Assignment 3

Click here to view my 3rd assignment. Any and all feedback is welcome.

Thanks,

Bryan

10-1 Communicating Effectively

Communication is two or more individuals sharing information and having a common understanding.   Effective communication takes place when a message is clearly communicated to another person with little or no misunderstanding.  I have picked out 5 key points that relate to communication.

Choosing the proper form of communication

In the modern world there are many different ways that people are able to communicate with each other. The best form of communication is face to face, you are able to communicate verbally and non verbally through face to face interactions, you are able to tell if someone understands something or if something needs to be better explained and instantly get feedback. When Face to face interaction isn’t feasible there are other ways to communicate that have very similar results. Many people now video conference if you aren’t able to physically meat someone. This is a great form of communication as you are to still have verbal and non verbal interaction you are able to see how the person reacts to what you are saying and again have instant feedback. Phone and Email communication, is a last resort as things can often be miss interpreted, People can misunderstand things due to tone of voice or simply how they are reading things. In this form you must make sure to keep everything as clear as possible to make sure people don’t misunderstand what you are talking about.

Complete message

Messages should be clear and make sure that the person receiving the message can easily understand it, determine what you are talking about and can understand what you are fully talking about, supplying all information is essential to avoid confusion. You should always make sure to use proper English terms and words, using slang terms or abbreviations may cause confusion as not everyone will understand them.

Assertive Listening

While communicating with others it is important to make sure you are effectively listening to what they are saying. Do not get distracted by things around you. If you don’t understand something that has been discussed or if you feel you have miss understood something make sure you clarify with the person you are communicating with.

Emotions

You must be able to control you emotions while communicating with someone. It is one of the most important this to keep in mind while communicating something, if you are upset or angry and you are trying to communicate with someone it wont come across the same and you can often also get a bad reaction out of the person you are communicating with. If you are upset about something take a few seconds to regather your thoughts and then continue with communicating I the other person. Make sure t show a common respect for each individual.

Feedback

Giving and Receiving feedback is a great way to see if the communication between multiple people was understood and received correctly. Its allows to make sure that you have done a good job of communicating and that the message you gave was clear and complete. Getting feedback helps you to understand how you can effective communicate with everyone in the future.

9-2 Models of Organizational Change

There are 3 stages to change, Unfreeze, Move, And Refreeze.

My example is introducing a new computer system that the company uses on a day-to-day basis, that will work in hand with the other old operating systems.

Unfreeze

If I were a manager in an organization and I was in charge of making change while introducing the changes I would make sure to bring up all of the positive things this brings to the table. I would make sure to show all the benefits of making these changes and why the business has decide to go this direction.  I would make sure to supply employees with all information need to make sure a smooth transition happens and would allow an open door policy to make sure to get feedback about the change.

Move

Change a process and we cant expect to see instant results. I would make sure that the new idea was well understood and the reasoning behind it. I would schedule training sessions spanning over a few weeks for a few hours every few days. This would be done so employees don’t get overloaded with information and feel overwhelmed. I would schedule training to be done a few days before the new system was set to be launched so employees are able to become more familiar with it and I would make sure to set a specific date for the system to officially be launched and be in full use. By doing this it will allow employee’s which are struggling with the system an opportunity to arrange to get additional training in.

Refreeze

Once everything is up and running the company would review the original plan we would review the successes the new system has had for the company. We would also review information we have received from having the open door policy. At this point we would offer an employee survey to get employee feedback, for things that might need to be changed and what worked well. This would help resolve any uncertainties that employees may have with the new system. To make sure that the change stays in place we will make sure to continually train employees on the system to improve the overall efficiency.

8-2 Critical Incident Analysis

A recent incident that happened in my work place involved me and other co-workers in a training class for work on how to position a certain product. At my company they tell us that we need to sell our product based on doing a needs analysis to make sure that the specific product you suggest meets up with what the client needs, I personally think this is the correct way to promote and sell products and this is what I have always been taught and this is what the current company believes in. In this recent training session we were trained on a new product that the company is set to come out with during this product they want to have high number to show the product works, they decide to offer to pay extra commission to everyone that sells this product. I brought up the fact that this is no longer selling to persons needs as people will just get this new product forced onto them as there rep simply wants to make more money. My problem with this is now people aren’t actually getting what they need but simply a product that the company wants to push. This frustrated me as they are no longer doing a service for their customers and they will have many customer that are dissatisfied in the future and no longer trust there reps or their opinions. I brought this up to a manager and basically got scolded for not believe in the product or the direction the company is looking to go in, I tried to explain myself but got no where with it.

Why do I view the situation like that?

I view this situation this way as this is what I have been taught and this is what the company has told me they believe in. When a company starts to offer things like this people start to step away from the original strategy and start to push a product that may not suit someone.

What assumptions have I made about the leader or problem or situation?

When being told about the extra commission incentives I assume that this product will get sold more as people will be making more money off of it . I have seen this done multiple times before, Companies shouldn’t offer incentives like this if they truly want satisfied customers.

How else could I interpret the situation?

I could have thought that the company was promoting a great product and simply wanted to pay their employees more to help promote it.

What other action could I have taken that might have been more helpful?

I could have gone directly to a manger told them what I thought and why I though it would happen. I could have helped come up with an alternative way to make sure the new product was getting promoted but not pushed onto clients.

What will I do if I am faced with a similar situation in the future?

I will make sure that I am doing my part to give my clientele a proper recommendation. I will not promote something I don’t think will work for the customer simple based on what I will be getting paid on it.

6-2 Controlling for Success

Generally a recession means a time when the economy slows down and for most companies this also means a time of struggle, as it is a time when most people try and cut there spending of discretionary income substantially. Very few companies are able to come out of the recession ahead, Tim Horton’s is a company that was able to come out ahead in the recession, Tim Horton’s was able to grow there overall market share and annual revenues. We can say that Tim Horton’s came out a real winner from the recession. 

Tim Horton’s has a huge following and many loyal customers, it seems as if you are never able to go to a Tim Horton’s and have it not be busy. The recession didn’t seem to hurt Tim Horton’s overall profit. I don’t think many people saw it as much of a cost to them; Tim Horton’s has a very low price point, realistically who second-guesses spending $1.50 on a coffee. Many people continued to use their services through out the recession and Tim Horton’s decided to take full advantage of this. Tim Horton’s continued to expand despite the hard times.  Over the past 5 years their profit went from $1.8 billion in 2006 up to $2.5 billion in 2010. They also made partnerships during the recession with other busy companies such as Wal-Mart.

Many companies wish they were in the same situation as Tim Horton’s is after the recession. Overall Tim Horton’s was able to remain very successful in tough economic times, if people are willing to use their services in tough times I’m sure they will only continue to grow as our economy gets better. 

For More information on Tim Horton's Click Here

4-2 Sustainable Policies

Sustainable development is essential for any business if the plan on staying in business in the future. It is very important for companies to think of environmental impacts at all times, companies must create policies to make sure that all employees know and follow the companies plan.

The Community

The company should constantly show that they are socially responsible within local communities. Doing things such as sponsoring local events and teams, helping with and making donations to annual fundraisers and charities.  Doing these things will help to make the company more visible and it will show that the company is socially responsible. Doing these things shows the company is attempting to make a positive change within the local community.

The Environment

By creating green policies it will overall help the company and the environment, implementing things like only printing certain documents and when then documents are printed they are printed on both sides of the paper, setting up recycling programs and trying to reduce general waist within the company has on a regular basis. Going forward making the more building environmentally friendly by installing things like solar panels for both electricity and water heating systems, energy efficient windows, low flow toilets. By making these minor changes it is making for a more sustainable future.

 Other things that will be implemented to become more environmentally friendly:

1.Recycling program - Paper, plastic and can

2.Solar panels- help save on electricity used

3.Reduce the use of printing – double sided printing

4.Turn off computer and lights at the end of the work day

5.Reduce the heat in the building during non business hours

6.Produce less waist  - use reusable products or recyclable products

Company Operations

The company should take a proactive approach towards social responsibility.  By having a clear set of rules and conduct, everyone in the company is trained to follow the rules and regulations, doing this will ensure that decisions will be made with the companies best interests in mind and to the companies ethical standards.  The company will show their efforts to eliminate things like bad business practices.   Violations of any Code of Conduct will be addressed according to each situation immediately after the violation. Violators that are found accountable will result in: fines, write-ups, disciplinary action and termination.

3-3 Short Essay

My ideal company would be a home renovations company. The product would be the overall end product of the completed renovation. The service I would be providing is allowing people to customize the area of home they wish to renovate, helping clients pick out products for their spaces and allowing them to make changes as the project goes along. Other services I would offer would be trade references, if I wasn’t able to supply a customer with a service I would refer them to some I know that has done quality work in that field.

            Company ethics are a huge part of a company. All work must be done with the highest quality and must follow proper regulations and codes.  As a company we will not sign off on a job that us or another contractor has done unless it meets a regulations. Within the renovations company I would make sure that all employees had empowerment, if they notice something not following proper standards they are allowed to address the issue and help or suggest what needs to be done to correct the problem.  All employees will be treat as equals, everyone is considered a key asset to the team.  If employees manage to get a job done before the scheduled finish date with everything meeting proper codes they would be entitled to a possible bonus or incentive such as an extra day off paid.

            The companies’ social responsibility would be shown through different ways. We would makes sure to use as much environmentally friendly products as possible, we would use energy efficient appliance, products made from recycled items, water efficient products such as shower heads and toilets, etc. We would make sure to recycle any old products that are able to be recycled or if the product is still in good shape and could still be used we would donate it to things like habitat for humanity. Do things like this would help our clients be more environmentally conscious and would help the over all environment by cutting down on waste and things that need to be put in the trash.

            Overall my views weren’t influenced by my generation’s outlook and characteristics. My views come from a standpoint of going above and beyond to make your clients happy. By making your current clients happy it sets up things for the future such as referrals which in the end keeps your business running. Everyone wants to get the highest quality product for the lowest possible price and that’s exactly what we are supplying clients with.

2-2 Forces and Competition

Mountain equipment coop or MEC was founded in 1971 and started as a  small store in Vancouver, MEC growth ahs been very slow and strategic over the last 30 years. “Mountain Equipment Co-op provides quality products and services for self-propelled wilderness-oriented recreation, such as hiking and mountaineering, at the lowest reasonable price in an informative, respectful manner. We are a member-owned co-operative striving for social and environmental leadership.”

MEC started as a company that was known for not liking to outsource to other countries due to them knowing the manner of how the good are produced. MEC is a strong supporter of our environment they produce their products using materials such as recycled polyester and plastic bottles. Over the years with the changes in the global economy it is has made it very difficult for MEC to continue with the same products.

MEC is a very firm believer that of getting feedback from there clientele. While looking at there website it is very apparent that MEC does take there customers feedback very seriously. Many MEC customers are upset that while they are in the store they are seeing more and more products that aren’t locally produced in Canada. On the website MEC responds to this by saying “Due to the nature of todays economy, managers must review all areas of business such as overseas manufacturing in order to continue to maintain high product standards as well as at a price point which consumers want to spend.”  This is tough to try and bring high quality products at the lowest price available while still maintaining products only produced in our country. If MEC doesn’t look to get more affordable products with the same quality then someone else will and people will likely ship there instead.

1-3 Emotional Intelligence and Leadership

Emotional intelligence is the ability to understand, assess, and control the emotions of yourself and of others.  Personality is ones emotional responses, attitude or behavior. These two should not be confused as one is about knowing and understanding how people will react to certain situations, knowing how to control them and change the overall outcome. Whereas personality is personal traits that shows who a person is and what sets them apart from others.

Social an emotional intelligence is directly connected to each other as they work hand in hand with each other.  Social intelligence helps you control the outcome of a situation, not only do you need to know what to say but how to act, you need to understand how to properly communicate with gestures, facial expressions, etc.  Understanding social intelligence it allows you to be an effective leader and easily influence others to follow you.

To be an effective leader in the work place it is essential to understand these two concepts.   Understanding these two things will help a leader have many followers. Understanding how people will react to certain situations will allow a leader to help control the overall outcome of situations and help make sure they are overall a positive experience. Being able to understand these allows a leader to maintain and keep things positive within a workplace starting with themselves.

1-1    Evolving Management Positions

I have been in the workforce since I was 16 years old and I have been in the workforce for 7 years, I can’t really say that I have seen management evolve but I can say that I have experienced different management styles. Over the years I have worked in multiple different positions under numerous different managers. I have notice that there is a difference between leaders and managers.

A leader is there to help motivate and lead a team towards a common goal.  Leaders often believe that employees are self-motivated and enjoy coming to work, leaders give more empowerment to employees and encourage them to make decisions.

Managers often tell you specifically what the want to have done and how they want it to be done. This leaves less room for employees to make there own decisions and to be creative.  Managers more like to micro manage there employees so they know constantly what is going on. Many managers believe that employees aren’t motivated to be at work and need to be under constant supervision to stay productive at work.

Working under a leader is much easier to do then working under a manager. I find myself more productive and I enjoy being at work more. I find a leader is there to help me and my team, they help to keep us motivated and work towards a common goal.

I have noticed over the years that managers are attempting less to micro manage there employees and more to give them empowerment and freedom.  They are taking on more of a role of being a leader; they are far more approachable and seem to be there to help employees achieve the goals they set out to achieve within the company.  By taking the leadership approach they are encouraging employees to reach there highest potential and continue to stay motivated.

In the past hard skills were the most important part for managers. Today soft skills are becoming a much larger part management. As soft skills continue to develop more effort needs to be placed on trusting employees more to complete their jobs properly, efficiently and accurately with out having to be under constant supervision.

Welcome to my blog!

I will posting new blog entries on a weekly basis, I have put this blog together for my sait class MNGT-255. The  weekly blog updates will be on various topics related to management, I look forward to sharing my views on these topics with you. Thanks for taking time to visit my blog!