Tuesday, April 20, 2010
Reflection
Today Tyler talked about employee morale. According to Tyler, we need to be aware of problem low moral employees, because as Tyler said, "A bad employee will murder everyone in your company!" You can motivate employees through incentives, focusing on the things they accomplish (praise), and trust.
Tuesday, April 13, 2010
Class Reflections Tues 4/13
I enjoyed the presentations today. They focused on the glass ceiling, the recession, and unions. I found the summaries of the students research interesting. Megan presented on a very similar topic to mine. I was happy that we arrived at the same conclusions. Hyrum presented on startups. This was a subject of particular interest to me as an entrepreneurial major. I thought Melissa did a SUPER job!
Wednesday, March 24, 2010
Chapter 16 Discussion Post
1. Creating and maintaining high performance organizations. Hr definitely plays into the larger role of keeping organizations efficient and effective. HR managers need to take a customer-oriented perspective and identify: who are the firm's customers, what are their needs, and how will the firm meet their needs? The answer almost always comes down to committed and competent employees. Any HR project you undertake needs to be evaluated to determine whether it accomplished what you intended it to accomplish and whether it brought money to the firm.
2. Have you ever witnessed a failed hr program? Has a company you worked for or knew about implemented some plan that didn't accomplish its purpose or if it did, didn't bring economic value to the firm?
3. That is really the key. A financial return. If it doesn't bring a financial return in some way there is no point in doing it. Everything a firm does is to make profit. Human Resource Managers have a huge opportunity, and play a major role in the overall performance of the firm. HR managers also need to remember that just like every other function of firm, the purpose is to generate revenue.
4. If you were an HR manager, what programs would you implement in your company to provide more value to your customers and bring greater returns to your firm? How would you measure the success of those programs?
Reflections
In class we discussed all the factors that affect HRM in international markets. These include: culture, education, economic, and political-legal. You have to decide how stable the political situation is. With culture, you must identify the way in which a country's culture differs from yours. Education plays a huge role in how people are able to receive products and services. And obviously economic ability has a very large impact on HR.
Reflection
Today we discussed effective work teams. Someone made a valid point that "effective work teams" are basically just the way all teams should work. Unfortunately, however, so many teams and things don't perform and work the way they should. I think by applying the principles of effective work teams, every facet of management and team projects will be enhanced.
2. Have you ever witnessed a failed hr program? Has a company you worked for or knew about implemented some plan that didn't accomplish its purpose or if it did, didn't bring economic value to the firm?
3. That is really the key. A financial return. If it doesn't bring a financial return in some way there is no point in doing it. Everything a firm does is to make profit. Human Resource Managers have a huge opportunity, and play a major role in the overall performance of the firm. HR managers also need to remember that just like every other function of firm, the purpose is to generate revenue.
4. If you were an HR manager, what programs would you implement in your company to provide more value to your customers and bring greater returns to your firm? How would you measure the success of those programs?
Reflections
In class we discussed all the factors that affect HRM in international markets. These include: culture, education, economic, and political-legal. You have to decide how stable the political situation is. With culture, you must identify the way in which a country's culture differs from yours. Education plays a huge role in how people are able to receive products and services. And obviously economic ability has a very large impact on HR.
Reflection
Today we discussed effective work teams. Someone made a valid point that "effective work teams" are basically just the way all teams should work. Unfortunately, however, so many teams and things don't perform and work the way they should. I think by applying the principles of effective work teams, every facet of management and team projects will be enhanced.
Chapter 15 Discussion Posts (see ch. 14 comment)
1. This chapter focuses on International HR. This is a very interesting subject. Because HR is so heavily people based, I can see how HR could totally change in a different culture. Consider for example how societies have different values. What may be important to one set of people in one country may be entirely different for a different set. For example, in America we value performance. In Asia however, education is given heavier emphasis. Your HR needs to reflect that.
2. Have you ever lived in another country besides the US? What differences in values affect how work is performed or how employees need to be managed?
3. The key principle to take away from this is that as you expand your business operations to other countries, you need to put HR people in charge that understand the foreign countries people and values. An employee you send overseas is called an "expatriat." They either need to already understand a foreign country's culture or they need to be trained to understand. Those of us in International Business have learned about Hofsted's Dimensions. Power distance, uncertainty avoidance, masculine/feminine, individualism vs collectivism; these all affect the way a group of people perceive the world and understand the workplace. A expatriat needs to be intimately familiar with these cultural dimensions.
4. Can you identify the cultural dimensions in the foreign country you are familiar with? What negative impact would you expect if you tried to manage the people there like we do in America?
2. Have you ever lived in another country besides the US? What differences in values affect how work is performed or how employees need to be managed?
3. The key principle to take away from this is that as you expand your business operations to other countries, you need to put HR people in charge that understand the foreign countries people and values. An employee you send overseas is called an "expatriat." They either need to already understand a foreign country's culture or they need to be trained to understand. Those of us in International Business have learned about Hofsted's Dimensions. Power distance, uncertainty avoidance, masculine/feminine, individualism vs collectivism; these all affect the way a group of people perceive the world and understand the workplace. A expatriat needs to be intimately familiar with these cultural dimensions.
4. Can you identify the cultural dimensions in the foreign country you are familiar with? What negative impact would you expect if you tried to manage the people there like we do in America?
Thursday, March 11, 2010
Chapter 14 Discussion Post
1. Collective Bargaining and Labor Relations: This chapter brought to mind an episode of the office I saw the other night. Michael is down in the warehouse hanging out with the dock workers. They decide to form a union, and Michael, desperately wanting to fit in, goes along with it. Jan, getting wind of the situation, immediately shuts it down. Why do workers want unions? Why do corporations oppose them? Workers of an industry stand to gain power by unionizing. They gain greater advantage through power in numbers. This puts them in a better position to negotiate as a union for better pay, better working conditions, etc. From the business side, managers often feel that unions will make it harder for the corporation to make money. This is because with unions come contracts! These contracts stipulate pay, benefits, and other conditions. Are unions good or bad? They have definite pros, and definite cons.
2. Have you ever or do you now belong to a union?
3. From a workers perspective, I can't imagine anything better than a union! Without one, it is just you against the firm! How much negotiation leverage do you have? Almost none! Someone else can replace you if you don't take the job. With a union the worker has a voice. They now have the size needed to really negotiate with firms. From the firms perspective I can see how unions would seem like a very bad thing. All of a sudden you have to deal with all these new stipulations. Is it fair? I think so.
4. What do you think? Are unions a good thing or a bad thing? Are there specific examples you are aware of or have experienced where unionizing turned out great? Turned out bad?
2. Have you ever or do you now belong to a union?
3. From a workers perspective, I can't imagine anything better than a union! Without one, it is just you against the firm! How much negotiation leverage do you have? Almost none! Someone else can replace you if you don't take the job. With a union the worker has a voice. They now have the size needed to really negotiate with firms. From the firms perspective I can see how unions would seem like a very bad thing. All of a sudden you have to deal with all these new stipulations. Is it fair? I think so.
4. What do you think? Are unions a good thing or a bad thing? Are there specific examples you are aware of or have experienced where unionizing turned out great? Turned out bad?
Sunday, March 7, 2010
Chapter 13 Discussion Post
1. This chapter was about Employee Benefits. This was another subject of interest to me. I've found it enlightening to realize that so much more composes how you compensate your employees besides just monetary compensation. And often the things that your employees value above pay are things that end up costing you a lot less money. Unfortunately benefits are not one of those things. They are very expensive for the company, but are necessary to recruit and retain. Federal law requires employers to offer some benefits, but many are optional. A brief list of benefits for employees include: social security, unemployment insurance, worker's comp, medical leave, paid leave, group insurance, retirement plans, paid-time-off, personal days, life insurance, and other quality of work-life benefits like having a gym or subsidized cafeteria on site. The chapter also focuses on the need to communicate what your benefits are, so that your employees and prospective employees know all the wonderful things you are paying for them to get.
2. Have you ever had a job that included optional benefit programs? (These are included in the list above from "paid leave" on.) What were they? Did you perceive them as a benefit?
3. I think perception is the issue. The book touched on the fact that when you are designing your optional benefits program you need to consider what your employees will actually care about. Maybe none of your employees would care about on-site dry cleaning. If they don't consider that a benefit, don't waste money on it! It is also critical to communicate your benefits to them. If they don't know it exists, its not a benefit!
4. Have you seen any trends in the amount or the mix of optional benefits employers are offering employees? Do you think optional benefits matter in recruiting and retaining? Would you rather just be paid more than have the benefits?
Reflections
We touched a lot on transparency this class. Its an interesting subject. As a salesman, I understand that in every negotiation situation, one party starts high and negotiates down, and one starts low and negotiates up. This is true on the car lot, in the privately owned retail store, in the private sale of items, in the music store, buying tickets from scalpers, and at your prospective employers. Is this fair? Should the best negotiators get the best deals? Well whether you love it or loath it, negotiating is an ancient art, deeply rooted into humanity. This presents a problem though. What happens when neighbors find out they paid totally different prices for the same car from the same lot? What happens when coworkers with the same experience and time find out they are being paid differently. This creates a problem. You can either hide the numbers, or level the playing field. Personally, I'm against transparency in this context. I don't want the playing field leveled cause it means I can't negotiate higher pay for myself!
2. Have you ever had a job that included optional benefit programs? (These are included in the list above from "paid leave" on.) What were they? Did you perceive them as a benefit?
3. I think perception is the issue. The book touched on the fact that when you are designing your optional benefits program you need to consider what your employees will actually care about. Maybe none of your employees would care about on-site dry cleaning. If they don't consider that a benefit, don't waste money on it! It is also critical to communicate your benefits to them. If they don't know it exists, its not a benefit!
4. Have you seen any trends in the amount or the mix of optional benefits employers are offering employees? Do you think optional benefits matter in recruiting and retaining? Would you rather just be paid more than have the benefits?
Reflections
We touched a lot on transparency this class. Its an interesting subject. As a salesman, I understand that in every negotiation situation, one party starts high and negotiates down, and one starts low and negotiates up. This is true on the car lot, in the privately owned retail store, in the private sale of items, in the music store, buying tickets from scalpers, and at your prospective employers. Is this fair? Should the best negotiators get the best deals? Well whether you love it or loath it, negotiating is an ancient art, deeply rooted into humanity. This presents a problem though. What happens when neighbors find out they paid totally different prices for the same car from the same lot? What happens when coworkers with the same experience and time find out they are being paid differently. This creates a problem. You can either hide the numbers, or level the playing field. Personally, I'm against transparency in this context. I don't want the playing field leveled cause it means I can't negotiate higher pay for myself!
Saturday, February 27, 2010
Chapter 12 Discussion Post
Employee Contributions and Pay
1. This chapter focused on the different ways to compensate employees for their contributions to the companies performance. When we think of getting paid, we typically think of getting a wage or salary, however, there are so many other methods of paying employees. In addition to wages and salaries, probably the next most common form of pay is commission. There are also performance bonuses that are awarded when specific objectives are reached. There are even team bonuses that are paid out to all members of a work team who accomplish a specific goal. Additionally, there are stock options that can be given to employees. This has long term retention benefits. Employees will want the company to do well so their stock will improve. It teaches them to think like owners.
2. Have you ever been on a payment plan other than wages or salaries? Have you ever received special bonuses?
3. To me, tying an employee's pay to the growth of the company is the most effective way to make sure employees are involved and concerned about the company's growth. After this, the next best thing is tying their pay to specific performance. I think the worst form of pay is to just pay someone a straight wage for their time. I recognize that this is the only method for a lot of jobs. From personal work experience however, wage jobs typically create a situation where you don't have much concern for company growth or performance. You often are just watching the clock till you can get out!
4. Could your current job be modified to include some sort of other compensation for your contributions to the company? Can anything that you do be quantified so you could receive a bonus for exceptional performance? Do you feel that a pay structure where you could earn more for performing better would incentivize you to work harder or be more involved in your work?
Reflections
As a group we seemed to have a common theme. We all discussed different methods of compensating employees. The three main categories that surfaced were: wages/salary, commission, or equity. One person in our group actually had her compensation tied to all three! She got paid a wage for her time working, she also would be given bonuses if her or her team met certain quotas or objectives, AND if her company performed well that year she would get a bonus. I think this is pretty effective. Its unfortunate this type of compensation can not be used in all types of jobs.
1. This chapter focused on the different ways to compensate employees for their contributions to the companies performance. When we think of getting paid, we typically think of getting a wage or salary, however, there are so many other methods of paying employees. In addition to wages and salaries, probably the next most common form of pay is commission. There are also performance bonuses that are awarded when specific objectives are reached. There are even team bonuses that are paid out to all members of a work team who accomplish a specific goal. Additionally, there are stock options that can be given to employees. This has long term retention benefits. Employees will want the company to do well so their stock will improve. It teaches them to think like owners.
2. Have you ever been on a payment plan other than wages or salaries? Have you ever received special bonuses?
3. To me, tying an employee's pay to the growth of the company is the most effective way to make sure employees are involved and concerned about the company's growth. After this, the next best thing is tying their pay to specific performance. I think the worst form of pay is to just pay someone a straight wage for their time. I recognize that this is the only method for a lot of jobs. From personal work experience however, wage jobs typically create a situation where you don't have much concern for company growth or performance. You often are just watching the clock till you can get out!
4. Could your current job be modified to include some sort of other compensation for your contributions to the company? Can anything that you do be quantified so you could receive a bonus for exceptional performance? Do you feel that a pay structure where you could earn more for performing better would incentivize you to work harder or be more involved in your work?
Reflections
As a group we seemed to have a common theme. We all discussed different methods of compensating employees. The three main categories that surfaced were: wages/salary, commission, or equity. One person in our group actually had her compensation tied to all three! She got paid a wage for her time working, she also would be given bonuses if her or her team met certain quotas or objectives, AND if her company performed well that year she would get a bonus. I think this is pretty effective. Its unfortunate this type of compensation can not be used in all types of jobs.
Sunday, February 14, 2010
Chapter 11 Discussion Post
1. Concept and Brief Description
2. Emotional Hook (provocative question/claim/real-life problem)
3. Key Points to Elicit in Discussion
4. Facilitative Questions
1. Pay and compensation was another one of those things in business I always just kind of assumed took care of themselves. I never really imagined that there was a person whose job it was to analyze what the company's needs were, what value it was that I provided, what the industry paid for similar jobs, and set ranges of pay that I could receive for doing that job. What I thought was interesting was that companies have "red-circles" and "green-circles" that help them know where employees are falling on their pay ranges. If an employee is getting paid above their limit, that employee is in the red. If an employee is getting paid below the max limit the company would pay him or her, that employee is in the green. The interesting thing is that I'm sure companies have most of their employees in the green. What determines whether an employee ends up getting paid in the red or green circle? In my mind the biggest factor would be the negotiations that take place between the hirer and the employee. (assuming we're talking about the type of job that has these kinds of negotiations.)
2. Have you ever negotiated a starting wage or pay increase with your boss?
3. I remember when I first moved up to Provo, I applied at Macy's on U-Parkway and Dillards at South Town. I decided not to take the job at Dillard's, even though they offered me a sales position. I tried to use this as leverage at Macy's (where I really wanted to work.) I told Macy's that Dillards was offering to pay me more, but they insisted their pay structure for starting employees was fixed. (this was one of those high turnover positions that didn't have much room for negotiating.) Later I found out why Dillards paid more. They tie their employee's wages to their sales performance. If you didn't meet quotas (which I was later told by former Dillard's employees were unrealistic,) your pay dropped. A lot of employees left Dillard's to come to Macy's because their wage had dipped too low. The point of this story is that even similar companies can have very different pay structures. How a company chooses to pay is critical to recruiting and retention. Dillard's pay structure certainly recruited, but failed to retain.
4. Have you ever been on a pay structure other than a straight hourly wage? (ie: commission, wage plus commission, skills based, location based, etc.) Were you ever hurt by a poor or misleading pay structure? Have you ever left a job because of pay?
Reflections
Today Jeff from ancestry.com came and talked about how they do HR over there. The interesting element for me was compensation. I didn't realize how many OTHER factors combine into the "compensation" umbrella. Even little things like donuts are part of the overall package! It makes me want to identify other methods of compensating employees that may make them happy and satisfied without having to spend extra money.
2. Emotional Hook (provocative question/claim/real-life problem)
3. Key Points to Elicit in Discussion
4. Facilitative Questions
1. Pay and compensation was another one of those things in business I always just kind of assumed took care of themselves. I never really imagined that there was a person whose job it was to analyze what the company's needs were, what value it was that I provided, what the industry paid for similar jobs, and set ranges of pay that I could receive for doing that job. What I thought was interesting was that companies have "red-circles" and "green-circles" that help them know where employees are falling on their pay ranges. If an employee is getting paid above their limit, that employee is in the red. If an employee is getting paid below the max limit the company would pay him or her, that employee is in the green. The interesting thing is that I'm sure companies have most of their employees in the green. What determines whether an employee ends up getting paid in the red or green circle? In my mind the biggest factor would be the negotiations that take place between the hirer and the employee. (assuming we're talking about the type of job that has these kinds of negotiations.)
2. Have you ever negotiated a starting wage or pay increase with your boss?
3. I remember when I first moved up to Provo, I applied at Macy's on U-Parkway and Dillards at South Town. I decided not to take the job at Dillard's, even though they offered me a sales position. I tried to use this as leverage at Macy's (where I really wanted to work.) I told Macy's that Dillards was offering to pay me more, but they insisted their pay structure for starting employees was fixed. (this was one of those high turnover positions that didn't have much room for negotiating.) Later I found out why Dillards paid more. They tie their employee's wages to their sales performance. If you didn't meet quotas (which I was later told by former Dillard's employees were unrealistic,) your pay dropped. A lot of employees left Dillard's to come to Macy's because their wage had dipped too low. The point of this story is that even similar companies can have very different pay structures. How a company chooses to pay is critical to recruiting and retention. Dillard's pay structure certainly recruited, but failed to retain.
4. Have you ever been on a pay structure other than a straight hourly wage? (ie: commission, wage plus commission, skills based, location based, etc.) Were you ever hurt by a poor or misleading pay structure? Have you ever left a job because of pay?
Reflections
Today Jeff from ancestry.com came and talked about how they do HR over there. The interesting element for me was compensation. I didn't realize how many OTHER factors combine into the "compensation" umbrella. Even little things like donuts are part of the overall package! It makes me want to identify other methods of compensating employees that may make them happy and satisfied without having to spend extra money.
Chapter 10 Discussion Post
1. Concept and Brief Description
2. Emotional Hook (provocative question/claim/real-life problem)
3. Key Points to Elicit in Discussion
4. Facilitative Questions
1. This chapter discussed separating and retaining employees. I've learned from personal experience that these are two of the most important elements in building a successful team (or business.) Knowing who to keep and who to let go is an ongoing dilemma. I was told by Kimberly Clark's former CEO that many businesses get rid of the bottom 10% of their people as a recurring practice. What are the processes for terminating someone's employment? (involuntary turnover.) What if someone wants to leave of their own volition? (voluntary turnover.) I've learned that firing can be a delicate situation. This chapter explains how to do it while remaining sensitive to the employees feelings, mitigating legal risk, and gaining insight into how to improve the organization. Of all the details this chapter went into, the main overarching theme for me was to have a PROCESS for these things. Do not leave them up to individual managers or you will find yourself not being objective, and probably not being in compliance with the law. The process leading up to termination that the book recommends is: unofficial spoken warning, official written warning, second written warning plus the threat of temporary suspension, temporary suspension plus written notice that this is a last chance to improve, and finally termination. If an employee wishes to leave (even though you may want him or her to stay), it would be wise for you to conduct an "exit interview" to gain insight into why they are leaving. If several employees state the same reasons for leaving in different exit interviews, you may want to review your management processes to prevent future turnover.
2. Have you ever left an organization voluntarily? What were your reasons?
3. There are thousands of legitimate reasons for leaving a company. Many if not most of which have nothing to do with poor management by the company. Often however, the reasons are due to the way company does things or the way certain people behaved or interacted with us on the job. I don't think one big event causes people to decide in an instant to leave their job. I think its gradual. This chapter talks a lot about "job withdrawal." It states the reasons employees become withdrawn from their jobs is because they become dissatisfied. The primary causes of job dissatisfaction are: personal dispositions (such as if your job goes against your values or has no personal meaning), tasks and roles (for example if your job duties are unclear or overwhelming), supervisors or coworkers (if there were conflict with these people), and pay and benefits (if you're not being compensated well enough.) Any of these can cause an employee to withdraw, waste time, and eventually leave.
4. Have you ever experienced job withdrawal? Can you identify what caused it? Could you categorize it into one of these four areas? What happened? (Did you leave, talk to your supervisors to seek resolution, etc.)
Reflections
The interesting topic in this class discussion was training vs development. What is the difference between the two? Why is one mandatory and one one voluntary? Training represents a minimum standard of current knowledge. Development is future oriented and may not apply to everyone. Everyone may not have the same ambitions and you don't want to waste time and resources helping people "develop" that do not want to develop! Or maybe they do but they are not going to be with your organizations at the point when that developing would come to fruition. So as an HR manager you need to recognize the difference between training and development.
2. Emotional Hook (provocative question/claim/real-life problem)
3. Key Points to Elicit in Discussion
4. Facilitative Questions
1. This chapter discussed separating and retaining employees. I've learned from personal experience that these are two of the most important elements in building a successful team (or business.) Knowing who to keep and who to let go is an ongoing dilemma. I was told by Kimberly Clark's former CEO that many businesses get rid of the bottom 10% of their people as a recurring practice. What are the processes for terminating someone's employment? (involuntary turnover.) What if someone wants to leave of their own volition? (voluntary turnover.) I've learned that firing can be a delicate situation. This chapter explains how to do it while remaining sensitive to the employees feelings, mitigating legal risk, and gaining insight into how to improve the organization. Of all the details this chapter went into, the main overarching theme for me was to have a PROCESS for these things. Do not leave them up to individual managers or you will find yourself not being objective, and probably not being in compliance with the law. The process leading up to termination that the book recommends is: unofficial spoken warning, official written warning, second written warning plus the threat of temporary suspension, temporary suspension plus written notice that this is a last chance to improve, and finally termination. If an employee wishes to leave (even though you may want him or her to stay), it would be wise for you to conduct an "exit interview" to gain insight into why they are leaving. If several employees state the same reasons for leaving in different exit interviews, you may want to review your management processes to prevent future turnover.
2. Have you ever left an organization voluntarily? What were your reasons?
3. There are thousands of legitimate reasons for leaving a company. Many if not most of which have nothing to do with poor management by the company. Often however, the reasons are due to the way company does things or the way certain people behaved or interacted with us on the job. I don't think one big event causes people to decide in an instant to leave their job. I think its gradual. This chapter talks a lot about "job withdrawal." It states the reasons employees become withdrawn from their jobs is because they become dissatisfied. The primary causes of job dissatisfaction are: personal dispositions (such as if your job goes against your values or has no personal meaning), tasks and roles (for example if your job duties are unclear or overwhelming), supervisors or coworkers (if there were conflict with these people), and pay and benefits (if you're not being compensated well enough.) Any of these can cause an employee to withdraw, waste time, and eventually leave.
4. Have you ever experienced job withdrawal? Can you identify what caused it? Could you categorize it into one of these four areas? What happened? (Did you leave, talk to your supervisors to seek resolution, etc.)
Reflections
The interesting topic in this class discussion was training vs development. What is the difference between the two? Why is one mandatory and one one voluntary? Training represents a minimum standard of current knowledge. Development is future oriented and may not apply to everyone. Everyone may not have the same ambitions and you don't want to waste time and resources helping people "develop" that do not want to develop! Or maybe they do but they are not going to be with your organizations at the point when that developing would come to fruition. So as an HR manager you need to recognize the difference between training and development.
Thursday, February 11, 2010
Chapter 9 Discussion Post
1. Concept and Brief Description
2. Emotional Hook (provocative question/claim/real-life problem)
3. Key Points to Elicit in Discussion
4. Facilitative Questions
1. Once you’ve recruited, screened, and trained your employees, how do you ensure they will continue to grow? This is the subject of chapter 9. How do you develop your human capital? Employers must use assessment methods to identify where employee sits and where they could progress. The most common of these methods of assessment is the Myers-Briggs. The Myers-Briggs breaks all individuals into one of two “types:” sensing types and intuitive types. Within sensing lies thinking and feeling, and within intuitive lies feeling and thinking. These categories tell us our preferences for behavior in certain situations. Out of these four types can be combined into 8 personality profiles. These profiles tell can tell you how people will generally behave and you can combine complementary personality types.
2. Looking over the descriptions in the type indicator chart, where do you feel you fall?
3. I have a coworker that is absolutely obsessed with “brain typing” as this is also known as. Within 60 seconds of meeting and speaking with someone, he has brain typed them. He knows how to most effectively communicate with them, and he knows, based on their “types” how they will probably perform within different functions of the organization. After meeting my wife for a minute he was able to list off several characteristics and behavior that he thought she had. He was spot on. He uses brain types to know how to pair people up to work effectively.
4. Have you ever taken the Myer-Briggs test? Did you feel your types were an accurate representation of your personality? Do you feel personality types can be an accurate method of evaluating employees and identifying how to help them grow?
Reflections
Performance management. The key thing I took away from this class discussion was how frequently performance management is done WRONG. Little things like only doing performance reviews once a year, or only putting a "1,2, or 3" for attribute ratings can ruin a company's performance evaluation efforts. I also liked the grid showing four types of employees ranging from low to high skills and low to high motivation. By placing employees into one of these four categories, you can know how to respond to them and proceed so that you can get them where they need to be.
2. Emotional Hook (provocative question/claim/real-life problem)
3. Key Points to Elicit in Discussion
4. Facilitative Questions
1. Once you’ve recruited, screened, and trained your employees, how do you ensure they will continue to grow? This is the subject of chapter 9. How do you develop your human capital? Employers must use assessment methods to identify where employee sits and where they could progress. The most common of these methods of assessment is the Myers-Briggs. The Myers-Briggs breaks all individuals into one of two “types:” sensing types and intuitive types. Within sensing lies thinking and feeling, and within intuitive lies feeling and thinking. These categories tell us our preferences for behavior in certain situations. Out of these four types can be combined into 8 personality profiles. These profiles tell can tell you how people will generally behave and you can combine complementary personality types.
2. Looking over the descriptions in the type indicator chart, where do you feel you fall?
3. I have a coworker that is absolutely obsessed with “brain typing” as this is also known as. Within 60 seconds of meeting and speaking with someone, he has brain typed them. He knows how to most effectively communicate with them, and he knows, based on their “types” how they will probably perform within different functions of the organization. After meeting my wife for a minute he was able to list off several characteristics and behavior that he thought she had. He was spot on. He uses brain types to know how to pair people up to work effectively.
4. Have you ever taken the Myer-Briggs test? Did you feel your types were an accurate representation of your personality? Do you feel personality types can be an accurate method of evaluating employees and identifying how to help them grow?
Reflections
Performance management. The key thing I took away from this class discussion was how frequently performance management is done WRONG. Little things like only doing performance reviews once a year, or only putting a "1,2, or 3" for attribute ratings can ruin a company's performance evaluation efforts. I also liked the grid showing four types of employees ranging from low to high skills and low to high motivation. By placing employees into one of these four categories, you can know how to respond to them and proceed so that you can get them where they need to be.
Sunday, February 7, 2010
Ch. 8 Discussion Post
1. Concept and Brief Description
2. Emotional Hook (provocative question/claim/real-life problem)
3. Key Points to Elicit in Discussion
4. Facilitative Questions
1. Performance management primarily deals with assessing employees’ performance with them so that they understand what they are doing right or wrong. The key is to start with your strategic objective and identify what the standard for the position is that the employee needs to meet. The interesting part of this section for me was the errors that managers frequently make when measuring performance. With a contrast error, the manager does not compare the employee to the objective standard, but instead compares the employee to other employees. This is an error because the employee you’re comparing them to may be performing well above the standard. Additionally, this makes the evaluation subjective. Distributional errors occur when managers, for whatever reason, tend to lean one way or another on the rating scale. More lenient managers give mostly good ratings, strict managers give mostly poor ratings, and managers with a central tendency just place everyone in the middle. Lastly, a manager may either be inclined to look past someone’s faults (the halo effect) or look past their strengths (the horns effect.)
2. Have you ever been the victim of an erroneous performance assessment?
3. I think assessment errors occur more commonly than we may think. I know in my performance evaluating I have definitely committed the contrast error. I tend to use my top performing sales reps as the standard and compare everyone else against them. The problem with this is it leaves the lower performers feeling judged. People need a set standard by which to compare themselves too. I think as far as ratings go, I don’t have a problem assessing an attribute or behavior exactly where it sits. I most frequently use a Graphic Rating Scale (one that lists attributes/behaviors and has a “5,4,3,2,1” next to it.) Usually there will be a mix of high and low ratings.
4. Have you ever been in a position where you needed to evaluate someone’s performance? How did you do it? Looking back, have you ever accidentally committed any of the common errors of performance measurement? Which ones? How was the employee affected?
Ch. 8 Class Reflections
Today we discussed interviews and screening tactics. I found it interesting that despite the fact that resumes are the most frequently used method of qualifying applicants, they are by far the least effective. Apparently, around 80% of resumes are full of lies! (and 100% are certainly at a minimum severely embellished.) They are useful for a few things though. They help you filter out people based on criteria such as degrees or certification. They allow you to check specifics. Also they allow you to see how much a person actually wants the job. If a person takes the time to make a personalized resume for this particular job, they will stand out against someone who turns in a generalized, mass produced resume. We also discussed interviewing. I was surprised how careful you must be when interviewing. I will definitely be aware of how I interview potential employees in the future.
Wednesday, February 3, 2010
Chapter 7 Discussion Post
1. Concept and Brief Description
2. Emotional Hook (provocative question/claim/real-life problem)
3. Key Points to Elicit in Discussion
4. Facilitative Questions
1. All companies need to teach their employees how to perform the tasks and responsibilities that contribute to the achievement of the company’s overarching objectives. Training can be a large and difficult task. A company needs to assess their needs, ensure they are ready to implement a training program, and then plan, implement, and evaluate the effectiveness of the training program. Without training, employees would be unable to achieve the company objectives. Firms use three types of training methods: the presentation method, the hands-on method, and the group-building method. The most traditional method I feel is presentation.
2. In your experience, do you feel most company training programs are effective?
3. I think a mix of all three is probably the best. As a corporate sales trainer, the foundation method I use is presentation. I used it tonight when I stood in front of a group of new sales rep, and explained and asked questions. To make the presentation method more effective I implement hands-on training. I required reps to practice what they’d learned by role-playing with each other or in front of the group. The group discussion happens more on an office by office basis as managers discuss and work with smaller teams of reps.
4. Have you had a job that used all three methods? Have you had a job that only stuck to one? Which did you find most effective?
Reflections
Tuesday, February 2, 2010
Chapter 6 Discussion Posts
1. Concept and Brief Description
2. Emotional Hook (provocative question/claim/real-life problem)
3. Key Points to Elicit in Discussion
4. Facilitative Questions
1 This chapter focused on the selection and hiring process. Again I am surprised at how detailed and in depth all of these processes are. I always just assumed they existed on their own. I never really thought about the fact that someone creates and implements them. The purpose of the interview process is to find and hire the best applicants quickly and cheaply. The process starts at screening, goes through testing and interviewing, and ends with making a selection. Throughout the process you need to ensure that you are being compliant with legal requirements. Different organizations have created laws that make it illegal for you to discriminate against protected classes.
2. Emotional Hook (provocative question/claim/real-life problem)
3. Key Points to Elicit in Discussion
4. Facilitative Questions
1 This chapter focused on the selection and hiring process. Again I am surprised at how detailed and in depth all of these processes are. I always just assumed they existed on their own. I never really thought about the fact that someone creates and implements them. The purpose of the interview process is to find and hire the best applicants quickly and cheaply. The process starts at screening, goes through testing and interviewing, and ends with making a selection. Throughout the process you need to ensure that you are being compliant with legal requirements. Different organizations have created laws that make it illegal for you to discriminate against protected classes.
2 Do feel the traditional method of interviewing potential candidates is the most effective? Why or why not?
3 This chapter talks about four types of “validities.” These are: predictive, concurrent, content, and construct. These validities have to do with testing applicants rather than just interviewing them. In predictive testing, test scores of applicants are compared to test scores of employees test scores to try and predict future performance. Concurrent consists of testing people who already have a job. It seems that testing is a more effective method of determining the potential for success within prospective applicants.
4 Have you ever applied for a job that required a test? Was it an aptitude test? (an assessment of how well you can learn and acquire new skills.) or an achievement test (used to measure your existing knowledge and skills?) Did you feel the test was effective? Have you ever “bs’ed” through an interview? (said what you knew the interviewer wanted to hear, etc.)
Reflection
Today's discussion focused on methods of recruiting and bringing people into the company. You try and get as large as an applicant pool as you can. Some companies then test. Many do not test because its time consuming. However, a company should consider carefully before they do this. Testing can be the best process to determine the best employee that with have the best fit within a specific job within your company. After the interview, you do your due diligence then make your decision. This process seems to be the most frequently used from my experience. I imagine as well that this process has been going on for quite some time as well.
Thursday, January 28, 2010
Chapter 5 Reflections
Today we discussed what things contribute to motivating or demotivating employees. Things like autonomy and task identification allow an employee to decide how they will complete their tasks and help them understand how what they do fits into the grand scheme of things. Just by allowing an employee the option and freedom to make their own decisions will greatly increase their productivity. An employee that doesn't know how his job fits into the final product or service is demotivating. People want to know that what they are doing has meaning. If it is meaningless, they won't be as motivated to perform.
Tuesday, January 26, 2010
Reflection Chapter 4
Today we had a very interesting discussion about affirmative action and discrimination. The class seemed to agree that there have been instances where affirmative action has swung too far to discriminate against the majority class. In one instance, firefighters in New Haven Connecticut were sued for not hiring top performing firefighter applicants because they were all white. In another instances, a college sued USC for not accepting him over a less qualified minority group. I’m all for increasing the diversity in the work place, but what is the best way to do it? Affirmative actions plans, not quotas, seem to be the most effective. Things like marketing to minority classes is a good example of an affirmative action plan item.
Chapter 4 Discussion Posts
1. Concept and Brief Description
2. Emotional Hook (provocative question/claim/real-life problem)
3. Key Points to Elicit in Discussion
4. Facilitative Questions
1. This chapter covered the actual “job” aspect of HR. How do you define a person’s job? Is it a good thing to define their job? HR professionals are expected to be able to quantify the company’s output in terms of employee input. The quantity of workers and the quality of each individuals work determine the mix that the HR professional must assess. Work flow analysis is the official process by which HR pros figure this out.
2. Do you wish your job description was more detailed or less? If your job didn’t come with a description, do you wish it did? Why or why not?
3. Job descriptions are a list of TDR’s (tasks, to do’s, and responsibilities.) They help employees, especially new ones understand what is expected of them and what they are required to do. Beyond job descriptions are job specification, which outline the KSAO’s of the job (knowledge, skills, abilities, and other characteristics.) I feel both are essential for employees to be able to hit the ground running and have a positive experience fulfilling their duties.
4. Have you ever been in a position where you had to write a job description or job specifications? How did you go about determining what were the most important task, to do’s, responsibilities, knowledge, skills, and abilities? If you had to rewrite your own job description with the understanding you now have of your job, what would you write?
2. Emotional Hook (provocative question/claim/real-life problem)
3. Key Points to Elicit in Discussion
4. Facilitative Questions
1. This chapter covered the actual “job” aspect of HR. How do you define a person’s job? Is it a good thing to define their job? HR professionals are expected to be able to quantify the company’s output in terms of employee input. The quantity of workers and the quality of each individuals work determine the mix that the HR professional must assess. Work flow analysis is the official process by which HR pros figure this out.
2. Do you wish your job description was more detailed or less? If your job didn’t come with a description, do you wish it did? Why or why not?
3. Job descriptions are a list of TDR’s (tasks, to do’s, and responsibilities.) They help employees, especially new ones understand what is expected of them and what they are required to do. Beyond job descriptions are job specification, which outline the KSAO’s of the job (knowledge, skills, abilities, and other characteristics.) I feel both are essential for employees to be able to hit the ground running and have a positive experience fulfilling their duties.
4. Have you ever been in a position where you had to write a job description or job specifications? How did you go about determining what were the most important task, to do’s, responsibilities, knowledge, skills, and abilities? If you had to rewrite your own job description with the understanding you now have of your job, what would you write?
Monday, January 25, 2010
Chapter 5 Discussion Post
- Concept and Brief Description
- Emotional Hook (provocative question/claim/real-life problem)
- Key Points to Elicit in Discussion
- Facilitative Questions
1. This chapter focused on the roles and responsibilities of recruiting. Every organization needs to develop a plan for recruiting and retaining employees. Unfortunately, our economy is constantly changing, and with it, the supply and demand for labor. Companies need to be able to foresee potential labor surpluses and shortages and know how to handle them effectively.
2. The book showed how HR professionals use trend analysis and transitional matrices to try and understand where people go and where they come from. Have you ever conducted a personal “labor forecast” to determine the jobs that you think are going to be in demand when you enter the labor force?
3. I think we can all apply these principles in human resources to our professional lives to improve our chances of securing high paying, quality jobs when we graduate. Jobs that may have been in high demand in the past may now be in low demand. Jobs that may even be in high demand right now may be in surplus by the time we graduate. If we know that a surplus of a certain type of worker means lower pay and less competitiveness by companies to recruit, we can safely assume that a different job may be more desirable. I think as we look around and read the news we can get an idea of where our economy is headed and conduct our own mental labor forecast to position ourselves into a demanded, high quality, high paying jobs.
4. What else do you use to determine job demand? Do you know anyone who got into the right field at the right time and it acted as a springboard for his or her career? Do you know anyone who got into the wrong field at the wrong time? Or even the right field at the wrong time? What were the consequences of that?
Wednesday, January 20, 2010
HR Article Discussion Post
Discussion Post
2. If you were in charge of a team of 12 people, what strategies would you use to get your employees more 'engaged.'
3. I think the most important thing to recognize is the important role a manager plays in engaging employees. In this economy especially, employees often ponder their job safety. It is impossible to be engaged when you are worrying about losing your job. Managers need to recognize how their actions either exacerbate or mitigate employee's fears. For example, when a manager starts spending extra time behind closed doors or more time in private conferences, employees worry. On the flip side, a simple comment of reassurance to employees can quelch worries, opening the doors for engagement. The responsibility of creating a environment that fosters employee engagement lies of the shoulders of management.
4. When have you felt most 'engaged' in work?
What caused you to feel this way?
Was your behavior at work different when you felt engaged?
Did your management play a role in your 'engagement?'
- Concept and Brief Description
- Emotional Hook (provocative question/claim/real-life problem)
- Key Points to Elicit in Discussion
- Facilitative Questions
2. If you were in charge of a team of 12 people, what strategies would you use to get your employees more 'engaged.'
3. I think the most important thing to recognize is the important role a manager plays in engaging employees. In this economy especially, employees often ponder their job safety. It is impossible to be engaged when you are worrying about losing your job. Managers need to recognize how their actions either exacerbate or mitigate employee's fears. For example, when a manager starts spending extra time behind closed doors or more time in private conferences, employees worry. On the flip side, a simple comment of reassurance to employees can quelch worries, opening the doors for engagement. The responsibility of creating a environment that fosters employee engagement lies of the shoulders of management.
4. When have you felt most 'engaged' in work?
What caused you to feel this way?
Was your behavior at work different when you felt engaged?
Did your management play a role in your 'engagement?'
Monday, January 18, 2010
Chapter 3 Discussion Post
1. This chapter focused on Equal Employment Opportunity (EEO.) This is a term I've always heard thrown around a lot, but never really understand all the facets behind it. It was interesting to see how EEO has evolved and what an in depth role the government plays in creating and enforcing EEO policies. One thing that I've always pondered is the disparity in the quantity of men in executive level positions versus women. There is undoubtedly far less women executives than men. We often hear of the 'glass ceiling' that prevents female professionals from rising above a certain level within an organization. I certainly agree that women have historically and traditionally been discriminated against in the work place. I wonder now, however, how much the glass ceiling actually attributes to this fact. As I look around in my classes, I notice that the disparity between men and women seeking business degrees is vast.
2. Do you feel the lower number of women in executive positions is due to discrimination, due to the fact that less women seek executive positions, or due to some other reason?
3. This is a hard one to pin discrimination on, because it is difficult to apply the four fifths rule of thumb to executive positions, since there is typically only one position available for application. However, it is possible to compare earnings for men and women in similar positions, doing similar work. It is interesting to note that women receive on average less compensation for doing the same work. I've also heard this statistic frequently quoted. I'd be interested to know though, what types of work this includes. If it includs jobs where salaries were negotiated, I would be curious to know if there is a difference in how men and women negotiate (generally speaking.) I'd like to know if women are more or less likely to sternly negotiate a salary then men.
4. Do you feel there are gender personalities traits that better equip a male or female for certain work situations or requirements? (excluding the bonified requirements?)
Would you rather work for a male or female boss?
Would you feel uncomfortable seeing a woman CEO running a company that you worked for or owned a lot of shares in?
Do you feel that men and women have different inherent emotional and logical perspective on situations in general?
If so, are either of these inherent differences more appropriate for executive level management?
Learning Reflections
The interesting topic for me in this class was the discussion on the psychological contract. I've recognized this shift in my personal work experiences and observations of today's work market. It used to be that when you went to work for a company you typically went to work with them for life. In exchange for you loyalty, you could expect that the company would take care you via pensions and 401K's. When you went to retire, your employer would have matched all your savings and provided other programs for you to be able to retire comfortably. These days, as was discussed in class, "employers watch their backs, employees watch theirs." There is not as much implied trust and loyalty between companies and employees. Employees will leave a company if they can find a better deal elsewhere. Employers will chop employees if they can get the same production and results for less expense. Is this a good thing? I think there are definite advantages. No consumer would remain loyal to a product or service that was providing less value for the cost than a competitor. Every employee shops for and buys a product called their employer. By turning employers into products and employees into consumers, the labor market is subject to the beneficial affects of a free market economy. Companies now compete more aggressively to recruit and retain. We see companies today providing so many amenities and perks, including work flexibility, that just didn't exist during the time of the old psychological contract. I recognize there are disadvantages as well, however, for me, the advantages seem to starkly outweigh them.
- Concept and Brief Description
- Emotional Hook (provocative question/claim/real-life problem)
- Key Points to Elicit in Discussion
- Facilitative Questions
1. This chapter focused on Equal Employment Opportunity (EEO.) This is a term I've always heard thrown around a lot, but never really understand all the facets behind it. It was interesting to see how EEO has evolved and what an in depth role the government plays in creating and enforcing EEO policies. One thing that I've always pondered is the disparity in the quantity of men in executive level positions versus women. There is undoubtedly far less women executives than men. We often hear of the 'glass ceiling' that prevents female professionals from rising above a certain level within an organization. I certainly agree that women have historically and traditionally been discriminated against in the work place. I wonder now, however, how much the glass ceiling actually attributes to this fact. As I look around in my classes, I notice that the disparity between men and women seeking business degrees is vast.
2. Do you feel the lower number of women in executive positions is due to discrimination, due to the fact that less women seek executive positions, or due to some other reason?
3. This is a hard one to pin discrimination on, because it is difficult to apply the four fifths rule of thumb to executive positions, since there is typically only one position available for application. However, it is possible to compare earnings for men and women in similar positions, doing similar work. It is interesting to note that women receive on average less compensation for doing the same work. I've also heard this statistic frequently quoted. I'd be interested to know though, what types of work this includes. If it includs jobs where salaries were negotiated, I would be curious to know if there is a difference in how men and women negotiate (generally speaking.) I'd like to know if women are more or less likely to sternly negotiate a salary then men.
4. Do you feel there are gender personalities traits that better equip a male or female for certain work situations or requirements? (excluding the bonified requirements?)
Would you rather work for a male or female boss?
Would you feel uncomfortable seeing a woman CEO running a company that you worked for or owned a lot of shares in?
Do you feel that men and women have different inherent emotional and logical perspective on situations in general?
If so, are either of these inherent differences more appropriate for executive level management?
Learning Reflections
The interesting topic for me in this class was the discussion on the psychological contract. I've recognized this shift in my personal work experiences and observations of today's work market. It used to be that when you went to work for a company you typically went to work with them for life. In exchange for you loyalty, you could expect that the company would take care you via pensions and 401K's. When you went to retire, your employer would have matched all your savings and provided other programs for you to be able to retire comfortably. These days, as was discussed in class, "employers watch their backs, employees watch theirs." There is not as much implied trust and loyalty between companies and employees. Employees will leave a company if they can find a better deal elsewhere. Employers will chop employees if they can get the same production and results for less expense. Is this a good thing? I think there are definite advantages. No consumer would remain loyal to a product or service that was providing less value for the cost than a competitor. Every employee shops for and buys a product called their employer. By turning employers into products and employees into consumers, the labor market is subject to the beneficial affects of a free market economy. Companies now compete more aggressively to recruit and retain. We see companies today providing so many amenities and perks, including work flexibility, that just didn't exist during the time of the old psychological contract. I recognize there are disadvantages as well, however, for me, the advantages seem to starkly outweigh them.
Wednesday, January 13, 2010
Chapter 2
Discussion Post
2. Have you worked in a situation where you found yourself the odd one out among "older" coworkers? How did you or how should one handle these types of situations?
3. It seems there will arise a natural disparity between the methods of work between the older and younger generations. In many situations it seems that neither way is right or wrong, just different. However, I would imagine that frustrating situations could arise if two coworkers attempted to work together to complete a project with completely different perspectives on how it should be accomplished. I think the best thing for the younger generation to understand is how important it is to respect and try to learn from the experiences of more seasoned professionals. I think the key for employees closer to retirement to understand is that those just entering the work force have completely new systems and technologies for accomplishing things.
4. What are some valuable insights or lessons you've learned from an older coworker?
Learning Reflections
For me the main value in this class lecture was the focus on the aspects of HR that apply to all leaders and managers. (the slide with the little cartoon of an orange person) I don't intend on pursuing a career in HR but I do plan on working in positions of leadership and management. It was interesting to see how many facets of human resources applied to any standard management position. Many aspects I already knew existed, but never categorized them in the HR umbrella. I realized today that even simple principles such as communication and motivation fall under this umbrella. Understanding this has piqued my interest in HR, (which prior was practically non-existent,) because now I recognize that a good chunk if not all of the principles I learn from it will actually apply to my field of work.
- Concept and Brief Description
- Emotional Hook (provocative question/claim/real-life problem)
- Key Points to Elicit in Discussion
- Facilitative Questions
2. Have you worked in a situation where you found yourself the odd one out among "older" coworkers? How did you or how should one handle these types of situations?
3. It seems there will arise a natural disparity between the methods of work between the older and younger generations. In many situations it seems that neither way is right or wrong, just different. However, I would imagine that frustrating situations could arise if two coworkers attempted to work together to complete a project with completely different perspectives on how it should be accomplished. I think the best thing for the younger generation to understand is how important it is to respect and try to learn from the experiences of more seasoned professionals. I think the key for employees closer to retirement to understand is that those just entering the work force have completely new systems and technologies for accomplishing things.
4. What are some valuable insights or lessons you've learned from an older coworker?
Learning Reflections
For me the main value in this class lecture was the focus on the aspects of HR that apply to all leaders and managers. (the slide with the little cartoon of an orange person) I don't intend on pursuing a career in HR but I do plan on working in positions of leadership and management. It was interesting to see how many facets of human resources applied to any standard management position. Many aspects I already knew existed, but never categorized them in the HR umbrella. I realized today that even simple principles such as communication and motivation fall under this umbrella. Understanding this has piqued my interest in HR, (which prior was practically non-existent,) because now I recognize that a good chunk if not all of the principles I learn from it will actually apply to my field of work.
Tuesday, January 12, 2010
Discussion Topics (Before Class, After Reading)
The discussion topics related to the assigned readings for each required class will include the following four elements (see example pasted below):
- Concept and Brief Description
- Emotional Hook (provocative question/claim/real-life problem)
- Key Points to Elicit in Discussion
- Facilitative Questions
Learning Reflections (After Class)
In addition to discuss topic posts in relation to each assigned class reading, following each class session you will also be expected to post brief reflections on some of your learning (at least 200 words). Some of the questions you may want to consider when typing up your reflections may include:- How did material/discussion from today's class change my thinking about ____ (any topic, maybe one that you posted a discussion topic or some other point in the reading or class session).
- How did material/discussion from today's class/reading improve your understanding of previously learned material?
- How did material/discussion from today's class alter how you view yourself or the world?
- How did material/discussion from today's class apply specifically to you and your current situation?
Chapter 1
DISCUSSION TOPIC
All the factors brought up in the first chapter relating to HR were factors that I always just kind of assumed "took care of themselves" in a business. Things like pay compensation, performance management, employee relations, and complying with labor laws. Also recruiting. It makes sense that someone would be employed full time to recruit quality employees to a company. I like how the chapter broke down the broad field of "HR" into specific chronological chunks. It's frequently stated that a company's most valuable resource is it's people. So it completely makes sense that an entire department would be devoted to building and maintaining an effective work force.
2. Imagine that you own a company. How would you structure your HR strategy to address each of the major hr management areas? What would be your strategy for recruiting?
3. The work force today is highly competitive. New companies are constantly scraping for new recruits with higher and higher compensations. It seems that innovation and a solid value proposition are the most important tools for a human resource recruiting strategy. Think of efforts local companies have made to recruit us. We've seen billboards on the freeway and throughout town, we've gotten fliers on our cars, we've been approached by recruiters in the halls in school, we've walk past tables and booths during on campus career events, and we've heard and seen numerous commercials on the radio and television. Behind every one of these contacts is a human resources department planning and striving to recruit a quality work force.
4. What are some other innovative recruiting techniques?
LEARNING REFLECTIONS
This class period was just a lot of new information about course content and requirements. The end had some human resource principles. The most value for me was in the two analogies at the end. In my mind, the story of the frog in the well was comparable to Plato's Allegory of the Cave. I think it's important to not only recognize when other people are "in the well" but to recognize when I am as well. I don't think of "being in the well" as a personality trait or ongoing attribute (although with some people it seems to be,) I think of it more as applying to specific situations or perspectives. In some situations we may see things through a narrow, constrained hole. We need to recognize this so that we can pull ourselves out and see the world how it really is.
- Concept and Brief Description
- Emotional Hook (provocative question/claim/real-life problem)
- Key Points to Elicit in Discussion
- Facilitative Questions
All the factors brought up in the first chapter relating to HR were factors that I always just kind of assumed "took care of themselves" in a business. Things like pay compensation, performance management, employee relations, and complying with labor laws. Also recruiting. It makes sense that someone would be employed full time to recruit quality employees to a company. I like how the chapter broke down the broad field of "HR" into specific chronological chunks. It's frequently stated that a company's most valuable resource is it's people. So it completely makes sense that an entire department would be devoted to building and maintaining an effective work force.
2. Imagine that you own a company. How would you structure your HR strategy to address each of the major hr management areas? What would be your strategy for recruiting?
3. The work force today is highly competitive. New companies are constantly scraping for new recruits with higher and higher compensations. It seems that innovation and a solid value proposition are the most important tools for a human resource recruiting strategy. Think of efforts local companies have made to recruit us. We've seen billboards on the freeway and throughout town, we've gotten fliers on our cars, we've been approached by recruiters in the halls in school, we've walk past tables and booths during on campus career events, and we've heard and seen numerous commercials on the radio and television. Behind every one of these contacts is a human resources department planning and striving to recruit a quality work force.
4. What are some other innovative recruiting techniques?
LEARNING REFLECTIONS
This class period was just a lot of new information about course content and requirements. The end had some human resource principles. The most value for me was in the two analogies at the end. In my mind, the story of the frog in the well was comparable to Plato's Allegory of the Cave. I think it's important to not only recognize when other people are "in the well" but to recognize when I am as well. I don't think of "being in the well" as a personality trait or ongoing attribute (although with some people it seems to be,) I think of it more as applying to specific situations or perspectives. In some situations we may see things through a narrow, constrained hole. We need to recognize this so that we can pull ourselves out and see the world how it really is.
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