Jeff Weber is the VP People from ancestry.com and he talked about compensation. It was very interesting all the different possibilities that companies do to differentiate themselves from other organizations and stay on top. Some of the things that company do to differentiate from others are the location, vision, reputation, technology, etc.
He mentioned that it is crucial for a company when compensating their employees to not go all the way. One of the reasons is when you take it away from the employees, they feel like the organization has taken something away that they are entitled to. One example he said was that he gave donuts to his employees, every Thursday morning, but they were trying to implement good health. Thus, the organization took away those donuts and the employees were mot happy about.
Compensations are important in an organization. They need to be very well planned and go over the objectives to see if everything is in order and something might need to be changed.
Friday, February 26, 2010
Tuesday, February 23, 2010
CH 11 Child Labor
Concept and Brief Description
The concept that I chose from this chapter was Child Labor. Many years ago, the laws and regulations on child labor were not as strict as today’s. As the book mentions, the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) prohibits the use of child labor. There are some exceptions for example, acting, baby-sitting, and delivering newspapers to consumers. Children who are 16 or 17 years old cannot work in hazardous places. Children who are 14 or 15 years old can work off school hours and also nonhazardous places.
A company needs to have the necessary documentation and work permits if they want to hire a minor. Before a company hires a minor, they need to make sure they are following regulations in their state as well as the FLSA.
Emotional Hook
What if your kid of 5 years old is working to be an actor? You as a parent take your kid everywhere for classes, castings, photo shoots, and auditions. You know that this type of job is hard and knows what is best for your kid. He is becoming a good little actor, but many times that is not what he wants to do because he wants to play with his/her friends.
Key Points to Elicit Discussion
This is a very interesting topic that can create many arguments. With the example above is that considered child labor? The kid does what the mother tells him/her what to do. Being an actor or actresses is hard work. Some kids do very well and love doing what they do, so in those cases is not really child labor, it is just a job.
Facilitative Questions
What if the dream of the parents is to have their child become a star? Is that considered child labor? Some parents think they know what is best for their kids and because they still are under age they do not know what they want? Is it true?
The concept that I chose from this chapter was Child Labor. Many years ago, the laws and regulations on child labor were not as strict as today’s. As the book mentions, the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) prohibits the use of child labor. There are some exceptions for example, acting, baby-sitting, and delivering newspapers to consumers. Children who are 16 or 17 years old cannot work in hazardous places. Children who are 14 or 15 years old can work off school hours and also nonhazardous places.
A company needs to have the necessary documentation and work permits if they want to hire a minor. Before a company hires a minor, they need to make sure they are following regulations in their state as well as the FLSA.
Emotional Hook
What if your kid of 5 years old is working to be an actor? You as a parent take your kid everywhere for classes, castings, photo shoots, and auditions. You know that this type of job is hard and knows what is best for your kid. He is becoming a good little actor, but many times that is not what he wants to do because he wants to play with his/her friends.
Key Points to Elicit Discussion
This is a very interesting topic that can create many arguments. With the example above is that considered child labor? The kid does what the mother tells him/her what to do. Being an actor or actresses is hard work. Some kids do very well and love doing what they do, so in those cases is not really child labor, it is just a job.
Facilitative Questions
What if the dream of the parents is to have their child become a star? Is that considered child labor? Some parents think they know what is best for their kids and because they still are under age they do not know what they want? Is it true?
Wednesday, February 17, 2010
Learning Reflection
John Campell from Valley Mental Health came to talk to the class. He really wanted us to learn something that we did not know before. He talked about if money is a pay motivator or what kind of motivators you have to get excited to go to work everyday.
For some people, yes, money is a big motivator because that is what they want. They do what they do because of the money. But there are other who have intrinsic motivators to go to work the next day. Those intrinsic motivators are more powerful because your work gets exciting, and your values are more important than monetary rewards.
Working in the real world have its own risks such as pay. Some organizations do not realized that they are braking the law. It is very important to know the state laws and regulations. Also, getting reliable data about the market pricing is crucial. One can get any information anywhere such as the internet, but we need to make sure the data is reliable.
The fundamental pay principles are external competitiveness, and internal equity. The internal equity is important to have it in control if not it will hurt the company.
For some people, yes, money is a big motivator because that is what they want. They do what they do because of the money. But there are other who have intrinsic motivators to go to work the next day. Those intrinsic motivators are more powerful because your work gets exciting, and your values are more important than monetary rewards.
Working in the real world have its own risks such as pay. Some organizations do not realized that they are braking the law. It is very important to know the state laws and regulations. Also, getting reliable data about the market pricing is crucial. One can get any information anywhere such as the internet, but we need to make sure the data is reliable.
The fundamental pay principles are external competitiveness, and internal equity. The internal equity is important to have it in control if not it will hurt the company.
Tuesday, February 16, 2010
CH 10 Monitoring Job Satisfaction
Concept and Brief Description
Monitoring Job Satisfaction is a way to monitor the satisfaction levels of the employees and make any necessary changes. To find out the level of satisfaction, the company performs surveys. As the book mentions, conducting surveys to employees gives them a chance to let the company know how they are doing and how they can improve. One type of survey is the Job Descriptive Index (JDI), which measures different areas such as pay, the work itself, supervision, co-workers, and promotions. Another type of survey for a general satisfaction is the Job Satisfaction from the Faces Scale.
Another type to monitor job satisfaction is taken by the employees who are leaving the organization. This is called “exit interview” where the supervisor’s employee and or a human recourse specialist sit down with the employee and have an interview about the reasons for leaving. The interview questions should be open ended and leave room for the employee to mentions the reasons.
Emotional Hook
According to the Conference Board page, they survey 5,000 US households and about job satisfaction and the results were that 45 percent were satisfied with their job.
Key Points to Elicit Discussion
Being able to give the employee opportunities to let know the company if they are satisfied or unsatisfied with their job can help with the company to see if they need to make necessary adjustments. If the company gets too many people leaving the company they can gather information by talking to their employees and see what changes need to be made, and may be make some of the employees return to work for them again.
Facilitative Questions
Have you ever had a job satisfaction survey?
Monitoring Job Satisfaction is a way to monitor the satisfaction levels of the employees and make any necessary changes. To find out the level of satisfaction, the company performs surveys. As the book mentions, conducting surveys to employees gives them a chance to let the company know how they are doing and how they can improve. One type of survey is the Job Descriptive Index (JDI), which measures different areas such as pay, the work itself, supervision, co-workers, and promotions. Another type of survey for a general satisfaction is the Job Satisfaction from the Faces Scale.
Another type to monitor job satisfaction is taken by the employees who are leaving the organization. This is called “exit interview” where the supervisor’s employee and or a human recourse specialist sit down with the employee and have an interview about the reasons for leaving. The interview questions should be open ended and leave room for the employee to mentions the reasons.
Emotional Hook
According to the Conference Board page, they survey 5,000 US households and about job satisfaction and the results were that 45 percent were satisfied with their job.
Key Points to Elicit Discussion
Being able to give the employee opportunities to let know the company if they are satisfied or unsatisfied with their job can help with the company to see if they need to make necessary adjustments. If the company gets too many people leaving the company they can gather information by talking to their employees and see what changes need to be made, and may be make some of the employees return to work for them again.
Facilitative Questions
Have you ever had a job satisfaction survey?
Thursday, February 11, 2010
Learning Reflection
In class, we talked about types of performances measurement rating errors. Such as contrast error, and distributional error to mention some. Contrast error is when a rater compares an individual against other employees. Distributional errors tend to use only one part of the rating. Either employees rate high, meddle, or low to the people he or she is rating.
It can be a problem when there is only a few options to choose and you have to rate other people. When there are few options, it forces the employee to give a rate that does not truly reflect the true behavior or measure of work. Sometimes these types of rating do not give enough information regarding how well the people are doing. Hopefully, companies do not rely only on these ratings because it can cause problems between employees.
I think it is sad to know that when people rate you and only have few options to choose from, it makes the whole point of ratings not worth keeping the information. Because it is hard to rate people when there is a limit number of options.
It can be a problem when there is only a few options to choose and you have to rate other people. When there are few options, it forces the employee to give a rate that does not truly reflect the true behavior or measure of work. Sometimes these types of rating do not give enough information regarding how well the people are doing. Hopefully, companies do not rely only on these ratings because it can cause problems between employees.
I think it is sad to know that when people rate you and only have few options to choose from, it makes the whole point of ratings not worth keeping the information. Because it is hard to rate people when there is a limit number of options.
Wednesday, February 10, 2010
CH 9 Dysfunctional Managers
Concept and Brief Description
A Dysfunctional Managers is a manager who is not fulfilling all of his or her duties. He or she is not sensitive, cannot be a team player, arrogance, poor conflict management skills, inability to meet business objectives, and inability to adapt to change. A study done at Florida State University surveyed 700 people with different kinds of jobs about what complains they had about their managers. The top 4 complains were supervisor failed to keep promises, failed to give credit when due, made negative comments about them to other employees or managers, and blamed others to cover up mistakes or minimize embarrassment.
Emotional Hook
There are programs especially for managers that help improve their behavior. One of the things they do is to videotape the manager as she or he role-played an actual clash she or he had had with another manager. Then the coach views the tape and helps the manager see and understand what is going on.
Key Points to Elicit in Discussion
I wonder how many managers actually need to go through a program to help them with their management skills. There are many good and bad managers everywhere, but regardless of being good or bad, I believe everyone needs to be a good aware how well of a manager he or she is being.
Facilitative Questions
How do you tell your boss he or she needs some management skills?
A Dysfunctional Managers is a manager who is not fulfilling all of his or her duties. He or she is not sensitive, cannot be a team player, arrogance, poor conflict management skills, inability to meet business objectives, and inability to adapt to change. A study done at Florida State University surveyed 700 people with different kinds of jobs about what complains they had about their managers. The top 4 complains were supervisor failed to keep promises, failed to give credit when due, made negative comments about them to other employees or managers, and blamed others to cover up mistakes or minimize embarrassment.
Emotional Hook
There are programs especially for managers that help improve their behavior. One of the things they do is to videotape the manager as she or he role-played an actual clash she or he had had with another manager. Then the coach views the tape and helps the manager see and understand what is going on.
Key Points to Elicit in Discussion
I wonder how many managers actually need to go through a program to help them with their management skills. There are many good and bad managers everywhere, but regardless of being good or bad, I believe everyone needs to be a good aware how well of a manager he or she is being.
Facilitative Questions
How do you tell your boss he or she needs some management skills?
Learning Reflection
We talked about interviewing effectively. It is very important to have a structure interview, especially if the employee wants to avoid illegal questions. Having panel interviews also helps because there are more people asking questions and if for any reason the applicant thinks he was asked an illegal question, then there are more people that were present against one.
Another type of questions can be behavioral based questions. If an employer asks those kind of questions, then the applicant can be able to answer in a more truthful answer than just trying to make up the answer on the spot.
It was very interesting to hear the teacher say that there are a big amount of resumes that have things that are not true about the applicant. Many of those resumes make them look good for the employee to interview them, but not necessarily is what the applicant did in real life.
It is important to be honest on what we put on a resume because it also shows how honest you are, and if the company likes to have honest employees, then we might start in the wrong foot if we put started putting things that are not true then the employee will eventually find out.
Another type of questions can be behavioral based questions. If an employer asks those kind of questions, then the applicant can be able to answer in a more truthful answer than just trying to make up the answer on the spot.
It was very interesting to hear the teacher say that there are a big amount of resumes that have things that are not true about the applicant. Many of those resumes make them look good for the employee to interview them, but not necessarily is what the applicant did in real life.
It is important to be honest on what we put on a resume because it also shows how honest you are, and if the company likes to have honest employees, then we might start in the wrong foot if we put started putting things that are not true then the employee will eventually find out.
Monday, February 8, 2010
CH 8 Sources of Performance
Concept and Brief Description
One of the sources of performance Information is 360-degree performance appraisal. As the book mentions, it the performance measurement that combines information from the employee’s manager, peers, subordinates, self, and customers. Evaluating a performance, helps when different types of people are giving the information on how the person can be evaluated because they all have different perspective in the employee’s performance.
Managers know the job requirements and therefore know better how the employee is doing. Although the manager cannot observe everything that the employee is doing, he can see the reports of the employee and make an evaluation. Peers are another source of performance. Peers can see what the manager cannot see, but a down side is that they can be bias. Subordinates are another source. They are the ones that report to the manager, they see how well the managers treat their employees. Self is another source. Self rating are not done alone, they usually are done to get the employee thinking about their own performance. Customers, they are the ones that the performance was given and they can evaluate how the employee did.
Emotional Hook
I believe that managers and customers are the most important source of evaluation. Managers can see the work and thus give feedback to the employee. Customers can see how you are doing and what he or she did not do or did wrong. Have you ever felt that an employee did not do such a good job to you, when you were the customers? Did it seem they did not show any type of emotion?
Key Points to Elicit in Discussion
Many times I would like to write a letter to the company telling them what things they should improve, but never do it. Or I try to make sure I see a box of suggestions so I can write something either positive or negative.
Facilitative Questions
Have you ever done a performance evaluation? What kind?
One of the sources of performance Information is 360-degree performance appraisal. As the book mentions, it the performance measurement that combines information from the employee’s manager, peers, subordinates, self, and customers. Evaluating a performance, helps when different types of people are giving the information on how the person can be evaluated because they all have different perspective in the employee’s performance.
Managers know the job requirements and therefore know better how the employee is doing. Although the manager cannot observe everything that the employee is doing, he can see the reports of the employee and make an evaluation. Peers are another source of performance. Peers can see what the manager cannot see, but a down side is that they can be bias. Subordinates are another source. They are the ones that report to the manager, they see how well the managers treat their employees. Self is another source. Self rating are not done alone, they usually are done to get the employee thinking about their own performance. Customers, they are the ones that the performance was given and they can evaluate how the employee did.
Emotional Hook
I believe that managers and customers are the most important source of evaluation. Managers can see the work and thus give feedback to the employee. Customers can see how you are doing and what he or she did not do or did wrong. Have you ever felt that an employee did not do such a good job to you, when you were the customers? Did it seem they did not show any type of emotion?
Key Points to Elicit in Discussion
Many times I would like to write a letter to the company telling them what things they should improve, but never do it. Or I try to make sure I see a box of suggestions so I can write something either positive or negative.
Facilitative Questions
Have you ever done a performance evaluation? What kind?
Thursday, February 4, 2010
Learning Reflection
Ryan Browne from Tahitian Noni came to talk to the class about how Tahitian Noni does to make a training work and to be effective. In the company, they require 1hr. training each week, international training team of 7 members (20:1), e-learning, quizzes, recaps, intense focus on gathering feedback from and listening to the customers, and 30 min "team briefings" each day. One of the questions he asked was why to allocate resources to training, and it actually helps by meeting the department mission and focus, and most importantly it impact the revenues of the company.
One of the reasons for why it is important to have trainings in the company is to better the skills of the employees and thus increase revenues, but if the training is not teaching what it should then the company could fail. Also, the training plan needs to be correct and has a point. It is very important that employees should come out with new perspectives and ready to make things better.
On one of the slides of his power point he mentions: “Teaching someone new skills will increase their performance incrementally. Helping someone cultivate a passion towards vision will increase their performance drastically.” I think it is very important to let the employees know that what they are doing matters in the company and having the right skills and vision can not only help the company but help the employees as well.
One of the reasons for why it is important to have trainings in the company is to better the skills of the employees and thus increase revenues, but if the training is not teaching what it should then the company could fail. Also, the training plan needs to be correct and has a point. It is very important that employees should come out with new perspectives and ready to make things better.
On one of the slides of his power point he mentions: “Teaching someone new skills will increase their performance incrementally. Helping someone cultivate a passion towards vision will increase their performance drastically.” I think it is very important to let the employees know that what they are doing matters in the company and having the right skills and vision can not only help the company but help the employees as well.
Wednesday, February 3, 2010
CH 7 Training Methods
Concept and Brief Description
Training Methods are instructor-led classrooms, online self-study, virtual classrooms, and other methods including workbooks and videos. Classroom instructions are not very expensive and are very common in the workplace to use this method. Trainers can use slides, discussions, case studies, question-and-answer session and role playing.
Audiovisual training and computer-based training are part of online self-study. A positive side on these methods is that they have control over the presentation and they can review, slow down, or speed up. The computer-based training is a very cheap method. In the book, it mentions that when technology improves it become cheaper.
Other methods are on-the-job training, simulations, business games and case studies, behavior modeling, experiential programs, team training, and action learning. All these different methods help the employees develop skills that are necessary for the company they are working for.
Emotional Hook
Imagine being in a company where you are being train, but the training is very boring that you did not learn anything because it did not even pertaining to your job?
Key Points to Elicit in Discussion
The method used to help the employees learn the skills depends on what the company thinks it is necessary for the training. I have a friend that has told me many times that she needed to watch a video and answer a number of questions because it was part of her training. She works at home, thus the company in her situation sent her a video in her email and she had a deadline to watch and answer.
Facilitative Questions
What methods has your company used to train employees?
Training Methods are instructor-led classrooms, online self-study, virtual classrooms, and other methods including workbooks and videos. Classroom instructions are not very expensive and are very common in the workplace to use this method. Trainers can use slides, discussions, case studies, question-and-answer session and role playing.
Audiovisual training and computer-based training are part of online self-study. A positive side on these methods is that they have control over the presentation and they can review, slow down, or speed up. The computer-based training is a very cheap method. In the book, it mentions that when technology improves it become cheaper.
Other methods are on-the-job training, simulations, business games and case studies, behavior modeling, experiential programs, team training, and action learning. All these different methods help the employees develop skills that are necessary for the company they are working for.
Emotional Hook
Imagine being in a company where you are being train, but the training is very boring that you did not learn anything because it did not even pertaining to your job?
Key Points to Elicit in Discussion
The method used to help the employees learn the skills depends on what the company thinks it is necessary for the training. I have a friend that has told me many times that she needed to watch a video and answer a number of questions because it was part of her training. She works at home, thus the company in her situation sent her a video in her email and she had a deadline to watch and answer.
Facilitative Questions
What methods has your company used to train employees?
Tuesday, February 2, 2010
Learning Reflection
In class we talked about different recruitment sources. The one that I will focus is image advertising. Image adversing is a way to recruit potential employees. In some places, it is very easy to get applicants to apply for a job because the company is very well known. One example of a more recognized organization is Google. They are very well known among the people. On the other hand we have other companies who are struggling to get someone to apply for a job because they do not have good reputation. An example of such a place I would not mention because I do not want to get in trouble.
Having a good image to society has its advantages. Just to see a logo of a company we can tell much about the organization. If for any reason a company's image is not very well recognized, then the company has a hard time finding people to apply for any job. Getting the company to be recognized as a good place to work is hard, but it is not impossible.
Having a good image to society has its advantages. Just to see a logo of a company we can tell much about the organization. If for any reason a company's image is not very well recognized, then the company has a hard time finding people to apply for any job. Getting the company to be recognized as a good place to work is hard, but it is not impossible.
Monday, February 1, 2010
CH 6 Resumes
Concept and Brief Description
Every time a person wants to apply for a job, he or she prepares a resume. As we all know, a resume contains the necessary information such as education, work experience, and any other important skills. Many of the resumes are prepared carefully to make sure it stands out to the employee and get an advantage for an interview. One of the negative sides of a resume is that the applicant controls the information provided and the way it is presented. If the resume is unclear and has many mistakes, then that applicant will be on the no pile. The positive side is that a resume can show any accomplishments you have done where the employment application cannot say that. Also for the employee, it is a starting point who to look for potential employees.
Emotional Hook
It takes approximately 15-30 seconds for a human resource person to see a resume and decide if he or she is a potential employee. That is not a long time, even when you have worked hard on that resume.
Key Points to Elicit in Discussion
To think that it does not take long for a Human Resource staff to look at a resume seems kind of harsh. With years of experience, and HR staff do have the ability to eliminate resumes in seconds. To make your resume stand out, we must make careful changes, or add something that can be valuable for that company. It takes multiple drafts to get a good resume.
Facilitative Questions
What can you do to have a good resume?
Every time a person wants to apply for a job, he or she prepares a resume. As we all know, a resume contains the necessary information such as education, work experience, and any other important skills. Many of the resumes are prepared carefully to make sure it stands out to the employee and get an advantage for an interview. One of the negative sides of a resume is that the applicant controls the information provided and the way it is presented. If the resume is unclear and has many mistakes, then that applicant will be on the no pile. The positive side is that a resume can show any accomplishments you have done where the employment application cannot say that. Also for the employee, it is a starting point who to look for potential employees.
Emotional Hook
It takes approximately 15-30 seconds for a human resource person to see a resume and decide if he or she is a potential employee. That is not a long time, even when you have worked hard on that resume.
Key Points to Elicit in Discussion
To think that it does not take long for a Human Resource staff to look at a resume seems kind of harsh. With years of experience, and HR staff do have the ability to eliminate resumes in seconds. To make your resume stand out, we must make careful changes, or add something that can be valuable for that company. It takes multiple drafts to get a good resume.
Facilitative Questions
What can you do to have a good resume?
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