Facebook Organisational Culture Case Study

Facebook Organisational Culture Case Study Managers with conceptual skills are able to see the organization as a whole, conceptualize about abstract and complex situations ´ and to think strategically (Robbins Coulter 2005). With reference to Forbes Magazine, Mark Zuckerberg, the creator of marvel Facebook and one of the youngest billionaire yet, contributes the ability of vast conceptual skills. Zuckerberg has the ability to think critically and plan for long term. For example, he is able to see the potential of success by using the Internet to connect with people more effectively. Therefore, he created Facebook at 2004 and now it becomes the largest social networking site with millions of users worldwide. Moreover, Zuckerberg carries out his role as disturbance handler with the combination of conceptual skill to solve the difficulties. For instance, he received criticize from users when Facebook introduced new features and issues about privacy. However, Zuckerberg resolve these problems appropriately and continue to oper ate the company successfully. Although Zuckerberg made mistakes in decision making, most of the people believed that he have the potential to improve his conceptual skill and consequently bring Facebook to upper level of achievement. As the CEO of Facebook, Zuckerberg plays multiple roles in managing the organization. Directing, training, motivating and organizing subordinates, supervising their improvement, promoting and reassuring their development are the duties required from the role of leader (LMC 2008). As a leader, Zuckerberg is skilled in making clear decision and limiting unwanted debate. Employees are allowed to recommend various solutions and gain knowledge on possible problems solved by him. Employees are encouraged to argue with his thought on projects to find a better solution (Bosworth 2010). Zuckerberg plays a good leader role by adapting in the human skills and conceptual skills. Next role that he is acting on is resource allocator, which carries the responsibility related to resources allocation of the organization among all concerned people or department. It involves budgeting, scheduling, allocation of duty to subordinates and authorization. From time to time, Zuckerberg has been scheduling for the ‘f8 platform† which is the â€Å"like† button in Facebook. There is three f8 in total in which the first one occuring on May 24th, 2007, second one happening on July 23rd, 2008 and consequently the third one happening on April 21-22 in 2010. During this period, the active user had increase tremendously. Figurehead role involves handling ceremonial and symbolic activities for the department or organization (Daft 2010). Mark Zuckerberg has successfully carried out the role of figurehead in Web 2.0 global social networking trend. For example, Zuckerberg discusses hiring the right people and challenges of an entrepreneur in the lectures on Entrepreneurship for Stanford University students on October 26, 2005 (Entrepreneurial Thought Leaders Lecture 2005). Furthermore, Zuckerberg planned to set up a foundation with $100 million of Facebooks closely held stock to the Newark Public Schools in New Jersey (Martinez Fowler 2010). His philanthropic donation has helped to improve Facebook image. The figurehead role played by Zuckerberg has enabled him to get more attention than Googles co-founder, Larry Page and Sergey Brin. In general Mark Zuckerberg use a great skill of conceptual skills and plays extensive character in all informational, interpersonal and decisional roles in the Facebook which allows and makes it to be the leading social media today. Q2) The only thing that would not change in the world is: the world is kept on changing. The external organizational environment is the elements happen outside of its boundary and may affect the growth of the organization. Figure 1 shows that Facebooks number of users is obviously more than its competitor, Twitter. Although Facebook currently rank as the top social networking sites, they still have to persist in innovating to hold on the honor. From the dimension of legal-political, Facebook created an opportunity that encourages users to share information online for the purpose of communication and business transactions. Unfortunately, it is also a threat that causes Facebook confronts disputation on privacy issue once beacon is launched. Beacon is a platform which takes data from 44 web destinations and combined with Facebooks internal information for the purpose of advertising. It allowed third parties site being posted on the wall of the users profile. It can also track everything people done online even they had logout from Facebook and despite who is using the computer. Regarding to this issue, many investigations have been carried out by security researcher â€Å"Wednesday†, Canadian privacy commissioner, Press coverage and European Commission. There is more than 100 million users personal information being used or spread out to the public without users authorization. This issue is not just about data leakage for user but also for developers and marketers who uses Facebook to operate their business. To pacify this issue, Facebook paid $9.5 million settlement to a class action lawsuit and it is being approved (Kravets 2010). Under the settlement, Facebook agreed to terminate Beaon platform started from November 2009. Facebook should provide a more user friendly privacy settings for the user to avoid the issue above to happen again. For international and sociocultural dimension, Table 1(pg) indicates that the number of users in USA is surprisingly high and owns the first place in the ranking. Although China and India has the largest population in the world but India only owns the fifth place. However, Table 2 (pg) indicates that a month later, India is the leading country which owns the highest audience growth rate. Reason for China did not appear in the ranking is Facebook is being censored by China since 2009. Prediction made by Daft said that â€Å"China will overtake United State economy as number one by midcentury† (Daft 2010, p.66). Unfortunately, China banned Facebook bring down a lot registration in China Mainland population which is about 1,330,141,295 (CIA World Factbook, Jan 2011) and opportunities to generate profit. China government always being tight to the access of internet, information flow and media banned Facebook because of the fatal riots happen in western region of Xinjiang in provin ce of China. Perhaps they believe that such an action will contain the reports or discussions of the riots or stop them from happening completely. Recent news reported that, Mark Zuckerberg still wanted to get connected to China and is now creating some localized version of site to fit Chinas government and hope to launch it in China. Therefore, every organization should be prepared to react to subtle environment shifts and adapt to various challenges environment that are increasingly dynamic. Facebook had tried their best to grapple with challenges like settlement of privacy issues and intervention with China. After conquering the challenges, Facebook is now one step nearer to its mission to connect the whole world. Q3) Ravasi and Schultz (2006) define organisation culture as a set of shared mental assumptions that guide organisation understanding and action by defining appropriate behaviour for various situations. In the past, hierarchy of management is vital for a corporate. However, CEO of Facebook, Mark Zuckerberg has created a relaxed, unstructured and open corporate culture that emphasizes more on equality (Boissonneau 2011). At Facebook, there are no cubicles, no walls, just mainly office furniture. This enables employees to work in a relaxed environment as they have more employee freedom with no standard work schedules. Furthermore, Facebooks managers also practice this working environment. Sheryl Sandberg, Facebooks Chief Operating Officer, and even Zuckerberg himself has no office. They work among the employees in the open workspace that could enhance openness and problem solving process. Every Friday, Zuckerberg holds a public question-and-answer session for an hour for the entire organisation. The openness created by this session, according to Zuckerberg, encourages collaboration, team-work and an informal atmosphere and communication among organisation. Facebook is ballooning into an empire, but it remains shabby, funky and slightly adorable. That is partly attributable to a workplace that combines playful start-up culture with muscular ambition and bite. â€Å"Facebooks goal is to be viewed as a â€Å"hip geek culture† in order to attract the best talent† (Finch 2011). Zuckerberg is responsible for the foundations of this culture, creating a fun environment by knocking a gong when someone finishes a big coding project. Facebook even hired well-known graffiti artist David Choe to paint murals in its first offices. According to Yiannopoulos, theres a block of Facebooks meeting rooms named after inventors, with one given to Al Gore, who invented the internet (2011). Facebook uses adaptability culture to interpret and respond quickly to the high-risk decision-making and rapid alteration environment. Besides, Facebook adapts involvement culture that emphasizes employees needs and responses towards environment changes. Face book is creating an intrinsically social culture, rather than enterprise software or geeky, engineer-driven algorithms. At Facebook, the employees can play video or table tennis games whenever they need to unwind on the job. This fun working environment has increased employees job satisfaction. Job satisfaction is the primary factor in intrinsic motivation. Therefore, due to the corporate culture recognized by Zuckerberg, Facebook employees are satisfied with their jobs and as a result do their jobs well and raise the productivity of Facebook. Facebooks slogan is â€Å"Facebook is a social utility that connects you with the people around you†. This slogan explains slightly about the social platform. Facebook has taken a very practical standpoint on providing a social network by created a framework and are expecting users to do most of the work. Facebook internal environment changes when Zuckerberg brought on Sheryl Sandberg, a respected executive from Google in March 2008. Besides, Zuckerberg is willing to take risks by hired Chris Cox, who was grad school dropout as Facebook HR manager. Organisational hierarchy was generally indicated through the price of suit. However, Zuckerberg has changed this culture by still wears T-shirts, jeans and Adidas flip-flops to work just as he did in 2004, when he co-founded Facebook at age 19 (Deneen 2011). Mark Zuckerberg shows effectiveness as a cultural leader for Facebook by able and willing to take the risks in hiring the executives for the company and motivate employees to achieve Facebooks goals by established a comfortable, amusing and unstructured corporate culture. Q4) As time passed, many professions developed several management theories as a guide for manager to run the organization. There are Classical Perspective, which occurred during nineteenth and early twenty, Management Science Perspective, which emerged during World War Two, Recent Historical Trend which happen after the World War Two and Modern Management which combine all different theories. Today business world required different management thinking and theory to fits in different industries and achieve organisational goals (Sridhar n.d). Facebook is the new trend in twenty-first century, which manage and lead by the founder name Mark Zuckerberg. Humanistic perspective was conducted by Mary Parker Follett and Chester Barnard. They believe that manager need to first value peoples feelings, needs, thoughts and social relations (Daft 2010). Mark Zuckerberg had this management thinking of creating a social network that allowed people all over the world to engage which each other and get updates even faster. Besides, Zuckerberg also adapting this theory to his employees by providing those free meals along the day, bottomless finger foods and unrestricted dry cleaning service. He allowed subordinates to express themselves, motivate them to have the same goals as the organisations goals by giving opinions on improvement of the organisation. He claims that an office is only a place to gather people to brain storming to generate profits and human are the most important resources for the organisation. Therefore, he design his headquarter with no wall between departments, and meeting rooms are located at the middle of work space separat ed by glass walls so everyone can see through the meetings. Besides, a study under ‘A Theory of Human Motivation of Abraham Maslow theories claims that people are influenced by several needs in pyramid order (Kendra n.d). Zuckerberg has fulfilled three levels of need for employees by providing employees free meals and considerable income to satisfied physical needs, allowing them to disclose their thoughts and opinions, appreciate them contribute many ideas and plans to run the business. This will increase employees esteem needs and belief that they are the proper source in helping make the world improve, and Zuckerberg will somehow challenge employees to meet certain goals (Bosworth 2010). This theory will increase organisation growth and acknowledges employees to fulfil their self-actualization needs. But, it required more psychological thinking from Zuckerberg, takes time for him to observe employees personalities and make organisation goals as part of their interest goals. Learning organisation is a modern theory which allows people not afraid to make mistakes and hope they can learn from the mistakes. It allows managers to raise the capability to discover and grow (Senge 1990:3). When Facebook dealing with the mistakes they made in beacon, they understand that not all people like to disclose their thoughts to the public, certain privacy are required from them. Facebook has learnt from this mistake and change their privacy settings. But, they also face the challenge of missing certain trust and confidence from the user. After Zuckerberg combining classical and modern theory, facebook will be creating a better competitive advantage to adapt into today rapid change world. Facebook will be more effective and efficient after adapting with all the theory, although Zuckerberg face a certain weight of challenges.

Corporate Responsibility and Marketing Strategies Essay

Examine Apple’s current position on the company’s ethical and social responsibilities, and determine whether or not the company has met these responsibilities. Provide two (2) examples that support your position. In addition to maximizing profits, one of the main objectives to many corporations today is to be well known for their responsible management and ethical performance. Apple is one of the most important companies throughout the world because of its size and their innovative products and services (Sanchez-Barajas, 2012). Nevertheless, innovation is what drives the sector development and the basis for the economic development. Furthermore, Apple has created about 514,000 jobs in 2011, which is an astronomical commitment to the economy (Sanchez-Barajas, 2012). Additionally, because of their business model focusing on outsourcing and their product characteristics, Apple could summarize material issues in two categories: environmental impact and supply chain manageme nt (Sanchez-Barajas, 2012). These issues seem to be the basis for understanding Apple’s corporate social responsibility. First, Apple products are designed to eliminate environmental impact, by using less energy consumption, small packages, and recycling methods (Sanchez-Barajas, 2012). However, there are criticisms with the danger of some materials used for IPads or IPhones, and the development of material for production. When it comes to supply chain, Apple’s ethical performance policy aligning with the entire supply chain is very well explained. This goes further than the Foxconn scandal. According to Tyson (2013), â€Å"Foxconn, which is a popular Apple contractor for Apple, had terrible working conditions, where employees would rather kill themselves than build an Apple product. The lack of effective corporate governance and forceful establishments in where they do business has added to the challenges of the control of several suppliers, and high risk for the company when it comes to abusive labor practices and not complying with the law (Sanchez-Barajas, 2012). Apple has the frameworks, and the information and understanding about their influence on society (Sanchez-Barajas, 2012). The main challenge depends heavily on the control of that impact. Nevertheless, Apple seems to be acting as a rational corporate citizen (Sanchez-Barajas, 2012). Apple’s ambition concerning supply chain management is essential for a responsible business. Determine the impact that the  publication of ethics and social responsibilities violations made by Apple’s suppliers has had on Apple’s reputation. Support your response with examples of the impact in question. Apple developed their code of conduct in 2005 (Kaiser, 2012). It states â€Å"that working conditions in Apple’s supply chain are safe, that workers are treated with respect and dignity, and that manufacturing processes are environmentally responsible† (para. 3). Although their supplier code of conduct had great intentions, it was not being supported either by Apple or its major suppliers (Kaiser, 2012). For example, employees were complaining of working long hors in unsafe conditions with little pay (Kaiser, 2012). Foxconn, their supplier in Chengdu, China, was guilty in violating Apple’s supplier’s code of ethics. Many of the employees worked more than 60 hours per week. According to Kaiser (2012), sometimes there would be about 20 employees stuffed inside a three-bedroom apartment. Additionally, Foxconn were employing underage workers (Kaiser, 2012). Furthermore, the factories were poorly ventilated, and the factories were being flooded with aluminum dust from the machines that shines the casings for IPads Apple has been under fire since the Foxconn scandal. Neither the workers nor the factory leaders had much to say about the issue. Therefore, the problem lies with Apple. According to Karimova (2012), after checking Apple’s CSR policy there is more focus concerning the quality of products rather than the concerns of suppliers. According to Karimova (2012), more than 50% of the contractors being inspected by the company have disregarded the code at least one time annually since 2007. The company has been accused of turning the blind eye as their suppliers pollute the country of China (Hay, 2013). Toxic discharges have been trespassing the communities. These large volumes of discharge within the supply chain have caused great danger to the health and safety of the public. This was not the first time where Apple was scrutinized for environmental infractions and their secretive supply chain management in Chines manufacturing factories, where there products are assembled (Gray, 2013). Suggest two (2) methods that Apple can utilize to ensure that its suppliers adhere to wage and benefits standards going forward. Justify your response One method I wou ld suggest to Apple is to make sure that the suppliers are held accountable for any wrongdoings. My next suggestion would be for Apple to have surprise visits to their  supplier’s manufacturing facilities. Apple should start tracking the work hours of the suppliers themselves and not rely solely on what the supplier has to say. Furthermore the procurement team must interact with suppliers on a daily basis to make sure their labor demands are met. According to Supplier Responsibility (2014), Apple began tracking the weekly work hours for nearly 1 million workers; also they begin to publish their findings on a monthly basis. As a result, nearly 92% of contractors were in compliance with the company across all work weeks, and the average hour per week was under 50 hours (Supplier Responsibility, 2014). Next, Apple should not tolerate any form of underage labor. I would recommend no longer working with suppliers that have underage workers. This may mean moving their operations inside the United States. However, when Apple discovered that their suppliers had underage workers working for them, they demanded them to correct this problem immediately as part of [their] Underage Labor Remediatio n Program (Supplier Responsibility, 2014). If it is discovered that a supplier has underage workers, the supplier must retort that worker to an educational institution and fund their education to whichever institution they family chose (Supplier Responsibility, 2014). Additionally, the child would continue receiving compensation of what they were receiving while working for the supplier (Supplier Responsibility, 2014). I would also suggest that Apple follow up with the family to make sure the suppliers are holding up their end of the bargain. Determine whether or not you believe that Apple’s customers would be willing to pay more for its products if Apple had to increase selling prices in order to provide better wages and benefits for suppliers’ workers. Provide a rationale for your position I believe Apple customers would be willing to pay more for Apple products. This is all due to a simple concept called brand loyalty. Business dictionary (2014) defines brand loyalty as: â€Å"the extent of faithfulness of consumers to a particular brand, expressed through their repeat purchases, irrespective of the marketing pressure generated by the competing brand† (para. 1). I am a loyal customer of Apple. I own several Apple products, and I would be willing to pay increased prices for their products. Apple’s customers are so loyal that they will camp outside the Apple store waiting on the new release of the latest Apple product. Additionally, when there are problems with Apple products, consumers are very patient with Apple as they  resolve these issues (Goodson, 2011). They understand to the fact that technical issues will arise, and they will continue to buy the products regardless to any mistakes the company may make (Goodson, 2011). The late Steve Jobs was very passionate about Apple products, he always ensured that they were of the best quality and had an innovative design (Goodson, 2011). According to Goodson (2011), Brand loyalty is one of the main reasons Apple is so successful today. First, Apple has built relationships with their customers by being trustworthy and transparent (Goodson, 2011). Secondly, Apple has carried out some very innovative marketing strategies (Goodson, 2011). Furthermore, they do not focus on the actual product itself, however; they focus on what the product can do for the consumer. Apple’s mission statement is unique. It does not talk about their products, but what they actually believe in. It states: â€Å"Apple is committed to bringing the best personal computing experience to students, educators, creative professionals and consumers around the world through its innovative, software and Internet offerings† (Goodson, 2011, para. 11). The success of Apple is because their mission statement reverberates throughout every part of Apple’s operations (Goodson, 2011). Finally, passion and dedication goes into making Apple pro ducts, and people who buy those products understand. Analyze Apple’s current overall marketing strategy. Recommend two (2) actions that Apple can take in order to improve its competitive advantage in the global marketplace. Support your response with examples of instances where your recommendations yielded the desired results. Since the incorporation of Apple in 1977, investor/advisor, Mike Markkula created a 3-point marketing philosophy that has remained the core of the effectiveness of Apple today (Moorman, 2012). Here is Apple’s original 3 point according to Moorman (2012): 1.Empathy 2.Focus 3.Impute These principles made the company one of the worlds’ most valuable companies. (Moorman, 2012). Part of their marketing strategy is that they hire customer obsessed, empathetic employees. A major key to Apple’s success is that they create products that the customers are turned on to (Moorman, 2012). This  will usually mean that customers will get what they want because the employees are so enrooted in and committed to the experiences of the consumer. Next, Apple has enabled customer discovery and differentiation through retail stores (Moorman, 2012). Having retail store gives the company an opportunity to show off their design courageousness (Moorman, 2012). Lastly, Apple has conceived their business model that creates everlasting value for their customers (Moorman, 2012). One action to plan to ensure Apple maintains their competitive advantage in the industry is to lower the prices so people in various urban demographics can have the Apple experience. This strategy will allow Apple to capture high margins with early adopters and drive penetration among a broader, more price conscious audience at a later date (Stark & Stewart, 2012). Not every company has product launches that allow it to adopt this strategy, but there are always opportunities to evolve and re-price a successful product to address the needs of a new and different customer segment. Apple launched its most recent iPhone a year ago; it reduced the price of its 3G version to $99. Simultaneously, when it’s most recent launch of the new iPad, it reduced the price of the iPad 2 by $100. In both cases, Apple established a market for additional customer segments (Stark & Stewart, 2012). The second action plan I would suggest is to always focus on the future, and continue to focus on being the dominant player in the industry. As the company continues to create an innovative product, the expectations of consumers begin to rise. IPad sales for Apple’s fiscal first quarter increased 11% over the year-ago quarter, and the company still maintains 74% market share in tablets (Stark & Stewart, 2012). Apple competitors have created products similar to the IPad thinking they would gain an advantage over Apple. However, If Apple continues to create innovative products they will remain ahead of their competitors (Stark & Stewart, 2012). References Business Dictionary. (2014). Brand loyalty. Retrieved January 22, 2014. From http://www.businessdictionary.com./definition/brand-loyalty.html. Goodson, S. (2011). Is brand loyalty the core to Apple’s success? Retrieved January 22, 2014. From http://www.forbes.com/sites/marketshare//2011/11/27/is-brand-loyalty-the-core0to-apples-success-2/ Hays, J. (2013). Apple and Foxconn: Work conditions, problems and changes. Retrieved January 22, 2014. From http://factsanddetails.com/china/cat9/sub61/item2282.html. Kaiser, T. (2012). Report: Apple’s suppliers continuously violate code of conduct, Apple does nothing to change it. Retrieved Januray 22, 2014. From http://dailytech.com/report+Apples+suppliers+continously+violate+code+of+conduct+Apple+does+nothing+to+change+it/article23867.htm. Karimova, H. (2012). Apple’s road to innovation requires some sacrifice. Retrieved January 22, 2014. From http://eoi.es/blogs/hokumakarimova/2012/05/13/apple%/E2%80%99s-road-to-innovation-requires-some-sacrifice/ Moorman, C. (2012). Why Apple is a great marketer. Retrieved January 22, 2014. From http://www.forbes.com/sites/christinemoorman/2012/07/20/why-apple-is-a-great-marketer/2/ Sanchez-Barajas, D.P. (2012). Case st udy: Apple Inc. and the challenge of a social responsible management. Retrieved January 22, 2014. From http://eois.es/blogs/dianapatriciasanchez/2012/05/28/case-study-apple-inc-and-the-challenge-of-a-social-responsible-management/ Stark, K. & Stewart, B. (2012). 3 strategies to adopt from Apple. Retrieved January 22, 2014. From http://www.inc.com/karl-and-bill/3-strategies-to-adopt-from-apple.html Supplier Responsibility. (2014). If companies want to do business with us, they must act fairly and ethically at all times. Retrieved January 22, 2014. From http://apple.com/supplierresponsibility/labor-and-human-rights.html. Tyson, B. (2013). A look at Apple’s record of corporate social responsibility. Retrieved January 22, 2014. From http://www.insidebusiness360.com/index.php/a-look-at-apples-records-of-corporate-social-responsibility-2611/

Interoffice Memo Essay

Yesterday, July 1, 1976, the ruling in the case of Tarasoff v. Regents of the University of California was decided. The Supreme Court of California imposed a legal duty to psychotherapists, enforceable by a civil suit, to warn a person who may become a victim of a violent act by a patient or if the patient threatens to harm themselves. As professionals in the Human Service field it is necessary that we adhere to this when a client may threaten to hurt themselves or another person. With this ruling, and before any action is taken, we are reminded of our code of ethics. Human Service Professionals have guidelines in their responsibility to the client. The ruling of this case has affected our ethical decision making, in that, we also acknowledge that we need to not only assist our client but also, if threat is made, to assist and protect a potential victim. Once this threat is made, ethically, we have no option but to report it and to not do so, we break our code of ethics and the law. This case has made us aware of the fact that threats can and possibly will be carried out, therefore, threats should not and will not be taken lightly. Our Code of Ethics has changed slightly since this ruling was imposed and while we still protect our client’s confidentiality and privacy, there is now an exception. â€Å"If it is suspected that danger or harm may occur to the  client or to others as a result of a client’s behavior, the human service professional acts in an appropriate and professional manner to protect the safety of those individuals. This may involve seeking consultation, supervision, and/or breaking the confidentiality of the relationship.† (Woodside and McClam, 2011) References: Woodside, M., & McClam, T. (2011). An introduction to human services (7th ed.). Belmont, CA: Brooks/Cole Cengage Learning.

Comparing Dr. Faustus And Marlowe And Mamet - 983 Words

The story of Faust has inspired creative works for hundreds of years. The myth features an ambitious and intelligent man, usually a scholar, who desires more than his current situation can offer him and so makes a dangerous pact with the devil. Interpretations of this story range from classical music and opera to paintings and cartoons. From Goethe to Radiohead, Dr. Faustus’ thirst for knowledge and the chaos this desire produces have captivated artists of all disciplines. This paper will examine two theatrical depictions of this myth. A little more than 400 years separate the original productions of Christopher Marlowe’s The Tragic History of the Life and Death of Dr. Faustus and David Mamet’s Faustus, but both plays feature the bare†¦show more content†¦Therefore, it is this paper’s aim to examine some of the similarities and differences in Christopher Marlowe’s The Tragic History of the Life and Death of Dr. Faustus and David Mametâ€⠄¢s Faustus, specifically the presence of religious practices in these two texts. Christopher Marlowe wrote The Tragic History of the Life and Death of Dr. Faustus during the Elizabethan Era, and the original production is said to have occurred in 1592 (David M. Bevington i). Queen Elizabeth I’s reign was one of religious conflict, political turmoil, and brilliant works by artists and therefore, church and state cannot be considered separately when discussing Elizabethan England. Her majesty was not only the commander, but also the head of the church. Under her reign, every English citizen was required by law to attend liturgical services. Membership to the church was a birthright and an obligation, as inescapable as participation in the political body of the commonwealth (Collinson 74-75). To illustrate, Richard Hooker offers an excellent image for Marlowe’s society: church and state resembled the sides or the base of a triangle (Hooker 336). Now, specifically, Calvinism was rapidly becoming the accepted doctrine in Elizabethan England, and the reli gious elements present in Marlowe’s version of Faust are almost certainly rooted in Calvinism. In the beginning of the play, Dr. Faustus dismisses his previous education as unfulfilling and makes a point to reject Divinity. This abhorrence of