Bacteria and Management!?

The basic units of all life are cells. Specialized cells have different functions and different specialized cells are able to work together and form a bigger unit. However, some cells such as bacteria have it all in them already and are able to survive as a unit on their own. Bacterial cells are similar to management and the organizations that are formed through management in many ways.

What is management?
Management is the idea where a group of people get together to form an organization and accomplish certain goals. In order to achieve those goals, many characteristics must be present in these organizations. Bacteria, being one of the organisms that have the longest history on our planet, surviving almost all the harsh conditions early has gone through exhibits many of the different characteristics needed for organizations to achieve their goals.

The ability to work together as a unit towards one goal
Bacteria are able to survive on its own as a unit because it contains many different parts. For instance, a bacterium has a plasma membrane which acts as a boundary for the cell, ribosomes which are factories for protein synthesis and plasmids which contain the genetic information of the bacterial cell. All these different components in the cell have different roles and these different roles work together to allow the cell to function as a unit and achieve the same goal, to allow the bacterial cell to survive and reproduce. These different parts of a bacterial cell also communicate with each other through protein signals to make sure the process is smooth and there are no confusion involved while working as a team. Similarly, organizations also contain different elements. There are different people who specialize in different things and are responsible for different tasks. For instance, in a company there must be someone responsible for human resource, while there is someone else will be responsible for financial affairs, technological affairs and marketing. In order for an organization of operate properly, the people responsible for the different roles must work together so the organization can operate. The different people should also make sure they understand each other just like the different parts of a bacterial cell communicates so there is no misunderstandings.

The ability to adapt to the environment that is constantly changing
Bacteria are one of the fastest evolving organisms in the world. They are constantly changing themselves to adapt to the environment around them. For instance, after one gets sick they often treat themselves with antibiotics. However, after using the same antibiotic for a long period of time, the bacteria will start to evolve and become resistance making the antibiotics no long effective. The ability for bacteria to evolve and adapt to the different changes in the environment is the main reason why bacteria are able to survive for so long. Similarly, companies need to be able to adapt and change to their environment accordingly. If an old company is stubborn and refuses to change or adapt and come up with new ideas pretty soon the company will lose all its business and its competitors will take over!

Different forms in management
Bacteria come in different shapes and sizes. They can be as big as the coma on this page or as small as 0.3 micrometers which is only visible under the microscope! They can be circular, rod shaped or spiral shaped. Different species can also be different in color and live in different conditions. Bacteria can survive in almost any condition, from the hot springs in Yellow stone National park to the top of the majestic Rocky Mountain. They are everywhere! Organizations also come in different forms. There are small companies where all the workers in the company are from the same family. There are also very big companies like Google where the employees are completely unrelated. Organizations can be found everywhere and depending on the environment they can also have different forms.

Strategies to survive
Bacteria use different strategies to survive. Some have flagella that allow them to move towards nutrients or away from waste products. Companies and firms also have different strategies that help them survive. For instance they increase the amount of funds spent on advertisement in order to promote their products. They can also increase the salary of certain positions in order to attract more creative individuals to come and join their companies. Companies may also try and adapt to different changing markets by coming up with different innovative ideas that consumers are interested in.

Different organizations working together
Bacteria can survive as a unit by itself but they can also form colonies that are in different forms. Some bacteria form pairs while others form clusters that look like grapes or straights chains. These different bacteria can use signals to communicate with each other to ensure the can work cooperatively as a team. Organizations can work independently or they can team up with other companies. The same company can also have branches and all these branches of the company can work together as a team towards one direction trying to achieve the same goal. While working together, the different companies need to make sure they communicate well with each other the way bacteria communicate with each other so there are no misunderstandings.

Management can be good or bad.
Bacterial cells can be used to make cheese, bread, wine, or even yogurt. Most bacteria are harmless and some can even be beneficial. However, we usually only know the ones that our bad for our health. Most companies are beneficial to our everyday life. Every day, companies such as Google are trying to come with better and better technology for us. However, some organizations in order to make more profit may use some unethical methods. Unfortunately, we usually have a greater impression on those companies just like the way we know more infectious bacteria than beneficial ones. Thus we should remember the bad but never forget the good.

Even though bacteria may seem like small organisms that do not really play a role in our everyday life except for causing us to get sick there is actually a lot to be learned from them. Bacteria, without any special training understand the idea of working together as a unit in order to achieve their goals. They also know that in order to survive, they must always adapt to their environment which is constantly changing. The different organizational units can also work together as long as there is appropriate communication. Bacteria and management both have their benefits and drawbacks. As long as we are able to appreciate their benefits and be aware of their drawbacks we can make use of both bacteria and management in our lives.