Homework3 Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Homework3 - Assignment Example The two factors or characteristic of power are highly conspicuous in the film. James sharper uses his political position (power) to influence people’s way of thinking. Ideally, the character influences people’s thinking and decisions through voting and rigging of elections. According to the film, Sharpe has been in office for four consecutive terms. His political success can be traced back to a network of corrupt city workers who protects his interests in Newark streets. Ideally, Sharpe threatened city workers with demotions and false accusations. In addition, traders who did not concur with his political ambitions were either accused of being terrorists or criminals. Consequently, their businesses were denied mayor’s protection and, hence subjected to sabotage. Although power is instrumental in social development, power can be applied in a negative sense, as depicted in the film. James Sharpe uses power for his own interests without considering people’s n eeds. Power gives authority to leaders and, therefore essential in leadership. However, power does not determine the quality of a leader. If it did then Sharpe would have been a better leader than his opponent was. Although the film does not reveal most of Booker leadership qualities, he seems a credible leader. His profile and academic qualifications makes him an outstanding leader compared to his political rival. Power is exercised through influence. In this context, leaders can also influenced by the very power they owe the people. It is unclear whether Booker can sustain his credibility if elected the mayor of the city. The first election illustrates the relationship between power and leadership. Ideally, candidates who had most power won the elections. Although James and Booker were both African-Americans, James had more political power than Booker did. Despite Booker having the best manifestos and visions for Newark and NJ, James had better chances of

Specific Competency and Skill-building Explo Essay

Specific Competency and Skill-building Explo - Essay Example The qualities and practices that enabled him to reach this pinnacle position are the subject matter of this article. In its broadest sense, leadership is the ability to motivate people to work towards a set of objectives (Unknown, Leadership, about.com, 2008). This implies that personal goals do not interfere with the higher goals of a business on the one hand, and that the goals themselves are in tune with the corporate and ethical policies of that business. As Narayana Murthy says, â€Å"A leader is an agent of change, and progress is about change† (Murthy NR N, 2005, Essence of leadership, The Smart Manager). Corporate goals and policies are continuously upgraded by a change-agent, who if successful becomes identified with that business and assumes its leadership. This periodic up-gradation happens in the context of industry-wide changing environment, and expectations of the stakeholders. Moving through various management positions in American Express (AmEx) since joining in 1981, Kenneth Chenault is now its Chairman and CEO. AmEx is a 154 years old institution that is instantly recognized worldwide for its travel and financial services. Like Mr. Barack Obama is the first African American President-elect with ‘change’ as his main theme, Kenneth Chenault is the first African American to head one of the 30 Dow Jones Industrial Average corporations (Mara D H, 2004, Strategy: Power plays, Business Week, p.153) and is a quintessential change-agent himself. The goals that he set, the policies that he inspired, the changes that he brought about from time to time, and his ability to motivate people across cultural barriers both within the USA and across the globe – all testify the leadership skills of Kenneth Chenault. Hence it is but natural that he is heading AmEx today. When he joined as in-charge of the strategic planning division, AmEx’s main business was premium