Market Intercourses Quarter

Enterprise Acquisitions Quarter (hereinafter, the Quarter) is the first of four lectures of Operations Quadrivium (hereinafter, the Quadrivium):

• The Quarter is designed to introduce its learners to enterprise discovery, or, in other words, to concepts related to obtaining data needed to administer the enterprise effort; and
• The Quadrivium examines concepts of administering various types of enterprises known as enterprise administration as a whole.

The Quadrivium is the first of seven modules of Septem Artes Administrativi, which is a course designed to introduce its learners to general concepts in business administration, management, and organizational behavior.

Outline

The predecessor lecture is Leadership Quarter.

Concepts

• Company acquisition. When one company buys controlling stake in another company. Can be friendly (agreed upon) or hostile (no agreement).
• Capital. Monetary assets currently available for use. Entrepreneurs raise capital to start a company and continue raising capital to grow the company.
• Equity. “In finance, equity is ownership in any asset after all debts associated with that asset are paid off.” (Source: Investopedia) Equity = Assets minus Liabilities. In terms of startup, it is commonly used to describe a business giving up a percentage of ownership in exchange for cash. An equity investor is then entitled to share in any future profits and/or sale of business assets (after debts are paid off).
• Seed. The seed round is the first official round of financing for a startup. At this point a company is usually raising funds for proof of concept and/or to build out a prototype and is referred to as a "seed stage" company.
• Series. Refers to the specific round of financing a company is raising. For example, company X is raising their Series A round.
• Round. Startups raise capital from VC firms in individual rounds, depending on the stage of the company. The first round is usually a Seed round followed by Series A, B, and C rounds if necessary. In rare cases rounds can go as far as Series F, as was the case with Box.net.

1. Recruitment. Locating, identifying, and attracting capable applicants.
   • Global sourcing. Purchasing materials and labor from around the world wherever it is cheapest.
   • Decruitment. Reducing an organization's workforce.
2. Selection. Screening job applicants to ensure that the most appropriate candidates are hired.
   • Situational judgment test. A substantive selection test that asks applicants how they would perform in a variety of job situations; the answers are then compared to the answers of high-performing employees.
   • Work sample test. A hands-on simulation of part or all of the work that applicants for routine jobs must perform.
   • Panel interview. A structured interview conducted with a candidate and a number of panel members in a joint meeting.
   • Assessment center. An off-site place where candidates are given a set of performance simulation tests designed to evaluate their managerial potential.
   • Critical incident. A way of evaluating the behaviors that are key in making the difference between executing a job effectively and executing it ineffectively.
   • Behaviorally anchored rating scale. A scale that combine major elements from the critical incident and graphic rating scale approaches. The appraiser rates the employees based on items along a continuum, but the points are examples of actual behavior on the given job rather than general descriptions or traits.
3. Socialization. A process that adapts employees to the organization's culture.
   • Socialization. The process that helps employees adapt to the organization's culture.
   • Prearrival stage. The period of learning in the socialization process that occurs before a new employee joins the organization.
   • Realistic job preview. A preview of a job that provides both positive and negative information about the job and the company.
   • Realistic job preview. A substantive selection test that is a job tryout to assess talent versus experience.
   • Encounter stage. The stage in the socialization process in which a new employee sees what the organization is really like and confronts the possibility that expectations and reality may diverge.
   • Metamorphosis stage. The stage in the socialization process in which a new employee changes and adjusts to the job, work group, and organization.
   • Orientation. Introducing a new employee to her or his job and the organization.

• Technical skill. Job-specific knowledge and technique needed to proficiently perform work tasks.
• Work demand. A responsibility, pressure, obligation, and even uncertainty that individuals face in the workplace.
• Work resource. A thing within an individual's control that can be used to solve work demands.
• Skill variety. The degree to which a job requires a variety of activities so that an employee can use a number of different skills and talents.
• Skill variety. The degree to which a job requires a variety of different activities.
• Speaking skills. Skills that refer to the ability to communicate information and ideas in talking so others will understand.
• Emotional labor. A situation in which an employee expresses organizationally desired emotions during interpersonal transactions at work.
• Intellectual property. Proprietary information that's critical to an organization's efficient and effective functioning and competitiveness.
• Material symbol. What conveys to employees who is important, the degree of egalitarianism top management desires, and the kinds of behavior that are appropriate.
• Organizational justice. An overall perception of what is fair in the workplace, composed of distributive, procedural, informational, and interpersonal justice.
• Professional ability. An individual's capacity to perform the various tasks in a job.
• Readiness. The extent to which people have the ability and willingness to accomplish a specific task.
• Reading skills. Skills that entail an understanding of written sentences and paragraphs in work-related documents.
• Writing skills. Skills that entail communicating effectively in text as appropriate for the needs of the audience.

Roles

1. Arbitrator. A third party to a negotiation who has the authority to dictate an agreement.
2. Conciliator. A trusted third party who provides an informal communication link between the negotiator and the opponent.
3. Mediator. A neutral third party who facilitates a negotiated solution by using reasoning, persuasion, and suggestions for alternatives.

Practices

The successor lecture is Stakeholder Engagement Quarter.