Business Management Assignment
Module 1 Activity 5
Given all the proposed changes, I think that the most likely reasons for resistance to this change is that they will disagree with disbanding their groups because they have learned how to make things more productive by the cooperation of each of them. Disbanding them might make them withdraw their contract to the store and will just start looking for another store where they can all work together again. Another might be the distance of the other store because proximity from their homes is one of the things that are always considered by employees when they look for a job.
Determine how will you decide about the promotions and transfers (make whatever assumptions you think are warranted).
The very first thing that I will do is to talk to my people regarding the proposed changes. My ultimate goal is to make them understand how I owe to them the success of the store and that their individual works are highly appreciated. It is good though that they were able to make friends and to make systems with each other on their sides because I have seen that this has greatly contributed to the success of the store, they have become so productive at work. However, they have to learn how to work with themselves because there is no any other employment that will definitely allow their groups to work together, I am quite sure that they will be disbanded and regrouped so they can extend their networks with other co-workers. Therefore, all these plans will lead to something that has to be dealt with—breaking the group which worked fulltime for three years and mix them with new employees which will be hired, plus the part-timers.
First is to gather them all in a meeting after office hours. Then, I will tell them the plans of the owner and other business partners. Console them how well they performed in this store and slowly introduce to them the changes that has to be made. After that, I can now proceed with the transfers and promotions. I may think of ways in order to assess who among my people will get the promotions and so far, the manner I think might be effective is using a peer evaluation.
An alternative strategy would involve keeping the existing staff intact and hiring new employees for the new store. Outline a persuasion strategy for trying to convince your boss that this option is better.
It is a good opportunity for a new team to handle a new store and set our store as the basis of success. Hiring new people to handle it might result to new ideas of how the store can be successful like ours. Then again, new employees do not mean that they are people looking for entry level jobs. New employees to be hired are also those with prior experience in business management so it is assured that they have enough knowledge into how they should handle a newly opened store. Fresh marketing strategy would be one of the things that new employees might offer.
Module 1 Activity 8
Do a search on the internet and review a company or organizations code of ethics. Comment on their code of ethics. Do you think it is appropriate for their line of business? Do you think a code of ethics is important in an organization? Please provide the link to the webpage you found.
Nike Code of Ethics
I searched for the code of ethics of one of the most known brand of shoes—the Nike store. I can see that once an employee gets inside the company, they are safe. They have benefits, they are treated very equally and they can work on their own. Employees are required to act as if they are themselves and they do not need to pretend to be somebody else. This is appropriate for their line of business since they teach people to be sporty—both physically and mentally.
(http://phx.corporate-ir.net/External.File?item=UGFyZW50SUQ9MTkyfENoaWxkSUQ9LTF8VHlwZT0z&t=1)
Module 2 Activity 8
What were the major findings of the Michigan and Ohio State studies of leadership behaviors? Briefly describe each group of studies and compare and contrast their findings.
It was found out that there are two leadership behaviors that a leader can embody—the one which focus is on work and performance, and the other is the welfare and support for the employee. Work and performance are those managers who think that the success of the organization will inspire the people to work harder. The other type of managers are those who think that they should invest in the people so they will work harder.
What are the situational approaches to leadership? Briefly describe each and compare and contrast their findings.
The situational approaches to leadership includes the following: LPC theory, the path-goal theory, and the Vroom-Yetton-Jago theory. LPC theory requires task oriented and relationship oriented leadership. The path-goal theory says that leadership depends on what the environment dictates. The VYJ theory says leaders should be considered subordinate at some point.
Part C
Why should members of an organization be aware that political behavior may be going on within the organization? What might occur if they were not aware?
Members of an organization must be aware of the political behavior that may be going on within the organization because political behavior is usually used to make influences. Decision making strategies and other procedures might fail if political intervention will occur. We all know that politicking is almost similar to have a part of the organization think in a manner most favorable for themselves, and not for the good of the whole group.
Module 3 Activity 1
Describe the nature of organizational goals. Be certain to include both the purposes and kinds of goals.
Organizational goals are the goals being set by an organization so they can work inspired and the employees can see where they efforts are heading. It is important so people can see that they are working to achieve something that is relevant and that they are not working just to get salaries. Goals can be short term and long term. Usually, short term goals are used to make long term goals more achievable.
What is contingency planning? Is being flexible about your plans the same as contingency planning? Why or why not?
Contingency planning is making plans with other alternatives in case the primary and secondary plans fails. Contingency planning is also known to be used in case there is an emergency and the other parts of the plans can no longer be pulled off. It is not about being flexible. Contingency planning tells that people must always be prepared for the emergencies that might come along. Therefore, it is about preparing for the disasters that might come along, and this does not mean that the whole plan (that is currently being implemented) will be changed. Contingency plan is just a plan for certain parts of the primary plan that is assumed to have high vulnerability to fail.
Module 3 Activity 2
Think of three types of operational plans you have used at work, in your school work, or even in your personal life. For each, describe the type of plan used and how it was applied to the situation.
Financial planning or budgeting, plans for further studies, and travel plans. All of these uses tactical plans in which strategies are made and recognized. I have strategies to save more, to take the most units possible with the complete computation of passing versus failing, and to make travelling more fun with lesser budget.
What are the barriers to goal setting and planning? How can they be overcome? Can you think of many ways to overcome the barriers other than the ways identified in the text?
Some of the barriers to goal setting and planning are the (1) availability of knowledge and information necessary to check the possibility of achieving the goals. Goals are not dreams and so it needs to have basis. The basis that I talk about are the records and the documentation records of the business. With all these things made available, the goal making and planning can be more realistic than it seems. Also, another barrier could be the lack of vision. If the manager is not that motivated to push through with his or her career in the business management, then it is possible that he or she cannot think of the best ideas to make the business very successful in the near future.
Almost by definition, organizations cannot accomplish all of their goals. Why?
Not all goals are achievable most especially when these goals are not realistic enough to be pulled off. Therefore, it is important to make goals that are realistic enough so it would seem achievable. Also, it is important for the organization to arrange and prioritize the goals, and take each goal very seriously. They should try to achieve one goal at a time to make sure that the goals are met.
Which kind of plan—tactical or operational—should an organization develop first? Why? Does the order of development really make a difference as long as plans of both types are made?
In my opinion, it is important to make tactical plans first. For me, it seems like we are building theories first and then we assess the likeliness of these theories to bring success to the organization. After seeing that these tactical plans can be pulled off, it is now time to proceed with the operational plans. Indeed, the order of development will make a difference because it is important to assess virtually the possible gains and losses before testing it manually because it might lead to waste of resources.
Module 3 Activity 3
Make a list of ten goals that you want to achieve in ten years. These goals might relate to work, family or anything else you see as important.
Ten years from now, the following are the goals which I plan to achieve: (1) migrate to Germany, (2) set-up a career in business management, this can mean creating a café in the central business district, (3) build a family of four (partner plus two kids, a boy and a girl), (4) have at least three different private vehicles with its own purpose carved in each of it, (5) travel around the south east Asia with my whole family, (6) open private bank accounts to five banks and put millions on each account, (7) own a mini zoo, (8) finish masteral and doctorate studies, (9) own a house and lot in at least three countries, and (10) own musical instruments.
Make a list of five-year goal that you must meet to be at the halfway point in achieving your long term goals.
The following are my five-year goals: (1) finish bachelor’s degree, (2) find a work which can help me save a lot of money, (3) fix my papers for migration, (4) get all my family members approval to go out of the country for the next years, and (5) invest.
Repeat the list of each of the next five years.
The following are my second five year goals: (1) apply for a master’s or doctorate studies, (2) go out of the country and check out the places that I would want my family to see, (3) compute the money I get to save if the amount is already enough for our southeast Asian tour, (4) continue making investments in stocks, and (5) look for a partner.
Evaluate the likelihood of actually being able to achieve the one-year goals, the five-year goals and the ten-year goals.
I think that the one-year goal is most likely to be achieved that the ten-year goal. Also, five-year goal is more achievable that ten-year goal. The reason for this is that there are many uncertain things that may come in between the years which will make me change my goals for the next years. Therefore, goals may be the target, but there are things that may influence my perception and that will make me think of other things that I may want to consider for the next years to come.
How might this process be similar to and different from a manager doing the same thing for business goals?
This process of making individual goals is similar to the goal making process of a manager. Making a list of goals that the manager wants the business to achieve in a year will be his or her investment in order to attain the long term goals. Also, I can say that the one-year or five-year goals that were set by the manager are more likely to be successfully pulled off compared to the ten-year goals since there are a lot of external factors that are affecting the business sector. Therefore, contingency plans are important to be made in order to adapt to the changes that have occurred for the manager to recognize the hopes of still pushing for the achievement of the long-term goals.
Module 3 Activity 4
Describe the nature of decision making.
Decision making is important in any group. It is actually the ability of the people to take a risk with something that is relevant. There are times that it is more likely to be done with a lot of people so there will be a lot of ideas that will be laid down in the table. However, there are also moments when it is preferred to be done individually especially when it concerns only yourself and engaging with other people might harm you.
What are the main features of the classical model of the decision-making process? What are the main features of the administrative model?
The classical model of decision making process has clear set of goals and objectives, has list of alternatives and uncertainties, and they make rational decisions based on the information gathered.
Administrative model, on the other hand, requires listing of all alternatives or possible manners in order to achieve the goal. Then, they now prioritize which among the alternatives will be used to achieve the desired results. Therefore, this decision making process requires the prioritizing alternatives.
What are the steps in rational decision making? Which step do you think is the most difficult to carry out? Why?
Rational decision making requires the identification of goals and objectives and the listing of alternatives which can be considered to reach the ultimate desire. The most difficult to carry out is the listing of alternatives because it requires making matrices to see which among the alternatives are to get the highest priority.
Module 3 Activity 5
Under what conditions would you expect group decision making to be preferable to individual decision making, and vice versa? Why?
Group decision making can be done when a lot of ideas and alternatives are needed in order to decide. However, when it concerns only a single individual and it will not require a lot of alternatives, it is better to make the process of decision making be contained in an individual perspective.
Module 3 Activity 6
Assume that you have chosen option one. Write an outline that you will use to announce your decision to the four smokers.
First is that I will tell the four smokers that I completely understand the rule of majority. However, I give more importance to health issues that were being raised by the other co-workers. As assigned to this issue resolution, I think I need to stick with the resolution and therefore mandates a smoke-free environment. While I understand your frustration, it is important to think of what is for the greater good. Both of you—smokers and nonsmokers—are affected by such activity which may result to more serious health problems. If all of you will get sick, what will happen to the company? With that said, I think it is better to implement this site as a nonsmoking zone.
Assume that you have chosen option two. Write an outline that you will use to announce your decision to two nonsmokers.
I will tell the nonsmokers about the rule of the majority. With that, I can help them by giving them spaces away from the smokers so they will not be very affected by it. I will also talk to the boss to improve the ventilation and to have a smoking lounge so not all the employees would have to inhale the smoke coming from cigarettes.
Assume that you have chosen option three. Write an outline that you will use when you meet your boss.
With the rule of majority and the health issues that were raised by the nonsmokers, it is important for the boss to clarify the resolution and to help me build a more productive yet healthy working environment. This is no longer a simple issue and this needs the opinion of the boss. I will properly lobby the concerns of both sides—smokers and nonsmokers—and ask the boss which must be favored. In this manner, I think any of the sides will concede in the most professional manner possible since the decision already comes from our boss.
Are there other alternatives?
I cannot think of any other alternatives but I can think of adaptive strategies for any of the sides in case the boss has already decided what course of action must be implemented.
What would you do if you were actually the group supervisor?
I will set the office as a nonsmoking zone because my primary consideration is the health of everyone. In order for the smokers to concede, I will help them make plans to lessen their smoking habits since it is understood that it can cause health problems if they will still continue with it.
