Wednesday, February 24, 2010

MGMT 3430 Chapter 11

1. Concept and Brief Description


Pay grades are established by companies by grouping similar jobs of worth or content. Each group has a base and also a maximum with regards to the pay structure. However, there are drawbacks to such a structure.

2. Emotional Hook (provocative question/claim/real-life problem)

Let’s suppose you worked for a large commercial construction company that used this form of pay structure. In this structure the company grouped your position, Senior Engineer, with the Senior Project Manager. In the view of the company each has a very important role; each has similar worth to the company. The only problem is the market rate for the engineer is higher than that of the manager. The company pays the same rate for each only because they are in the same pay grade.

• As the Senior Engineer how would knowing this affect your overall satisfaction with the company?


• Would knowing this make you decide to work somewhere else?

3. Key Points to Elicit in Discussion

• Pay grades are taking similar jobs that are such in either worth or content and then placing a general pay scale for that group.


• There can be multiple pay grades with-in a company.

4. Facilitative Questions

• How can a company know that the pay grades they have created are correct?


• How can knowing the pay grade for your position affect your performance?

Wednesday, February 17, 2010

MGMT 3430 Chapter 10 Reflection

In class we really did not get to far into chapter 10. We had a guest speaker that had a number of different HR topics prepared. All he wqanted to know was what we really wanted to know about. Our guest speaker was John Campell. He has a Masters in HR, and has worked in the  private and public sectors as well as in goernment, manufacturing, health care, not-for-profit, and also union. He spoke to us on pay, and the impact that it has on the employees. He is under the thought that employees are not motivated by pay, ther are other intrinsic factors that motivate them to come to work and do a good job. Although he says people are not motivated by pay he did say that a company needs to be doing market pricing. They need to know what the going rate is in the area for the same work.
Before the speaker we talked about training and development. We took the two and put them up against each other and compared them.
Training                            vs.                           Development
Current                                                            Future
low use of experience                                       High use of experience
preperation for current job                                preperation for changes
Required                                                          Voluntary

We also talked about a couple of different assessment tools out there. the most used one being the Myers Briggs Type Indicator which is a personality test. We also discussed assessment center which are expencive but usefull, benchmark assessments, performance appraisals, and 360- degree feedback.

Tuesday, February 16, 2010

MGMT 3430 Chapter 10

1. Concept and Brief Description


Alternative Dispute Resolution (ADR) is methods of solving a problem by bringing in an impartial third party that is not the court. ADR has four steps that it goes through they are:

a. Open-door policy

b. Peer review

c. Mediation

d. Arbitration



A problem will proceed through each of the step until a resolution can be reached. Huston-based Kellogg, Brown and Root used ADR for four years and saw a 90% drop in legal fees. Of 2000 disputes only 30 reached the stage of binding arbitration.

2. Emotional Hook (provocative question/claim/real-life problem)

• How might the four steps of ADR help reach a resolution quicker and more cost effective than by using the courts?

• Have you ever had to use a company’s open-door policy before?

o How did it help you?

3. Key Points to Elicit in Discussion

a. Open-door policy- this is a policy that makes managers available to hear employee issues and complaints.

b. Peer review- In this the dispute is taken before a panel of representatives from the organization that are at the same levels as those in the dispute.

c. Mediation- This is a non-binding process where a neutral party from outside the company hears the case and attempts to help the people resolve their conflict and arrive at settlement.

d. Arbitration- This is a binding process where a professional arbitrator from outside the company hears the case and then resolves it by making a decision. This person is usually a judge or a lawyer.



4. Facilitative Questions

• If you were a company owner how might you use the ADR steps to help your company grow?

• Does this seem like a better way of dealing with issues?

o How is it better?

Wednesday, February 10, 2010

MGMT 3430 chapter 9

1. Concept and Brief Description


Job rotation is the moving of employees through a series of job assignments in one or more functional areas. The example given in the book is an employee working for a bank IT program might rotate through six different IT departments to work on a certain project.

2. Emotional Hook (provocative question/claim/real-life problem)

Have you ever participated in job rotation?

What did you learn from it?

How might this benefit the company and employee?

3. Key Points to Elicit in Discussion

When using job rotation as a way to cross train, or fill positions it is important to remember the following:

• Job rotation needs to be used to develop skills as well as gain experience for management careers.

• Employees must understand specifically what skills rotation is to develop.

• The organization needs to use rotation for all levels of employment.

• Job rotation needs to be linked with career management processes so employees know what development needs each assignment addresses.

• The organization needs to manage the timing of rotations to maximize their benefits and minimize the costs.

• All employees need to have equal opportunity for job rotation regardless of their demographic group.

4. Facilitative Questions

Is job rotation sound like something you would want to do as an employee?

How might participating affect your view of your job?

MGMT 3430 Chapter 8 Reflection

Today while in out class groups we discussed training and how ineffective it can be when executed incorrectly. I have always thought of training as a self-pasted. Sorry for the spelling. We talked abut our experience with poor training practices, and discussed some things that might make it a better process.

Training is an important part of business. It is how managers ensure their team is able to meet the business needs. Businesses have spent millions in training programs, and have invested at least as much in their teams. The important thing with training is that it needs to be followed up on and it needs to be continuous.

Monday, February 8, 2010

MGMT 3430 Chapter 8

1. Concept and Brief Description


Chapter 8 focuses on performance management. Performance management is one of the primary ways a manager regulates the productivity and quality of the teams work. For performance management system to be effective it needs to meet several criteria. They are:

• Fit with strategy

• Validity

• Reliability

• Acceptability

• Specific feedback

2. Emotional Hook (provocative question/claim/real-life problem)

What might happen to a performance management system if it was missing or failing one of the above criteria?

How might this effect the outcome of an interaction between a manager and a team member?

Have you ever had this happen to you?

3. Key Points to Elicit in Discussion

As I stated before, for a performance management system to be effective it must have each of the five things listed above. I will go in a little more depth with each now.

1. Fit with strategy: In this case the system needs to be focused on the same things as the company is focused on. If the company is focused on quality the system needs to have that same focus.

2. Validity: Does the system measure all relevant aspects of performance.

3. Reliability: This describes the consistency of the results. Is this system getting the needed results all the time or is it falling short.

4. Acceptability: This is what it says is the system something the people that will be using it accept, and are willing to use.

5. Specific feedback: The employee needs to know the exact expectation. Feedback needs to be given in a direct and clear manner. There needs to be a clear expectation of improvement and consequences to not meeting those expectations. There must also be a time frame in which performance will be reviewed.



4. Facilitative Questions

How effective can a performance management system be if it does not meet the above requirements?

What might you do as a manager to ensure this process was followed correctly?

Tuesday, February 2, 2010

MGMT 3430 Chapter 6

1. Concept and Brief Description


Resumes are the usual way in which an applicant introduces themselves to a potential employer. Information on a resume is bias in favor of the applicant. Due to this nature employers use this information as a starting point for further investigation of the applicant. Resumes are

2. Emotional Hook (provocative question/claim/real-life problem)

Most of us have developed or reviewed a resume before. What parts of a resume seem to grab your attention, if you were an employer?

3. Key Points to Elicit in Discussion

Some things to remember:

• Resumes are biased.

• Information may be inaccurate.

• Information could be false

• They should always be accompanied by references.

• Resumes are only the beginning

4. Facilitative Questions

What format would you use when creating a resume?

What graphics or fonts do you think might stand out to an employer?

Is there a universal template for a resume?