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ANALYSIS OF ARGUMENT
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The following paragraph recently appeared in an editorial printed in the opinion section of a local newspaper:
The recent surge in violence in the southern part of the city is a result of a shortage of police officers and an absence of leadership on the part of the city council. In order to rectify the burgeoning growth of crime that threatens the community, the city council must address this issue seriously. Instead of spending time on peripheral issues such as education quality, community vitality, and job opportunity, the city council must realize that the crime issue is serious and double the police force, even if this action requires budget cuts from other city programs.
With the alloted time remaining, dicsuss how well reasoned you find this argument.
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The argument claims that the recent surge in violence in the southern part of the city is a result of a shortage of police officers and an absence of leadership on the part of the city council and hence the city council must react seriously to the situation by doubling the police force even if doing so requires budget cuts from other city programs. The conclusion of the argument relies on assumptions for which there is no clear evidence. Hence the argument is weak or unconvincing and has several flaws.
First and most importantly, the argument readily assumes that the recent surge in violence in the southern part of the city is a result of a shortage of police officers. This statement is a stretch in a sense that it fails to establish that the shortage of police officers is the only reason for the recent surge in violence. Other factors such as poor economy, a lack of job opportunity and a declined in education quality can also result in a surge in violence. Take the US for example, its rate of violence crimes increases with that of the unemployment which is currently at 9.8%. Without establishing the root cause of the situation carefully, the argument may lead to corrective actions which will not produce the desired outcome.
Second the argument claims that the city council does not realize the seriousness of the recent surge in violence and therefore is not addressing the surge in violence seriously. This is again very weak and fails to prove that the city council is not addressing the surge in violence seriously enough. It could be a case whereby the city council is still working on the issue but there have been no concrete actions yet.
Finally, the argument claims that the city council should double the police force at the expenses of other issues such as education quality, community vitality and job opportunity to curb the recent surge in violence. This again is a far-fetch conclusion in that it did not explain how doubling the police force can help in curbing the recent surge in violence even if it true that indeed a shortage of police force is the cause of the surge in violence.
In summary, the argument is flawed and therefore unconvincing. It could be considerably strengthen if the author clearing mentioned all the relevant facts. In order to ascertain the root cause and subsequently the solution to a situation, it is essential to have full knowledge of all contributing factors and weigh them appropriately before arriving at the conclusion.
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ANALYSIS OF ISSUE
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What really matters in the leadership of business and organizations is getting results, reaching benchmarks, and achieving success."
With the alloted time remaining, dicsuss the extent to which you agree or disagree with the opinion stated above. Support your views with reasons and/or examples from your own experience, observations, or reading.
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Some people may think that the only matters in the leadership of business and organisation are getting results, reaching benchmarks and achieving success. In my opinion, I would think that the leadership of business and organisation involves more than just getting results, reaching benchmarks and achieving success. Hence, I am incline to disagree with the statement.
In my opinion, the crux of leadership of business and organisation is to establish a vision for the business and organisation. A vision is important because it puts everyone in the organisation on the same page and that vision can be established only by the top leaders of a business and organisation. Many businesses and organisations with good vision succeeded while those without it sank into oblivion. The positive example is Apple Inc, a highly successful hi-tech company producing wonderful gadgets which set the tend in consumer electronics, that has a clear business vision set by Steve Job - that is to make a contribution to the world by making tools for the mind that advance humankind.
Another important aspect of leadership of business and organisation is also to plan the steps to getting the results, establish benchmarks and define success all of which are in line with the business vision. Without a plan, businesses and organisations are blind. Many business and organisations start-ups failed because they do not have a plan. I have know of a friend's hi-tech start-up which did well in the earlier days because he innovated a new solution but failed in the end because he did not plan a good marketing strategy for it and the start-up was later overtaken by competitors.
Admittedly, getting results, reaching benchmarks and archiving success are still very critical in the matters of leadership of business and organisation in that they constitute to the execution of the plan to achieve the vision. Organisations with vision and plan but without execution are also set to fail.
In conclusion, while it is important in leadership of business and organisation to "do things right" in the sense of getting results, reaching benchmarks and achieving success, it is important to "do the right things" in the sense of visualizing and planning the results, benchmarks and success criteria. However both of which cannot do without each other. Hence, on a broader level, I am incline to disagree with the statement that limits the matter of leadership of business and organisation to purely "doing things right".
ANALYSIS OF ARGUMENT
--------------------------
The following paragraph recently appeared in an editorial printed in the opinion section of a local newspaper:
The recent surge in violence in the southern part of the city is a result of a shortage of police officers and an absence of leadership on the part of the city council. In order to rectify the burgeoning growth of crime that threatens the community, the city council must address this issue seriously. Instead of spending time on peripheral issues such as education quality, community vitality, and job opportunity, the city council must realize that the crime issue is serious and double the police force, even if this action requires budget cuts from other city programs.
With the alloted time remaining, dicsuss how well reasoned you find this argument.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
The argument claims that the recent surge in violence in the southern part of the city is a result of a shortage of police officers and an absence of leadership on the part of the city council and hence the city council must react seriously to the situation by doubling the police force even if doing so requires budget cuts from other city programs. The conclusion of the argument relies on assumptions for which there is no clear evidence. Hence the argument is weak or unconvincing and has several flaws.
First and most importantly, the argument readily assumes that the recent surge in violence in the southern part of the city is a result of a shortage of police officers. This statement is a stretch in a sense that it fails to establish that the shortage of police officers is the only reason for the recent surge in violence. Other factors such as poor economy, a lack of job opportunity and a declined in education quality can also result in a surge in violence. Take the US for example, its rate of violence crimes increases with that of the unemployment which is currently at 9.8%. Without establishing the root cause of the situation carefully, the argument may lead to corrective actions which will not produce the desired outcome.
Second the argument claims that the city council does not realize the seriousness of the recent surge in violence and therefore is not addressing the surge in violence seriously. This is again very weak and fails to prove that the city council is not addressing the surge in violence seriously enough. It could be a case whereby the city council is still working on the issue but there have been no concrete actions yet.
Finally, the argument claims that the city council should double the police force at the expenses of other issues such as education quality, community vitality and job opportunity to curb the recent surge in violence. This again is a far-fetch conclusion in that it did not explain how doubling the police force can help in curbing the recent surge in violence even if it true that indeed a shortage of police force is the cause of the surge in violence.
In summary, the argument is flawed and therefore unconvincing. It could be considerably strengthen if the author clearing mentioned all the relevant facts. In order to ascertain the root cause and subsequently the solution to a situation, it is essential to have full knowledge of all contributing factors and weigh them appropriately before arriving at the conclusion.
---------------------
ANALYSIS OF ISSUE
---------------------
What really matters in the leadership of business and organizations is getting results, reaching benchmarks, and achieving success."
With the alloted time remaining, dicsuss the extent to which you agree or disagree with the opinion stated above. Support your views with reasons and/or examples from your own experience, observations, or reading.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Some people may think that the only matters in the leadership of business and organisation are getting results, reaching benchmarks and achieving success. In my opinion, I would think that the leadership of business and organisation involves more than just getting results, reaching benchmarks and achieving success. Hence, I am incline to disagree with the statement.
In my opinion, the crux of leadership of business and organisation is to establish a vision for the business and organisation. A vision is important because it puts everyone in the organisation on the same page and that vision can be established only by the top leaders of a business and organisation. Many businesses and organisations with good vision succeeded while those without it sank into oblivion. The positive example is Apple Inc, a highly successful hi-tech company producing wonderful gadgets which set the tend in consumer electronics, that has a clear business vision set by Steve Job - that is to make a contribution to the world by making tools for the mind that advance humankind.
Another important aspect of leadership of business and organisation is also to plan the steps to getting the results, establish benchmarks and define success all of which are in line with the business vision. Without a plan, businesses and organisations are blind. Many business and organisations start-ups failed because they do not have a plan. I have know of a friend's hi-tech start-up which did well in the earlier days because he innovated a new solution but failed in the end because he did not plan a good marketing strategy for it and the start-up was later overtaken by competitors.
Admittedly, getting results, reaching benchmarks and archiving success are still very critical in the matters of leadership of business and organisation in that they constitute to the execution of the plan to achieve the vision. Organisations with vision and plan but without execution are also set to fail.
In conclusion, while it is important in leadership of business and organisation to "do things right" in the sense of getting results, reaching benchmarks and achieving success, it is important to "do the right things" in the sense of visualizing and planning the results, benchmarks and success criteria. However both of which cannot do without each other. Hence, on a broader level, I am incline to disagree with the statement that limits the matter of leadership of business and organisation to purely "doing things right".
- What would be even more powerful here would be to discuss how lack of quality education, community vitality and job opportunity can lead to an increase in violence that would overwhelm even a doubled police force
