The Concept of Charismatic Leadership theory

The Concept of Charismatic Leadership theory The study of leadership has been important to humans since the dawn of civilisation, the concept of leadership; leader and follower were represented in Egyptian hieroglyphics written 5,000 years ago. Between 400 and 300BC the Greek philosophers Plato and Aristotle wrote about leadership and the requirements, characteristics, and education of leaders (Paul, et al. 2002). Leadership is central to the human condition (Wren, 1995) and has found to be important to all societies, although specific patterns of behaviour vary overtime and across cultures (Bass, 1990). Leadership theories have evolved in the last century to the point where they began to be the basis for models that accurately describe the activities of leaders with good correlation to their success in some situations (Antonakis House, 2002), (Yukl, 2006a). Meindl (1990) leadership can best be understood as a perception that plays a key role in peoples efforts to make sense of organisational phenomena. According to his view, organisational systems, activities, and events are hard to comprehend because they are ambiguous and complex. Nevertheless, organisational members and observers have a need to make sense of their environment to preserve an illusion of understanding and control. Because leadership provides a convenient and plausible explanation for important, but causally ambiguous outcomes, it is overused as an explanatory category. Essentially, attributers romanticise leadership as a causal determinant of organisational processes and performance. In a sense, supervisory theories of leadership are about leadership in organisations. Strategic theories of leadership are concerned with leadership of organisations, see (Hunt, 1991) and are marked by a concern for the evolution of the organisation as a whole, including its changing aims and capabilities (Selznick, 1984). Strategic leadership focuses on the people who have overall responsibility for the organisation and includes not only the titular head of the organisation but also members of what is referred to as the top management team or dominant coalition (Cyert March, 1963). As (Mintzberg, 1989) argues, strategy can be understood as a pattern, that is, consistency in behaviour over time. In the strategy process, there may be intentions that are fully realised as well as fully unrealised strategies. In addition, the strategy may emerge. 2.1 General Leadership Theories 2.1.1 Phases of leadership theories The earliest modern literature on leadership appeared in the nineteenth century. This earliest generation of leadership research was set out from the assertion that the emergence of leaders must be connected with certain inherited endowments. There was even a book named Hereditary Genius (Galton, 1970). A comprehensive review of leadership research, published in handbook form, was produced by (Stogdill, 1974). In this handbook, he provided evidence that leadership traits vary not only from situation to situation, but also from time to time. Only a few components remain comparatively consistent over time. Subsequent editions of this handbook were revised by Bass, who is Stogdills successor (Stogdill Bass, 1981) and (Bass, 1990a). In the later edition Bass drew further evidence from later research and identified traits which were steadily relevant to leadership effectiveness. These included activity level, task competence, interpersonal competence, authoritarianism, power orientation and Machiavellianism, value, needs, well-being, accorded status and esteem, and charisma. (Locke et al. 1991) produced a similar list. Since then, the pace of development has mounted as the need for its application intensified following the development of society especially in business management after World War II. In terms of classifying this evolution, a widely accepted view was suggested by (Hunt, 1999a). According to his argument, this evolution can be divided into three generations; namely: trait theory, situational-contingency theory and transformational leadership theory In all it was later accepted that the trait approach failed to prove that there was a set of gifted traits, which made people become leaders. Researchers then mostly turned to the new assumption that leadership can be taught and learned under a proper set of principles according to (Lee Thomas, 2007). Bass also added an extra chapter to the handbook, and this was dedicated to charismatic and inspirational leadership style. Charismatic leadership is actually one of the most important areas in leadership theory since it has the longest acknowledgement in the literature and actually spans across all the three generations of leadership studies. (Weber, 1924, 1947 1968) was the first to mention the concept of charisma. He saw charisma as a special kind of leadership trait that can lead organisations to get through periods of crisis successfully. Since the mid-1970s, research interest in charismatic leadership was shifted from Webers view of crisis rescuer to an emphasis on those leaders who could effect extraordinary influence continuously. It was found that charismatic leaders could usually improve organisational performance through their own behaviour and that this could have a powerful effect on the morale of their followers. This kind of leadership is referred to by the situational-contingency school of researchers as charismatic leadership e.g. (Adair, 1973), (Kets de Vries, 1984) and (Conger Kanungo, 1987a), transformational leadership e.g. (Burns, 1978a) and (Bass, 1985a), inspirational leadership e.g. (Yuki Van Fleet, 1982) or visionary leadership e.g. (Bennis Nanus, 1985a) and (Sashkin, 1988a). Later, researchers in the generation of transformational leadership also classified it as change management (Bass, 1990b). The first author to differentiate between charismatic and inspirational leadership was (Downton, 19 73). He pointed out that the followers endorsement of charismatic leaders is based on blind faith in the leaders, whereas the endorsement of inspirational leaders is based on the rationale that the followers believe and share the leaders vision and strategy. 3.1 The Concept of Charismatic Leadership (up to 1992) and how it fits in to the general leadership theories 3.1.1 Theoretical background of charismatic leadership The term charisma, whose initial meaning is a gift in Greek, has been frequently used in politics and religion to adduce legitimacy to power. (Weber, 1968) defined it as an individuals personality quality (or at least, specifically exceptional powers or qualities) by virtue of which he/she is set apart from ordinary people and which thus legitimises his/her exercise of influence. (House, 1977a) developed a theory of charismatic leadership which is among the first attempts to build a comprehensive theoretical basis for studying the topic. Leadership theory, alternatively referred to as charismatic, transformational, visionary, or inspirational, has emerged in the organisational literatures of (House, 1977b), (Burns, 1978b), (Bass, 1985b), (Bennis Nanus, 1985b), (Tichy Devanna, 1986), (Boal Bryson, 1988), Conger Kanungo, 1987b), (Kuhnert Lewis, 1987), (Sashkin, 1988b). Relating to this new genre of leadership theory, such leaders transform the needs, values, preferences and aspira tions of followers from self-interest to collective interests. Further, they cause followers to become highly committed to the leaders mission, to make significant personal sacrifices in the interest of the mission, and perform above and beyond the call of duty. Theories of charismatic leadership highlighted such effects as emotional attachment to the leader on the part of the followers; emotional and motivational arousal of the followers; enhancement of follower valences with respect to the mission articulated by the leader; follower self-esteem, trust, and confidence in the leader; follower values; and follower intrinsic motivation according to (Shamir, House Arthur, 1993a). The integration of charismatic leadership theory with the upper echelons perspective in an attempt to better understand the leadership role of chief executive officers (CEOs) was reviewed by (Waldman, Javidan Varella, 2004). They proposed that emerging charismatic leadership theory and research may provide new possibilities for the upper echelons perspective. In the past, leadership theory has been seen as the domain of organisational behaviour and micro-oriented perspectives. (House, 1999) organisational behaviourists are generally more psychologically oriented and define charisma as one of the following: a relationship between an individual (leader) and others (followers) based on deeply held shared ideological (as opposed to material) values; an individual who accomplishes unusual feats through the efforts of followers who are exceptionally loyal to the leader, have a high degree of trust in the leader, and are willing to make personal sacrifices in the interest of the leaders vision and the collective led by the leader; a complex set of personal characteristics and/or behaviours of an individual that leads to the above outcomes. The specific traits and behaviours are defined somewhat differently among the organisational behaviourists theories. Organisational behaviourists have used all three of the above definitions, none of which are incompatible with the others. Charismatic leadership is assumed to have three core components: envisioning, empathy, and empowerment according to Conger (2006), increasing attention has been directed during the past several decades toward charismatic leadership. Charisma represents a potentially key construct relevant to strategic leadership (Pawar Eastman, 1997). Apparently, a recent theoretical perspective has begun to link charisma to strategic leadership. For example (Finkelstain Hambrick, 1996) acknowledged that charismatic leadership could affect firm performance in one of several ways. First, the values of such leaders could influence strategic choices through their impact on their field of vision, their perception and interpretation of information, and their strategic decision making. Furthermore, the day-to-day actions and behaviours on the part of charismatic chief executive officers could also affect organisational functioning and performance. Unfortunately, in their view, they did not make potential linkages between charisma and performance especially clear and, indeed, devoted little attention to such linkages in their consideration of strategic leadership. Conger Kanungo (1992) developed a model that focuses on several behavioural dimensions of charismatic leadership within organisations. According to the model, charismatic leadership is an attribution based on followers perceptions of their leaders behaviour. The leaders observed behaviour is interpreted by followers as expressions of charisma in the same sense as a leaders behaviours reflect that individuals participative, people and task orientations. Charismatic leaders differ from other leaders by their ability to formulate and articulate an inspirational vision and by behaviours and actions that foster an impression that they and their mission are extraordinary. As such, individuals choose to follow such leaders in management settings not only because of formal authority but out of perceptions of extraordinariness. Thus any measurement of charismatic leadership must be based on followers perceptions of the specific behavioural attributes of the leader that engender such outcomes . The Conger-Kanungo model proposed several distinguishing behavioural components in three distinct stages of the leadership process. A number of different behaviours may lead to perceptions of charisma (Bass Avolio, 1993), (Conger Kanungo, 1987c) and (Shamir, House Arthur, 1993b). Following earlier experimental research by (Yorges, Weiss Strickland, 1999), they demonstrated that a leader making personal sacrifices to achieve the collective vision rather than personally benefiting from his or her action was perceived as more charismatic. The more recent psychological and organisational behaviour literature has dealt with these variables rather extensively, arguing that charismatic leaders strongly appeal to the values and self-concepts of followers by articulating radical solutions to their problems (Shamir, House Arthur, 1993c). 4.1 Development of Charismatic Leadership (post 1992) In the past decade, the bulk of leadership research has focused on transformational and charismatic leadership (Judge Piccolo, 2004). In sharp contrast to the rational nature of the transactional leadership paradigm of the 1960s and 1970s (Bass, 1990e), transformational and charismatic leadership theories (Bass, 1985c), (Burns, 1978c), (Conger Kanungo, 1998a) and (House, 1977c) recognised the affective and emotional needs and responses of followers performance, placing more emphasis on the emotional, inspirational, and symbolic aspects of leadership influence (Shamir, House Arthur, 1993d) and (Conger Kanungo, 1998b). Attempts to integrate the multiple theories of transformational and charismatic leadership reveal many commonalities, including leader vision and a charismatic communication style (House Shamir, 1993) and (Kirkpatrick Locke, 1996). Newer frameworks that can be applied to leadership theory include meso-level paradigms that attempt to provide an integration of micro and macro organisational behaviour (House et al. 1995) and (Hunt Dodge, 2001). Concurrent with the development of meso-level paradigms, the field of leadership has witnessed an infusion of theory dealing with charismatic and inspirational leadership. 4.1.1 Realisation of Vision content and organisational performance Drawing from the communication literatures, (Holladay Coombs, 1993 and 1994) invoked the concepts of message content and delivery to explain the two-step process whereby charismatic leaders initially craft and then articulate an idealised vision. An idealised vision is generally considered to be a prerequisite for a leader to become transformational or charismatic e.g. (Bass, 1988). Once formulated, the vision must be articulated to mobilise followers to pursue it. Studies in the past decade have identified six behaviours exhibited more frequently by charismatic leaders than by non-charismatic leaders. These include: vision and articulation; sensitivity to member needs; environmental sensitivity; unconventional behaviour; taking personal risks; and not maintaining the status quo as defined by the Conger-Kanungo scale (Conger Kanungo, 1994a). Envisioning involves creating an overall picture of a desired future state with which people can identify and which can generate excitement. In addition to formulating a vision, they are adept at communicating the vision and infusing day-to-day work with a larger sense of purpose and greater intrinsic appeal (Conger, 1989a). Most charismatic leaders, therefore, are known as persuasive speakers. They often rely on various rhetorical techniques such as metaphors, analogy, and stories to inculcate key ideas into the followers minds, so that their message would have a profound impact on followers (Conger, 1989b). (Awamleh Gardner, 1999) suggested an agenda for research to clarify. In particular, the joint effects of vision content, delivery, organisational performance cues, and generalised leadership beliefs on perceived charisma and leader effectiveness warrant empirical attention. Accordingly, in their study they projected three key objectives: to explore the combined effects of vision content and delivery on perceptions of leader charisma and effectiveness; to investigate the relative effects of performance outcomes on these perceptions; and to examine the effects of generalised beliefs about leadership (i.e., romance of leadership disposition) on leadership perceptions. To put the results in perspective, they reconsidered (Lord Mahers, 1993) definition of leadership as the process of being perceived by others as a leader. Accordingly, when people use prototypes to infer leadership, strong delivery of an idealised and well articulated vision will lead to perceptions of charisma and leader effectiveness. These perceptions, in turn, provide the leader with an attentive audience of followers who will be highly receptive to the leaders influence attempts. On the other hand, when followers use organisational outcomes to assess leadership qualities, high performance appears to similarly enhance the leaders image of charisma and effectiveness. Importantly, such perceptions will in turn provide the leader with greater leverage in influencing others. Their point is that the recognition and inferential models are not mutually exclusive. To maximise their influence potential, leaders must provide a strongly articulated and idealised vision, and successfully at tain high performance outcomes. 4.1.2 Charismatic leadership and followers outcomes (Conger, 1999a) over the last decade and a half, highlighted that the topic areas of charismatic and transformational leadership in organisational settings have undergone a significant evolution in terms of both theory development and empirical investigations. Both the greatest amount of theory development as well as empirical research on charismatic and transformational leadership has been in the area of leader behaviours and, to a lesser extent, on follower effects. This was due largely to the backgrounds of the most active researchers, almost all of whom have had a strong behavioural orientation. While there have been a number of individuals studying either transformational or charismatic leaders e.g. (Bennis Nanus, 1985c) and (Kouzes Posner, 1987).Kouzes, J.M. and Posner, B.Z., 1987. . The leadership challenge Jossey-Bass, San Francisco. Three principal leadership processes are involved (Bass, 1985d)Bass, B.M., 1985. . Leadership and performance beyond expectations Free Press, New York. in achieving such outcomes: these leaders heighten followers awareness about the importance and value of designated goals and the means to achieve them; they induce followers to transcend their self-interests for the good of the collective and its goals; and they stimulate and meet their followers higher order needs through the leadership process and the mission. Bass was the first organisational scholar to operationalise the transformational leadership model into a measurement instrument. As a result, more studies employ his scale than any of the other models proposed to date. As such, today four behavioural components make up the dimensions of transformational leadership: charisma or idealised influence; inspiration; intellectual stimulation; and individualised consideration. In contrast to the other theories, charisma is a separate component and is defined in terms of both the leaders behaviour (such as role modeling) and the followers reactions (such as trust, respect, and admiration for the leaders ability) (Conger, 1999b). (Bono LLies, 2006) suggested that positive emotions play a role in the charismatic leadership process in an extensive literature linking positive affect to the same outcomes achieved by charismatic leaders (e.g., cooperation, task performance, motivation, creativity). Their aim was to examine the effects of leaders positive emotional expressions on follower mood and perceptions. They discovered that charismatic leaders express more positive emotions than do less charismatic leaders and that leaders positive emotional expressions have a direct effect on follower mood. Furthermore, they argued that both leaders emotional expressions and follower mood had independent effects on perceptions of leadership effectiveness and attraction to a leader. First, (Isen, 2004) has demonstrated that positive change is associated with task performance, particularly on creative tasks, though these effects are not universal, as (George Zhou, 2002) demonstrated that under certain conditions positive mood was negatively associated with creativity. Other studies linked group affective tone (i.e., positive group mood) to group effort and coordination (Sy, Cote Saavedra, 2005), improved cooperation and decreased conflict among group members (Barsade, 2002), and subjective assessments of performance (Totterdel, 2000) and (Fredericksons, 2003) broadened-and-built theory posits that positive emotions broaden the relationship between thought and action, leading to increased novelty and exploration of ideas on the part of employees who experience them. (Rousseau, 1998) suggested the possibility that high-quality relationships may develop even when only a few well specified and important resources are exchanged, such as hard work for high pay. In the recent work of (Cicero Pierro, 2007a), they reviewed that leadership and work outcomes are associated to social identification processes, referring both to recent developments of charismatic leadership models and to the recent developments of the social identity analysis applied to the workplace, e.g. (Abrams Hogg, 2001). Two field surveys were conducted using 200 Italian public and private sector employees (two different working organisations). Two questionnaires were designed in order to collect data. They included different measures of charismatic leadership derived by the literature e.g. the Conger-Kanungo Charismatic Leadership Questionnaire; (Conger Kanungo, 1994b and 1998), for Study 2), a scale to assess the degree of identification with the work-group (Van, K.D., Van, S.E.C.M., 2000) and some scales to measure the different outcomes considered e.g., (Brown and Leighs effort measure, 1996) and (Mobleys turnover intention measure, 1977). As they predicted, results o f Study 1 revealed that charismatic leadership was positively related to work-group identification, and employees work effort was positively related to work-group identification. Work-group identification also mediates relationship between charismatic leadership and work effort. Results of Study 2 replicated the positive association between charismatic leadership and employees work-group identification; work-group identification is also associated with their job involvement, job satisfaction, performance, and turnover intention. (Cicero Pierro, 2007b) admitted that their research has some limitations. The first one to note was that a causality relation cannot be inferred due to the cross-sectional nature of the data, although it was one of the most-used methods in applied and field psychological research. They suggested that future investigations, then, should adopt an experimental or longitudinal design. A second one was represented by the fact that the criteria variables had been assessed by paper-and-pencil self-report measures, which may reflect participants perceptions rather than objective realities. However, some of the analysed variables (e.g., work-group identification, turnover intention, job involvement, etc. pertain exclusively to individuals perceptions and feelings, so only a few of these measures (for instance leadership style and performance) should be assessed through actual behaviours and more objective measures in order to substantiate the results obtained. They concluded that their resul ts enlarged the knowledge of the dynamic that may affect work outcomes and underline the tangible relevance of social identification processes and, in particular, the relevance of employees identification with the work-group to the organisation life. 4.1.3 Concept between Instrumental, transformational and transactional leadership Research on leadership started with a concern for identification of leadership traits, so that this might be used to as a basis for management selection and training. When the relationship of such traits to organisation effectiveness proved weak, researchers sought to emphasise specific leadership behaviours, starting with participative management, and the later behavioural research on social/task and instrumental leadership behaviours, revealed the complexity of leadership and showed the futility of simple answers according to (Vasu, Stewart Garson, 1998). Current notions of leadership in particular, transformational leadership perspectives see (Hunt, 1999b), (Lowe Gardner, 2000) fail to address the strategic and task-oriented developmental functions of leaders (referred to as instrumental leadership by (Antonakis House, 2002), see also (Yukl, 1999). Theoretically, these instrumental leader functions are essential for ensuring sustainable organizational and follower performance. Instrumental leadership is not included in transformational leadership theories (e.g., the full-range leadership theory of (Avolio, 1999), (Avolio Bass, 1991), (Bass, 1985e), (Bass Avolio, 1994, 1997), an omission that might limit: the extent to which the full-range theory is able to predict effective leader functioning and our understanding of the contexts in which different types of leadership are important. (Antonakis House, 2004) defined instrumental leadership as a class of leader behaviours concerning the enactment of leader expert knowledge toward the fulfillment of organisational-level and follower task performance, see also (Nadler Tushman, 1990). Instrumental leadership is distinct from transformational (i.e., ideals, inspirationally based, etc.) and transactional (i.e., exchange-based) leadership and encompasses two subclasses of leader behaviours. Each of these subclasses, in turn, consists of two factors: strategic leadership leaders actions centered on environmental scanning strategy formulation and follower work facilitation leaders actions focused on facilitating follower performance. On the other hand, transformational leadership is associated with strong personal identification with the leader, the creation of a shared vision of the future, and a relationship between leaders and followers based on far more than just the simple exchange of rewards for compliance. The ability of the leader to articulate an attractive vision of a possible future is a core element of transformational leadership (Hartog Verburg, 1997). Transformational leadership goes beyond the cost-benefit exchange of transactional leadership by motivating and inspiring followers to perform beyond expectations (Bass, 1985f). As (Hater Bass, 1988) pointed out, contrasting transactional and transformational leadership does not mean the models are unrelated. Burns (1978d) thought of the two types of leadership as being at opposite ends of a continuum. However, here we follow (Bass, 1985g) who viewed transformational and transactional leadership as separate dimensions. This viewpoint implies that leaders could show both transactional and transformational behaviours. Bass argues that transformational leadership builds on transactional leadership but not vice versa. Thus, high-quality relationships have more in common with a transformational kind of relationship than with a purely transactional one (Gerstner Day, 1997). 5.0 Conclusions Each of the theories under consideration has evolved over time by different intellectuals and is still being studied and used today to explain modes of leader behaviour (Harris, Harris Eplion, 2007), (Yukl, 2006b), (Sagie Koslowski, 1994). Each of the theories considers both the leaders effect on followers and the interaction between leader and follower. According to (Summary Report of Accomplishments: 2003à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã‚ 2008) reported that one measure of a journals influence on a field is Impact Factor and Citation Data. To calculate the impact factor, Thomson Scientific records the number of citations in a particular year to articles published in the two previous years, divided by the number of articles in the same previous years. For The Leadership Quarterly, the Impact Factors (and ranking within the categories of Management and Psychology, Applied) for the last 5 years as reported by its publisher, Elsevier, is illustrated in Appendix 1. Another measure of journal impact is the number of full text downloads between 2003 and 2008. The number of downloads for The Leadership Quarterly increased as summarised is shown in Appendix 2. The summary of the Impact Factor, it shows there has been a substantial increase in this index between 2003 and 2007 is shown in Appendix 3. I disagree with (Houses, 1992) article that charismatic leadership was a new genre of leadership theory. For the fact that in the past and the present, several publication have shown significant contribution by scholars in the study and practice of charismatic leadership. Researchers have played a key role in shaping and nurturing the fields of leadership and management to generate new knowledge and insights into leadership theories. Appendices Appendix 1. Year Impact Factor Management Rank Psychology Rank 2007 1.763 20/81 12/57 2006 1.720 16/78 12/54 2005 1.750 9/71 7/49 2004 1.769 10/67 6/50 2003 1.315 20/67 13/49 Appendix 2. 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 *Jan-Jun 83,528 125,417 162,583 213,027 260,948 185,627 Appendix 3. 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 .511 .333 .778 .456 1.338 Source: ISI Web of Knowledge.

Consumer Awareness Essay

THE PROCESS of development along with the expanding globalisation and liberalisation process has increased the number of consumer related issues. Consumer protection has earned an important place in the political, economic and social agendas of many nations. In India, the Government has taken many steps including legislative, to protect consumers. Education is a life long process of constantly acquiring relevant information, knowledge and skills. Consumer education is an important part of this process and is a basic consumer right that must be introduced at the school level. Consumers by definition include all citizens who are, by and large the biggest group, who are affected by almost all government, public or private decisions. The most important step in consumer education is awareness of consumer rights. However, consumer education is incomplete without the responsibilities and duties of consumers, and this influences individual behaviour to a great extent. Definition Consumer awareness is making the consumer aware of His/Her rights. Consumer awareness it a marketing term. It means that consumers note or are aware of products or services, its characteristics and the other marketing P’s (place to buy, price, and promotion). Need : we need it so we will not be misled by producers,it explains if what we buy is worth to our money..and not harmful to us and to environment . Many people are ignorant of their rights to get protected against the exploitation by so many others. So when there is a forum for such redress of grievances there seems to be no such exploitation by many; and becomes a rare one. So in order to get a clear picture of the level of exploitation of consumers, the awareness is required. Role of producers  proper labeling, full information, health warnings, handling information, expiration date, etc. keep to requirements, norms, standards labelproducts according requirements, providing true facts If they are providing a service they should carry it out with due skill and  care. They must also make sure that any materials they provide as part of this service are fit for the purpose. It is also illegal for a supplier to cut off, or threaten to cut off, supply to a reseller (wholesale or retail) because they have been discounting goods or advertising discounts below prices set by the supplier. Consumer awareness is about making the consumer aware of his/her rights.It is a marketing term which means that consumers are aware of products or services, its characteristics and the other marketing P’s (place to buy, price, and promotion).Though the first consumer movement began in England after the Second World War, a modern declaration about consumer’s rights was first made in the United States of America in 1962, where four basic consumer rights (choice, information, safety and to be heard ) were recognized. Ralph Nadar, a consumer activist, is considered as the fathe r of ‘consumer movement’. March 15 is now celebrated as the World Consumer Rights Day. The United Nations in 1985 adopted, , certain guidelines to achieve the objectives of maintaining protection for consumers and to establish high level ethical conduct for those engaged in production and distribution of goods and services. High prices, duplicate articles, underweight and under – measurements, rough behavior, undue conditions, artificial scarcity are some of the ways by which consumers are exploited by manufacturers and traders. Limited information, limited supplies and low literacy are factors causing exploitation of consumers. In India, the concept of consumer protection is not new. References to the protection of consumer’s interest against exploitation by trade and industry, underweight and measurement, adulteration and punishment for these offences, were made in Kautilya’s ‘Arthashastra’. However, an organized and systematic movement to safeguard the interest of consumers, is a recent phenomenon. The consumers have to be aware not only of the commercial aspects of sale and purchase of goods, but also of the health and security aspects. Food safety has become an important element of consumer awareness these days. In case of food products, its quality depends not only on its nutritional value, but also on its safety for human consumption. Consumption of contaminated or adulterated food is a major cause of human illness and suffering. This called for strong legal measures to ensure that the manufacturers and sellers observe uniformity and transparency in prices, stocks and quality of their goods.Enactment of Consumer Protection Act, 1986 was one of the most  important steps taken to protect the interests of consumers. The provision of the Act came into force, with effect from July 1, 1987. The act recognizes consumer’s right to seek redresses and right to consumer education. The salient features of the Act are as follows:- †¢ Applies to all goods and services unless specifically exempted by the Union Government; †¢ Covers all the sectors whether private, public or cooperative; †¢ Enshrines the consumer’s rights related to safety, information, choice, representation and redress and consumer education. †¢ The act gives consumers an additional remedy besides those which may be available to them under the provisions of other existing laws and they are free to choose the remedy. †¢ Empower consumers seeking discontinuance of certain unfair and restrictive trade practices, defects or deficiencies in services and stopping in services or withdrawal of hazardous goods from the market. There are no legal formalities for filing the complaint. Suppose, you find yourself cheated by trader or a manufacturer and wish to make a complaint to consumer court, you can write the details on a plain paper. Attach the supporting documents, that is, guarantee or warrantee card and cash memo with the complaint and submit it in the district consumer court. You do not have to go to any lawyer or professional for legal assistance. You yourself can plead the case in the consumer court.Since, the enactment of the Consumer Protection Act and even before that, newspapers and magazines have been responding to the needs of consumers. Apart from publishing articles, columns etc newspapers have also tried to come to the rescue of harassed consumers. The Indian Express was one of the first newspapers to start a consumer complaint column. There are 500 consumer associations, which are working in the field of consumer protection. They deal with various aspects of consumer exploitation. Some of the prominent ones are: Consumer Guidance Society of India, Mumbai; Citizens Action group, Mumbai; Common Cause, New Delhi; Voice, New Delhi; Consumer Utility and Trust Society, Jaipur. So next time you find yourself at the wrong end of a purchase don’t just sit back and blame, go to a consumer court and make your claim. CONSUMER AWARENESS  THE PROCESS of development along with the expanding globalization andliberalization process has increased the number of consumer related  issues. Consumer protection has earned an important place in the political, economic and social agendas of many nations. In India, the Government has taken many steps including legislative, to protect consumers.However, this is largely unknown to many citizens irrespective of whether they areeducated or uneducated. With an enormous population along with high levels of poverty,unemployment and poor literacy levels, consumer awareness continues to remain low. Education is a life long process of constantly acquiring relevant information, knowledgeand skills. Consumer education is an important part of this process and is a basicconsumer right that must be introduced at the school level. Consumers by definitioninclude all citizens who are, by and large the biggest group, who are affected by almostall government, public or private decisions. The most important step in consumer education is awareness of consumer rights. However, consumer education is incompletewithout the responsibilities and duties of consumers, and this influences individual behaviour to a great extent. With the increasing changes in economic conditions, thechildren especially are becoming young consumers at an early age. Children must learn toobtain information about goods and services, understand the psychology of selling andadvertising, learn to shop wisely and distinguish between wants and needs. They mustalso understand the alternatives of conserving and saving rather than buying andconsuming.Children are spending more of their leisure time watching television at the cost of other pursuits such as reading or sports. With the introduction of a number of specialisedsatellite channels, television enjoys a large viewership base consisting of children.Exposure to the marketplace as young shoppers has made most children aware of thedifferent kinds of products that are available. Advertisements are no doubt an importantsource of information as they help to inform consumers about the availability of different products before making their choice. A majority of the advertisements are aimed at youngchildren today, especially those covering food products, beverages and cosmetics(especially toothpaste/fairness creams). Advertising influences the food preferences andeating habits of children to a large extent.Unfortunately, many advertisements make false promises, are highly exaggerated a ndgive incomplete descriptions of products. The media, schools and parents along withconsumer groups need to help children develop the ability to understand  the purpose of advertising. There is so much more information available to children that they must perceive the importance of distinguishing between different sources of information.The consumption patterns are changing fast and children today are very clear on their choices regarding food, clothing, cosmetics or accessories. Parents are increasingly permitting their children to take decisions when shopping. It then becomes veryimportant for children to check details (for example, labels) before buying products Children can be taught to shop wisely and a few simple precautions will ensure that theychoose the right product at the right price. It is but natural that parents wish the best for their children, and strive hard to fulfil their demands. But this is not always a good ideaas it affects both the parents and children in a negative way in the long run.Consumer education also involves environmental education as it deals with theimportance of conserving (natural resources) and sustaining (recycling and reusing) theenvironment, including the direct health effects of environmental pollution and toxic products on consumers.Schools must incorporate consumer education into school curricula as it is important toimpart the practical skills and critical ability needed to cope with social and economicchanges.Anyone who consumes goods is a consumer. Consumers get exploited in the market.They respond to advertisements and buy goods. Generally advertisements do not give allthe information that a consumer needs t know or wants to know about a product. Definition Consumer awareness is making the consumer aware of His/Her rights.Consumer awareness it a marketing term. It means that consumers note or are aware of products or services, its characteristics and the other marketing P’s (place to buy, price,and promotion).Usually commercials and ads increase consumer awareness, as well as â€Å"word of mouth†(a comment from someone you know about a product or service). 1 Need : we need it so we will not be misled by producers,it explains if what we buy is worth toour money..and not harmful to us and to environment .Many people are ignorant of their rights to get protected against the exploitation by somany others. So when there is a forum for such redress of grievances there seems to beno such exploitation by many; and becomes a rare one. So in order  to get a clear pictureof the level of exploitation of consumers, the awareness is required. 2. Role of producers proper labeling, full information, health warnings, handling information, expiration date,etc. keep to requirements, norms, standards label products according requirements, providing true facts They have to produce and deliver the goods/services of right qualityat right price at right time at right place at right quantity with right faceIf they are providing a service they should carry it out with due skill and care. They mustalso make sure that any materials they provide as part of this service are fit for the purpose. It is also illegal for a supplier to cut off, or threaten to cut off, supply to areseller (wholesale or retail) because they have been discounting goods or advertisingdiscounts below prices set by the supplier. Some of the common methods of exploitation are 1.Under weight and under measurements –not measured or weighed correctly2.Substandard Quality –defective home appliances and medicines beyond expirydate3.High prices—charging above the retail price4.Duplicate Articles—selling fake items in the name of the original5.Adulteration and Impurity—is done to get higher profits6.Lack of safety Devices—absence of inbuilt safe guards in appliances7.Artificial Scarcity—hoarding and black marketing8.False and Incomplete Information—misleading information on quality, durability,and safety.9.Unsatisfactory after sales Service—high cost items like electronics and carsrequire constant and regular service.10.Rough behavior and Undue conditions—harassment in getting LPG connection or a telephone connection.. Factors causing exploitation of Consumers. 1.Limited Information—providing full and correct information will help in thechoice2.Limited Supplies—when goods and services are in short supply then price shootsup3.Limited Competition.—single producer may manipulate the market in terms of price and stocks.4.Low Literacy.—illiteracy leads to exploitation.Hence Consumer Awareness isessential Rise of consumer Awareness Kautilya was one of the earliest to write in his Arthashastra about the need for Consumer awareness and protection. With the growth of private sector there is a greater need for discipline and regulation of the market. Consumers must be aware of the sale and purchase of goods, the health and security aspects also. Ensuring the safety of food itemssold in the market is essential these days.Legal measures for consumer safety and consumer awareness must be uniform, andtransparent in terms of prices, quality of goods, and stocks. Consumers must have thetools to combat malpractices and protect their rights. Rights and Duties of Consumers As codified under the Indian Laws the Consumers have the following Rights 1.Right to Safety—to protect against hazardous goods2.Right to be Informed—about price, quality, purity3.Right to Choose—access to a variety of goods and services at competitive prices.4.Right to be Heard—consumers interest and welfare must be taken care of 5.Right to seek Redressal—protection against unfair trade practicesand settlinggenuine grievances.6.Right to Consumer Education.—Kowledge about goods and issues related toconsumers. Duties 1.Get a bill for every important purchase and also the Warranty card2.Check the ISI mark or Agmark on the goods3.Form consumer awareness groups4.Make a complaint on genuine grievances.5.Consumers must know to exercise their rights. Consumer protection Measure 1. Legislation concerning Consumer Rights. The Consumer Protection Act 1986 provides for consumer disputes redressal at the stateand national level. With the help of this law the agencies can solve grievances in aspeedy, simple and inexpensive manner. A separate department of consumer affairs wasset up at the state and central government. A three tier system of consumer courts at the National, State and District levels were set up. These agencies have done good work byhandling lakhs of cases. 2. Public Distribution System .To protect the poor from price rise and black marketing the government food  security tothe poor by supplying essentials through the ration or Fair price shops. 3. Standardisation of Products .These are done to assure the quality of products. The ISI stamp on goods is placed by theBureau of Indian standards. This caters to industrial and consumer goods. These goodscan be trusted to confirm to specific standards. Agmark is meant for Agricultural products.At the International level the International Organization for Standardization (ISO) locatedin Geneva sets common standards. The FAO and WHO provide food standards. 4.Legal formalities for filing a complaint .The complaint can be written on plain paper. The supporting documents like the warrantycard must be attached. A lawyer is not required. We can argue our case

Credit Union Case Study - 1098 Words

†¢ The efforts and dedication to the Hispanic growth strategy is reflected in the percentage increase shown in the Credit Union Growth Stage. The score increased by 20% since the last time the HON assessments was completed in 2016. †¢ Based on Coopera’s Best Practice Index, Kern Schools Federal Credit Union is at 62% which is within the Emerging stage. †¢ The efforts around the Hispanic Growth Strategy have been more prevalent than years past. Such efforts are driving growth, momentum and the credit union’s leadership is confident they will continue to rise in the trajectory. †¢ Michael acknowledge the low response rate does not help their score. He would like to see this increase for next year’s HON assessment. †¢ Coopera sees the response†¦show more content†¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¢ Have received comments from members saying they are taking their money but they are not lending them money. They will be exploring possibilities. Is we are taking alternative forms of ids then we should be doing the same with the lending. †¢ Some staff members are still unsure of the growth the credit union has experienced in the last couple of years. It would be a good idea to share HMA numbers with the staff as part of their onboarding process. Jaime and Coopera will finalize the staff training materials to make them available for their staff. †¢ Overall, the cultural buy-in has progress since the first HON. †¢ The Board of Directors has shown interests in Hispanic Growth Strategy as well. They have also acknowledge the lack of diversity within their board and it’s an issue. The Board of Directors should strive to be presentative of their membership. †¢ Kern Schools FCU would like to hire another person to help with marketing and more of the outreach piece. †¢ Patty suggested that vacant and open positions be filled with a bilingual candidate. The need for bilingual staff will continue to be present. Hispanic Market Analysis (HMA) Report †¢ Kern Schools FCU’s Hispanic membership growth has surpass the overall membership growth. You have gwon since the last we did this at the beigning. †¢ The total number of Hispanic members is close to 61,000 when we include those who are under 16 years of age. †¢ TheShow MoreRelatedCredit Union Case Study748 Words   |  3 Pagesapplications as well as through email. Additionally, the credit union also participates in several community outreaches and utilizes these opportunities to further broadcast our offerings and capabilities. Currently the credit union is sponsoring several scheduled walks and runs to generate awareness for various health ailments. Furthermore, PSECU advises the employees through a corporate portal of any new additions, changes, and notifications. 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