We went over the schedule for our papers and the peer reviews. We don't have class on Thursday so that should give us some time to work on our papers if we're smart... Prof also brought up that he's working on starting up a chapter of a student service group that helps people in poorer countries. This sounds interesting, I think it would be something that would be good to get involved in.
We discussed Utilitarianism and someone brought up the idea that people could reason that the choices that the company makes may not be good for the local citizens or a small group of people but will be beneficial for a large group of people. Does the gain outweigh the negatives. Virtue Ethics based on the capitalist economic systems. WalMart was brought up with it's low prices that drives down the market, but they are evil (personal note there). Costco compared to Sam's Club - Costco has better worker morale, but they have higher prices. Sam's has lower prices...but also lower worker morale.
Tuesday, April 6, 2010
Thursday, April 1, 2010
Reflection April 1
Learning Organizations are so important to making your company run efficiently. There needs to be continuous learning, sharing of knowledge, critical thinking, learning culture, and your employees need to feel appreciated.
We also watched a video about johnson&johnson company and how they run their buisness and why they are so successful. They have continual innovation and have their employees go through continual education. The credo is a big part of what management uses in making their daily decisions, they describe it as they corporate culture. There is even a 6 month training program for all new employees. It's interesting that their mission statement is not just a mission statement, it is how they lead their lives and is part of their day to day business decisions. Some employees say that the credo helps them look at the long-term effects of their business decisions not just this quarter, last quarter, today.
We also watched a video about johnson&johnson company and how they run their buisness and why they are so successful. They have continual innovation and have their employees go through continual education. The credo is a big part of what management uses in making their daily decisions, they describe it as they corporate culture. There is even a 6 month training program for all new employees. It's interesting that their mission statement is not just a mission statement, it is how they lead their lives and is part of their day to day business decisions. Some employees say that the credo helps them look at the long-term effects of their business decisions not just this quarter, last quarter, today.
Tuesday, March 30, 2010
Chapter 16 Discussion Topic
High performance work systems are the right combination of people, technology, and organizational structure that makes full use of the organization's resources and opportunities in achieving its goals.
I find that more often than not companies want the high performance work system but aren't willing to put forth the amount of money required to get their company there. They want highly motivated and productive employees, intelligent employees, but they look at the bottom line right now. "How little can I pay people and get them to do the job so I can make a bigger profit?" Seems a little silly if you look at the big picture. Human Resource Managers need to be able to look at the big picture and show managers, ceo's and owners that sometimes putting forth a little more or even a lot more money at first will bring better results in the long run.
What are some ways that HR professionals could convey this information? Use the diagram in the book Outcomes of a High-performance work system and ask yourself "why don't the people in charge see that this is the better way?"
I find that more often than not companies want the high performance work system but aren't willing to put forth the amount of money required to get their company there. They want highly motivated and productive employees, intelligent employees, but they look at the bottom line right now. "How little can I pay people and get them to do the job so I can make a bigger profit?" Seems a little silly if you look at the big picture. Human Resource Managers need to be able to look at the big picture and show managers, ceo's and owners that sometimes putting forth a little more or even a lot more money at first will bring better results in the long run.
What are some ways that HR professionals could convey this information? Use the diagram in the book Outcomes of a High-performance work system and ask yourself "why don't the people in charge see that this is the better way?"
March 30 Reflection
We finished up chapter 15 going over the Hofstede's 5 Dimensions of Culture and work in foreign countries and effects of culture on training design and also compensation for expatriates. We also discussed the papers that are due April 15. We will be doing peer reviews on the papers, I'm mildly interested to see what other people decided to write about.
Chapter 15 Discussion Topic again
I was interested in the Hofstede Dimensions so I thought I'd add more:
Hofstede's Five Dimensions of Culture -
individualism v. collectivism
power distance
uncertainty avoidance
masculinity v femininity
long-term/short-term orientation
Our culture is definitely on the individualism side of the spectrum and I see this at my job where everyone has pretty much the same job in my department and it's up to us to get our part done, we're monitored on our individual accomplishments as well as the group's.
The power distance in our culture seems to be rather low, we call our supervisors or managers by their first names a lot of the time.
Uncertainty Avoidance makes human resource management and forecasting so important in our culture, we don't like to be unsure about our future for the most part and we want to be prepared for what COULD happen.
What are some other things that we as human resource managers could do to deal with uncertainty avoidance? What are some of today's issues with the change in masculinity v. femininity in difference occupations? Do we still have a big issue with gender differences?
Hofstede's Five Dimensions of Culture -
individualism v. collectivism
power distance
uncertainty avoidance
masculinity v femininity
long-term/short-term orientation
Our culture is definitely on the individualism side of the spectrum and I see this at my job where everyone has pretty much the same job in my department and it's up to us to get our part done, we're monitored on our individual accomplishments as well as the group's.
The power distance in our culture seems to be rather low, we call our supervisors or managers by their first names a lot of the time.
Uncertainty Avoidance makes human resource management and forecasting so important in our culture, we don't like to be unsure about our future for the most part and we want to be prepared for what COULD happen.
What are some other things that we as human resource managers could do to deal with uncertainty avoidance? What are some of today's issues with the change in masculinity v. femininity in difference occupations? Do we still have a big issue with gender differences?
Tuesday, March 16, 2010
March 16 Reflection
We discussed how the union v. management activity went last week and what we got out of it. I could tell that it made a difference when the two sides communicated and when the teams communicated rather than one person for either side made a decision. With these types of scenarios it's very important to try to get as close to a win-win so that there will be more trust and also if it ends up being a lose-lose i.e the labor union "wins" but the company goes under because they can't handle the budget increase so the laborers lose their jobs anyway. You have to communicate with each other otherwise you can't create trust.
We also talked about what supervisors should and should not do to discourage unions. I can see that where I work is pretty much doing it all right.
We also talked about what supervisors should and should not do to discourage unions. I can see that where I work is pretty much doing it all right.
Friday, March 12, 2010
Chapter 15 Discussion Topic
There are a few factors thataffect Human Resource Management in the International Markets. Culture, Education, Economic Status, and Political-legal systems. Culture involves such things as customs, languages, and religions. If you don't understand the culture of the place you are working, you can cause a lot of problems for yourself and make the job unnecessarily difficult. Small things such as when working in a Hindu-dominated culture to not use or bring a leather briefcase, wallet, etc. This can be tied in with the culture of an organization within the States, every job or company has its own "culture" and it is smart to always learn as much about the culture before you get into a situation that could cause much embarrassment.
How can you learn about a culture before you travel or try to get a job in a new organization? Do you think that it is important to learn about a major faith or beliefs and values of other people or countries you could be dealing with?
How can you learn about a culture before you travel or try to get a job in a new organization? Do you think that it is important to learn about a major faith or beliefs and values of other people or countries you could be dealing with?
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