3m “Profile of an Innovating Company free essay sample

3M â€Å"Profile of an Innovating Company† The 3M case traces the history of this Minnesota-based company from its inception in 1902 through 1992. By looking at the tenure of three CEOs, the case examines how 3M worked to maintain a culture of innovation while continuing to grow into an international multibillion dollar organization. While the organization’s values are critical to the success of 3M, internal and external forces also forced 3M to adjust their business model. William McKnight, the founding CEO, embedded a strong organizational culture into 3M. He instilled the values of entrepreneurship, research and experimentation into every employee. His goal was to create a climate that â€Å"stimulates ordinary people to do great things. † As 3M grew into a billion dollar business they continued to maintain their core values of innovation, marketplace responsiveness and entrepreneurship. Employees at 3M were encouraged to work on their own projects with a corporate-wide policy that promoted work on personal projects for up to 15% of a researcher’s time. We will write a custom essay sample on 3m â€Å"Profile of an Innovating Company or any similar topic specifically for you Do Not WasteYour Time HIRE WRITER Only 13.90 / page Individual persistence was recognized and people were encouraged to pursue their own ideas and to take risks. Management supported â€Å"unintentioned failure† and was known to support projects that did not necessarily show market viability. Often times, these projects found future niche markets or applications that were never thought of by the inventor. 3M was a â€Å"market-oriented technology based company. † It was built around the idea of adapting current technology platforms to meet the different needs of consumers. 3M looked both externally at niche market needs and internally at ways to apply new market opportunities to existing technology. They capitalized on their technology through informal and formal knowledge sharing processes. They held technology conferences, organized technology boards and promoted sharing through other communities of practice. It was the norm to ask for scientists to discuss their work and ask for advice or suggestions. The organizational structure under McKnight was a â€Å"grow and divide† concept, where management expected units to grow organically. Successful products were continually made into new divisions, which in turn became new groups. In 1977 McKnight passed away and his successor Lou Leher took over. Internal and external changes forced management to look at how 3M could continue to be profitable in the future. The growth and spin off process left by McKnight made it challenging for 3M to control their businesses. As a result of entrepreneurship and diversification, business spin-offs had created a fragmented organization. Leher created a new business structure that promoted the consolidation of divisions to share resources and integrate processes. He also standardized the strategic planning and funding process. Used to an informal planning process based on perception and measured against their own metrics,† a formal planning system was a shock to the organization. RD funding, which was typically allocated at the discretion of the manager, was now more formalized. Although funding was more focused, they still provided an opportunity for funding additional products. Lehr began to formalize the processes of 3 M. The organization, valuing entrepreneurship and innovation, became hard to control and was leading to decreased profitability of the company. The final tenure followed is that of Jake Jacobson, a bottom line CEO who came in to cut costs and increase profitability. He changed the focus of 3M from niche premium markets to low cost markets. His changes promoted the use of cross functional teams and quicker time to market. To move products more quickly to market, the company adopted a more disciplined approach to selecting projects. Projects that did not show promise up front would not be funded, as typically done in the past. Managers began to feel that innovation was being stifled and the balance between entrepreneurial spirit and team work was lost.

About Byzantine Architecture and the Rise of Christianity

About Byzantine Architecture and the Rise of Christianity Byzantine architecture is a style of building that flourished under the rule of Roman Emperor Justinian between A.D. 527 and 565. In addition to extensive use of interior mosaics, its defining characteristic is a heightened dome, the result of the latest sixth-century engineering techniques. Byzantine architecture dominated the eastern half of the Roman Empire during the reign of Justinian the Great, but the influences spanned centuries, from 330 until the fall of Constantinople in 1453 and on into todays church architecture. Much of what we call Byzantine architecture today is ecclesiastical, meaning church-related. Christianity began to flourish after the Edict of Milan in A.D. 313 when Roman Emperor Constantine (c. 285-337) announced his own Christianity, which legitimized the new religion; Christians would no longer be routinely persecuted. With religious freedom, Christians could worship openly and without threat, and the young religion spread rapidly. The need for places of worship expanded as did the need for new approaches to building design. Hagia Irene (also known as Haghia Eirene or Aya Ä °rini Kilisesi) in Istanbul, Turkey is the  site of the first Christian church ordered built by Constantine in the 4th Century. Many of these early churches were destroyed but rebuilt atop their rubble by Emperor Justinian. Hagia Irene or Aya Ä °rini Kilisesi in Istanbul, Turkey. Salvator Barki/Getty Images (cropped) Characteristics of Byzantine Architecture Original Byzantine churches are square-shaped with a central floor plan. They were designed after the Greek cross or crux immissa quadrata instead of the Latin crux ordinaria of Gothic cathedrals. Early Byzantine churches might have one, dominant center dome of great height, rising from a square base on half-dome pillars or pendentives. Byzantine architecture blended Western and Middle Eastern architectural details and ways of doing things. Builders renounced the Classical Order in favor of columns with decorative impost blocks inspired by Middle Eastern designs. Mosaic decorations and narratives were common. For example, the mosaic image of Justinian in the Basilica of San Vitale in Ravenna, Italy honors the Roman Christian Emporer. The early Middle Ages was also a time of experimentation with building methods and materials. Clerestory windows became a popular way for natural light and ventilation to enter an otherwise dark and smokey building. Mosaic of the Roman Christian Emporer Justinian I Flanked by Military and Clergy. CM Dixon/Print Collector/Getty Images Construction and Engineering Techniques How do you put a huge, round dome onto a square-shaped room? Byzantine builders experimented with different methods of construction; when ceilings fell in, they tried something else. Art historian Hans Buchwald writes that: Sophisticated methods for assuring structural solidity were developed, such as well-built deep foundations, wooden tie-rod systems in vaults, walls and foundations, and metal chains placed horizontally inside masonry. Byzantine engineers turned to the structural use of pendentives to elevate domes to new heights. With this technique, a dome can rise from the top of a vertical cylinder, like a silo, giving height to the dome. Like the Hagia Irene, the exterior of the Church of San Vitale in Ravenna, Italy is characterized by the silo-like pendentive construction. A good example of pendentives seen from the inside is the interior of the ​Hagia Sophia (Ayasofya) in Istanbul, one of the most famous Byzantine structures in the world. Inside the Hagia Sophia. Frà ©dà ©ric Soltan/Corbis via Getty Images Why This Style Is Called Byzantine In the year 330, Emperor Constantine relocated the capital of the Roman Empire from Rome to a part of Turkey known as Byzantium (present-day Istanbul). Constantine renamed Byzantium to be called Constantinople after himself. What we call the Byzantine Empire is really the Eastern Roman Empire. The Roman Empire was divided into East and West. While the Eastern Empire was centered in Byzantium, the Western Roman Empire was centered in Ravenna, in northeast Italy, which is why Ravenna is a well-known tourist destination for Byzantine architecture. The Western Roman Empire in Ravenna fell in 476 but was recaptured in 540 by Justinian. Justinians Byzantine influence is still felt in Ravenna. Byzantine Architecture, East and West The Roman Emperor Flavius Justinianus was not born in Rome, but in Tauresium, Macedonia in Eastern Europe in about 482. His place of birth is a major factor why the reign of the Christian Emperor changed the shape of architecture between 527 and 565. Justinian was a ruler of Rome, but he grew up with the people of the Eastern world. He was a Christian leader uniting two worlds; construction methods and architectural details were passed back and forth. Buildings that previously had been built similar to those in Rome took on more local, Eastern influences. Justinian reconquered the Western Roman Empire, which had been taken over by barbarians, and Eastern architectural traditions were introduced to the West. A mosaic image of Justinian from the Basilica of San Vitale, in Ravenna, Italy is a testament to the Byzantine influence on the Ravenna area, which remains a great center of Italian Byzantine architecture. Byzantine Architecture Influences Architects and builders learned from each of their projects and from each other. Churches built in the East influenced the construction and design of sacred architecture built in many places. For example, the Byzantine Church of the Saints Sergius and Bacchus, a small Istanbul experiment from the year 530, influenced the final design of the most famous Byzantine Church, the grand Hagia Sophia (Ayasofya), which itself inspired the creation of Blue Mosque of Constantinople in 1616. The Eastern Roman Empire profoundly influenced early Islamic architecture, including the Umayyad Great Mosque of Damascus and the Dome of the Rock in Jerusalem. In Orthodox countries such as Russia and Romania, Eastern Byzantine architecture persisted, as shown by the 15th century Assumption Cathedral in Moscow. Byzantine architecture in the Western Roman Empire, including in Italian towns such as Ravenna, more quickly gave way to Romanesque and Gothic architecture, and the towering spire replaced the high domes of early Christian architecture. Architectural periods have no borders, especially during what is known as the Middle Ages. The period of Medieval architecture from roughly 500 to 1500 is sometimes called Middle and Late Byzantine. Ultimately, names are less important than influence, and architecture has always been subject to the next great idea. The impact of Justinians rule was felt long after his death in A.D. 565. Source Buchwald, Hans. The Dictionary of Art, Volume 9. Jane Turner, ed. Macmillan, 1996, p. 524