people. The social networks such as Twitter and Facebook are some of the perfect spots for people to make new friends on line. Anyone can find friends who have the same interests as his or hers. Several people have met in the social networks, established relationships, and some have even ended up getting married. This is aligned with the cosmopolitan theory, which has done away completely with the concept of ethnocentrism. This is because there are no limits of the person one can bond with, unless the person has specified the people from the communities he or she wants to interact with (Sucesso, 2010).
 In the traditional or face to face mode of communication, several people are disadvantaged because of their introvert nature. Some people are naturally shy, which makes it difficult for them to interact with others. Therefore, the social networks become the perfect sites where people with these characters can communicate. Once these people establish a relationship through the social sites, it becomes easier for them to communicate when they meet face to face, since they have already established relationships. This in turn increases the level of transnational communication because no person is left out as far as communication is concerned (Sucesso, 2010).

The business people have an advantage as the social sites provide a free means of communication done through the creation of business profiles. Additionally, one can load the logo and the images of the company. These details will be visible to all the network friends when they visit the profiles. There is also a way in which one can put topics which are related to ones company or business. These new contacts can lead to subscriptions and sales (Sucesso, 2010).

Using the social networks has proved to be very efficient as far as costs are concerned. This is because the internet service providers in the world today have tried to extend the markets by reaching all the countries. This has been made to happen through the support they get from world bodies. Therefore, all nations in the world can afford to use the social sites in promoting their products or advertising their company. Additionally, it will just take a few clicks of the mouse (Everyday Wisdom, 2010), so as to get potential customers and target the best markets. It is also very helpful as it helps the business people to learn the dislikes and likes of the people, so that one can meet their preferences (Everyday Wisdom, 2010).
The credibility of companies or the business people is gained once the customers have confidence in them. This happens when the customers realize that the business person can connect with them at a personal level. A business person is also able to produce great results in the social networks because there can be availability of offers just in case a person is interested in the products of a certain business. Additionally, any business person can get connected with people who have the same type of business as his or hers. This helps them to increase the markets that they have (Everyday Wisdom, 2010).

Disadvantages of Social networking
One of the most common setbacks in the social communication networks is that it has been a source of addiction. A study conducted in some colleges in the U.S. revealed that over ten percent of the students spend over one hundred minutes per hour in the internet. There are even extremes, where some students spend over four hundred minutes in an hours time. This kind of addiction is a disadvantage because it has led to the rise of withdrawal symptoms like public anxiety. Additionally, the people who are addicted to these forms of networking usually have fantasies and dreams on what they have been communicating. Since they are so used to typing, the fingers develop a sort of voluntary typing movements (Thurlow, Lengel,  Tomic 2005).

Antisocial behavior is another disadvantage of the social networks. It results from addiction, where the participants become so drawn to the cyberspace such that their proper day to day relationships are destroyed. This has resulted to a great level of moral panic. The antisocial behavior has also led to the participants buying more books related to the internet and the research of new vendors. The participants have the tendency of trying out new browsers as they are used to the internet and the social networking sites (Thurlow, Lengel,  Tomic 2005).

Cyber violence is a term used to refer to all the negative behaviors in the social networks meant to attack someone in some way. One of the types of behavior is the cyber stalking, which involves tracking the actions of some targeted people online without the consent of those people. There is also online harassment, where the people use the social sites to communicate to others against their will. Also, it is referred to as a situation where some participants make threats to others, which is against the law (Thurlow, Lengel,  Tomic 2005).
 The marginalized groups are disadvantaged as they are portrayed in very degrading manner. These include the women and the minority groups in the world. Severally, the women have been presented in photographs which embarrass them on the basis of their sex. The gangs in the U.S. have also used the Twitter so as to attack their rival gangs, those of the other races. They have even created private pages, where they plan their acts of violence, and use their secret slang language so as not to be detected by the police (Thurlow, Lengel,  Tomic 2005).

The Cosmopolitan approach has supported the use of social networking. This is because it is seen as a means of bringing the people of the world together, so as to form a global village. It holds the view that all the members of a society are equal, and therefore they should be given equal chance even in communication. This approach is very different from other approaches like the Marxism theory which focuses more on classes, and is therefore ethnocentric. Man is a social being, therefore should get all the rights to communicate, as shown by the cosmopolitan theory. The social networks are very effective as far as transnational communication is concerned. They are very important as the subscribers get more knowledge on what is happening in the society. It is also a source which supports multiculturalism, which helps the people of all cultures to get rid of ethnocentrism, therefore accepts the beliefs and practices of the other cultures in the world. All the same, the benefits of the social media are more than the disadvantages. The disadvantages can be avoided by the participators in communication, as they are based on the ethics. The governments of the world countries should embrace the social networks fully, and recognize them as official means of communication.

In the second part of the book How to win friends and influence people includes Six ways to make people like you. Those six points are as follows.

Be genuinely interested in other people
Get into the habit of being interested in other people. When you are talking with a person have good eye to eye contact, it shows your confidence and your attention. The other person will like you when you are interested in that person.

Smile
When you get up in the morning, look at the mirror. Smile at yourself, it gives an amazing feeling. Smile at everything on that day, it cost nothing. Smile while answering a call on your cell phone, it can be noticed by your voice. Smile is a curve on the face that makes all the worries straight.

Remember that a mans Name is to him the sweetest and most important sound in any language.
When you are introduced to a person, remember hisher name. It is simple to remember the name by including it repeatedly in the conversation. Again when you meet the same person, that person will appreciate you when you remember hisher name.

Be a Good listener 
In order to improve the conversation, ask questions and get the answers. The other people will like you, when you are a good listener and encourage them to talk about themselves. This is also one way of getting to get to know that person.

Talk in terms of other mans interest
When you are talking to a person, always talk about the subjects that are interesting to that person. Do not discourage the other persons interest pertaining to any discipline. Have an optimistic view on all the subjects. Even if you dont know that subject, ask questions, this will improve your general knowledge in that field. Have a good discussion.

Make the other person feel important and do it sincerely.
You can make the other person feel important by making them to talk about themselves. Praise them when they achieve their goal. Be truthful when you are giving a compliment. That should touch the heart of that person. Do not criticize them even if they insult you.

Currently there are many different kinds of energy sources around the world. These different types of energy sources can be generalized into renewable and non renewable sources. Solar, wind, geothermal, biomass, hydro water and tidal energy come under the renewable energy sources. On the other hand coal, uranium, nuclear, gas (natural and non-natural) comes under the non renewable sources. Of all these sources oil and gas (fossil fuels) are the most commonly used energy sources. Almost 85  of the primary energy requirements of the world are being fulfilled from these fossil fuels.

Biomass is a renewable energy source in which biological materials are derived from the living or the recently living organisms. The energy is derived from different energy sources such as garbage, wood, waste, landfill gases and alcohol based fuels. Moreover biomass can also include biodegradable waste which can be burnt to produce energy and be used as a fuel. The converted form of biomass which can be used is a fuel is known as bio fuel. Bio fuels have the potential to reduce the greenhouse gas emissions, as well as reduce the dependence on fossil fuels which are rapidly depleting. The most common form of bio fuel is ethanol. Ethanol can be used in petrol cars as a replacement for gasoline or it can be mixed with gasoline according to a set percentage.

Ethanol is produced by the fermentation of the sugar.  In order for this to be used as fuel, water has to be removed from it in a process known as distillation. Distillation removes almost 95 of the water but further water needs to be removed and thus it goes through another process known as dehydration. Thus this final process produces ethanol which is ready to be used as a fuel.

The normal cars can support a blend of ethanol and gasoline to be used as a fuel but increasingly governments are pushing car manufacturers to make their engines more suitable towards ethanol so that higher ratio of ethanol can be used as a fuel.  A new generation of flexible fuel vehicles are making inroads which can run on gasoline, ethanol or both. As the fossil fuels are depleting with each passing day, ethanol promises to be the fuel of the future with almost endless supply and thus ensuring a bright future for the coming generation.

Group Communication refers to the communication occurring between two or more individuals. Group communication is defined by some characteristics like coordination, listening and collaboration among the team members. Absence of team interaction can create a lot of problems but they can be easily eliminated using honesty and the skill to interchange information. In group communication many ideas come together to create an idea that excels in creativity and innovation.

Individual communication differs a lot from group communication. Individual communication depends on a personal view whereas in group communication ideas have to be incorporated. Individual communication does not bring about a lot of ideas but it has many advantages like the person is not bonded onto a particular time constraint and his thinking will be completely his own as he alone bears the consequences of his decisions. In group communication the team members can have a lot of fun, develop the interpersonal skills by interacting with so many people, bring up new ideas and develop the art of listening. By a well coordinated and managed effort the team members can debate, put different opinions and this process consequently helps in achieving bigger milestones in less time thus developing the individuals personality as he becomes a complete team player. The disadvantages of group communication are limited in nature like the decision belongs to the whole group rather than a particular individual and his vision can sometimes be hampered by a unanimous opinion of other team members. Group communication also leads to a lot of noise and commotion if the team members to not communicate and do not follow the unsaid rule in group communication which is to maintain peace. If all team members agree to work in cooperation then the best results generally come to place through group communication.

Individual and group communication can be improved by many means as effective communication always leads to ultimate success. Be it any organization, a huge company or an online trading company communication is a must for the organization to prosper. Group communication has the biggest hindrance of mismanagement where there is more tension between the team members rather than cohesion. The way to improve group communication is to adopt the nonverbal form of communication which is silence. To make group communication successful one has to listen more than speak because by absorbing the opinions of other individuals one can come up with better ideas. Lastly in group communication a team member should not possess the attitude that he is only right. Highly individualistic people should be avoided in a healthy group communication.

Individual communication can be improved if the person develops the skill which makes his messages more accurate and specific. In individual communication the receiver should receive the message with little or no ambiguity. The person while conversing should include all the information in a proper sequence so that the receiver can accurately comprehend the message. One person should also be self aware of their positive traits which they can inculcate in their communication. Determination and self awareness can easily help an individual to improve their communication.

Consider a scenario like an online learning group. For this type of group communication to be successful one requires proper management wherein all the individuals can meet online at a specified time wherein they can discuss their opinions. This type of communication requires a leader because here the team members have to be coordinated across a huge geographical expanse. In this communication many different opinions can arise as the individuals can have different traits as they belong to different culture. Here an inter group communication can come into play. An inter group will have the sole responsibility to coordinate the individuals of the online learning team.

Effective communication is the key to success as great ideas and new inventions come in effect of good communication.

Communication as defined by Emory Griffin is the management of messages for the purpose of creating meaning (Griffin, 1994, p. 19). There is a connection between the messages that we send and the relationships we build through them. Similarly, there is management of these messages in order to correctly interpret the message we ought to convey. Thus, the meaning embedded in our actions creates meaningful relationships. Yet some factors involving our communication with others tend to affect relationship maintenance. One of these factors may include the existence of conflict. Conflict emerges from relationships and results from misunderstanding or miscommunication. Conflicts are often regarded negatively in the field of communication but in the same way, conflicts are also part of rebuilding relationships.

Griffin (1994) identifies context as one of the important component of communication. Hence, conflicts appear upon different context  family, friendships and especially in the workplace. The workplace is the most challenged residence for conflicts because the people in it become our family and friends at the same time. Accordingly, it shows how differing values coincide and how competitiveness unintentionally exists among co-workers. Such factors as differing values and competitiveness are just two of the many reasons why we experience conflicts even in the most unexpected moment. But in the end, communication will still be the best way to resolve it.

The first thing about resolving conflict is to find out how it has started and how much it can affect the workplace. Of course, there are the players of communication which means that they are the people involved in the conflict. As the Shannon and Weavers model of communication states, communication needs a sender, a receiver, a channel to which the message can be sent and a feedback (Griffin, 1994). Conflict affects each of these elements in various responses. In the working environment, conflicts are inevitable especially so that when people work together, they are subjected to new or contrasting ideas (Willis, 2008). This enables conflicts to just surface anytime. Conflicts can destroy relationships and hamper work operations. It can also cause mismanagement of an organization because unresolved conflicts produce mismanaged staff and mismanaged staff leads to downfall of an organization, group or company. For all we know, the workers or employees are the great contributors of successful companies and organizations.

On the other hand, leaders or managers are the key to maximum damage control and resolution. In fact, the responsibility lies on the capability of the manager to provide support for conflicting interests and actions of his or her employees. Administration is ultimately responsible for recognizing a conflict, instilling conflict resolution strategies, and for making sure these strategies are executed successfully (Willis, 2008). At the end of the day, the boss gives out a command and this decision is important. The manager as a leader also becomes the mediator. As a mediator, he or she must be equipped with a strategy. A mediator is a third party who is skilled in identifying areas of agreement, assists disputants in identifying common interests, inventing options for mutual gain, clarifying and narrowing differences, and designing settlement terms that will work for all parties (HYPERLINK httpwww.colorado.eduOmbudsUCOA t _blankUniversity and College Ombuds Association, 2001).

An online article by Summer Willis (2008) entitled Conflict Resolution Strategies in the Workforce, offers four important methods that can be used by the administrator once the type of conflict is identified the 4 Rs method, the A E I O U method, and the Negotiation method and the NORMS.

First, the 4 R of the 4 Rs method stands for Reason, Reaction, Results and Resolution. This method basically aids the leader on evaluating the situation and finally, resolving it with the cooperation of the team. It is a step-by-step process which starts with discovering the source of the conflict (reason), knowing how the team reacts on the situation (reaction), determining the impact of the situation to the organization (results) and eventually, gathering the team to decide on the best resolution method (resolution). Simply put, the leaders become the facilitators of the resolution process.

The second method is the A E I O U model which stands for Assume, Express, Identify, Outcomes and Understand. This promotes that the leader is able to control the situation by being calm and considerate. The method allows one member to communicate to the whole group his or her concerns clearly. It suggests non-confrontational solution to conflicts.

The third method called the Negotiation method involves an objective approach to conflict resolution because it encourages teammates to set aside their personal feelings from professional goals. This means that by applying negotiating techniques such as looking at the companys objective rather than personal problems, the leader is able to assert the importance of collective interest towards success.

Lastly, the NORMS stands for N-Not biased or personal interpretation O-Observable, situation is seen and touched or experienced by staff R-Reliable, two or more people agree on what took place M-Measurable, parameters of conflict can be distinguished and measured S-Specifics are not subjective, but objective and non-confrontational (Willis, 2008). This type of conflict resolution strategy brings the team together and allows them to share the same benefiting experience.

Everyone may believe that an open communication can worsen a conflict but at times it can become a room for reconciliation. This is why leaders or managers are supposed to initiate the resolution because they can actually start the conversation among team members who prefer to just keep quiet and thus, allow more conflicts to grow.

Conflict management influences individual wellbeing, group performance and organizational effectiveness (De Dreu C., Evers, A., Beersma, B. , Kluwer, E.  and Nauta, A., 2001). Appropriate techniques and helpful communication strategies comprise conflict management along with recognition of conflict arousal and effects. An effective organizational communication surpasses conflict and builds strong foundation from it.

In an online article by Mindtools.com entitled Conflict Resolution Resolving Conflict Rationally and Effectively (1995-2010), the author presents two interlocking theories regarding conflicts resolution techniques (1) Thomas-Kilmann Conflict Mode Instrument (TKI) that enumerates conflict styles and (2) Interest-Based Relational (IBR) Approach that values differences while helping people out from a confined position. The first theory states how different people use different conflict resolution styles such as being competitive, collaborative, accommodating, compromising and avoiding. Meanwhile, the IBR Approach provides some rules to follow that include keeping people and problems separate and exploring options together. Basically, the theories closely match the practical methods for resolution cited above. This means that understanding theory-based resolution strategies can bring us directly to the real life situation.

The University and College Ombuds Association The Ombuds handbook (2001) also shares some helpful strategies that can resolve conflicts. Several strategies include avoiding to speak when trapped in anger, choosing the right time and place for confrontation, being careful with how we speak to prevent misinterpretations, raising our concerns in a calm and methodical manner, allowing the other party to speak at the same time listening to him or her with respect, trying to consider the argued points, keeping reference to ongoing conflicts, preparing to talk either verbally or non-verbally, not giving up by trying to resolve the conflict again and maybe finally, letting go when we know nothing works. It is better to dismiss the unresolved relationships than hang up killing ourselves in anxiety for eternity.

When experiencing conflicts, most of us usually surrender our flag at once. But the truth is, conflicts should be giving us a leeway for speaking and standing out. This means that we must become assertive at times when we know that what we are defending is for the common good. By that, we can feel confident and positive enough that conflicts are managed in such a way that the whole workplace is not being sacrificed (Desmukh, 2000-2009, 2010).

Most conflicts are characterized by aggravation and anger which intensify the situation. As cited earlier, it is not advisable to speak our thoughts when we are in rage because it can only hurt more people than what we thought we had. A study by Julie Fitness (2000) entitled, Anger in the Workplace An Emotion Script Approach to Anger Episodes between Workers and Their Superiors, Co-Workers and Subordinates, finds various features of anger episodes in the workplace in relation to the work status or position. The study reveals that subordinates are less likely to assert themselves and amount the incident to unresolved conflict. They are usually angered by unjust treatment. Co-workers, on the other hand, are provoked by humiliation and culpable behaviors. Meanwhile, superiors are angered by incompetent workers. The results of this study are significant on the basis of identifying how to approach conflicts from different people with different situational power. This also emancipates the level of conflicts that occurs and why anger becomes the leading cause of difficulties regarding resolving conflicts. When anger still remains, we couldnt expect the conflict to be solved at once.

On the lighter side, conflicts are transformative even making us better persons in the long run. Handling conflicts are intricate when there is no cooperation among members. A good leader entails that the team members can manage conflicts on their own. Still, conflicts are part of communicating our ideas everyday and it is proper to say that only communication can repair whatever relationship has been broken out of serious conflicts.

Communication strategies especially on conflict resolution are essential guidelines to begin fixing current conflicts and misunderstandings. Yet it can often be complicated knowing our differences in attitude and human approach. These communication strategies are enlightening factors toward realizing the cost and benefits of having conflicts in the workplace.

It is a weighing scale. How much such conflict could affect How much advantage could it dispense after effectively resolving it Sometimes, we have to measure the importance of giving attention to conflicts. It is a waste of time to dwell on a conflict for so long that it is already becoming an obstacle to a certain work or even to the entire function.

Unresolved conflicts can turn personal but it is up to us to decide if we are going to go back to it over and over again. As much as possible, it is beneficial to resolve conflicts because it can leave us with increased understanding, increased group cohesion and increased self-knowledge (Mindtools.com, 1995-2010). We can always refer to our communication capstone. However, we must know that we should do our best to avoid it because a damage done is a trust lost.

Julia Wood (1999) in her book Communication in our Lives describes communication a systemic process which entails that communication starts and ends when it reaches the final step of the process. Similarly, conflicts start and end at a certain point, which may be taken either positively or negatively. Conflicting relationships in the workplace also take the same experience. Conflicts can arise and can be solved when taken the proper measures or strategies. Or, these can just end at the wrong time. Communication strategies like those cited earlier really play an important role in resolving conflicts because it is only through communication that problems and complaints are addressed. Speaking and doing nothing would actually be a lose-lose situation. We may get the situation worse or totally obliterated.