Washington Post and Heritage Foundation
Answer the 3 questions below and reply to each student. Student Reply must be over 200 words. Make sure all student replies you start it with Hello (Student Name), Please upload each question in different word documents. Question 1: Unemployment is one of the most troubling issues facing our economy today. Some say the motivation to solve the problem is lacking on the government’s side, while others argue it is an issue for corporations. Still others suggest exorbitant unemployment benefits incentivize the unemployed to avoid getting a solid job. Review some of these positions by reading the Washington Post and Heritage Foundation articles. Decide whom you feel needs the most motivation and explain why. Using the four-step approach in Chapter 5, discuss which actions you would take to fulfill each of the four steps to motivate the group you decide most needs to take action. Student Reply 1: Jamal Norris Reviewing the Washington Post, it makes sense to me to when Obama extended the UI benefit because of the high unemployment that hit the US due to the Bush administrations poor leadership. I was laid off last year and unemployment helps me get through but it was not enough so I had to find a job soon or I would have been far behind on my bills and mortgage. So, I agree with the 12-month extension of the UI because corporations are shipping jobs overseas to get cheap labor and make hit profits in America. The group that I believe needs to take more action is the corporation of America due to the selection choice of how they hire. Step 1 As an individual, you have to inspect the company that you work for and the supervisors that make the decisions of who gets promoted and who doesn’t. Making a connection at work that counts when you are pursuing a higher position in your workplace. Set a timeline for yourself within your goal timeline as to when you will be making/or taking a certain step in your career Step 2 Talk to your connection at work about when a new position is coming up and how to apply in a way that you will be recognized by the company as a serious inquirer. Getting data/information about what corporations are looking for in the position that your acquiring helps when constructing your resume, dressing for the interview, and have the knowledge and skills to do the job. Step 3 Don’t get content with the position you have to believe in yourself to do better things. Push harder at work to make a difference in your life. Step 4 Always revise your plan to fit just right to your life style. Make the sacrifice to get extra education or stay late at work to so dedication to the organization so that they will consider you for another or better position. Help out with other duties to develop other skill needed to move up. Student Reply 2: Jennifer Wisniewski Unemployment is one of the most troubling issues facing our economy today. Some say the motivation to solve the problem is lacking on the government’s side, while others argue it is an issue for corporations. Still others suggest exorbitant unemployment benefits incentive the unemployed to avoid getting a solid job. Review some of these positions by reading the Washington Postand Heritage Foundation Decide whom you feel needs the most motivation and explain why. I believe the motivation is lacking on the governments side. The old saying goes if it’s not broke don’t fix it. Unemployment is broke and needs to be fixed and in stead of fixing unemployment the government would rather point fingers at the other side doing the blame game. In 2008, former President Bush issued stimulus checks in hopes to prevent a recession, later former President Obama did the same thing and only one of these former Presidents was it seen as socialism (Sargent, 2010). Due to the recession and unemployment from 2009 to 2011 the government spent over $300 billion dollars assisting those that used the 99 weeks of unemployment (Sherk, 2011). During the recession many people could not find a job, but there were also those that chose not to take a job and claim the unemployment benefits instead. Using the four-step approach in Chapter 5, discuss which actions you would take to fulfill each of the four steps to motivate the group you decide most needs to take action. Plan the project Outline details Gather resources Investigate the strength of each connection and possible causes Collect input from everyone What type of skills are needed and whom brings these skills? Identifying appropriate solutions Identify all scenarios Which three scenarios work best Put into action the best solution Decide which problem and solution to tackle and measure results Do the unemployed make more money unemployed vice working? Do the unemployed get over looked due to a faulty system? Resource: Pritchard, R. D., & Ashwood, E. L. (2008). Managing motivation: A manager's guide to diagnosing and improving motivation. New York: Routledge/Taylor & Francis Group. ISBN: 9781841697895 Sargent, G. (2010, July 20). The plum line: Two more GOPers say unemployment benefits encourage folks to stay unemployed (Links to an external site.)Links to an external site. (Links to an external site.)Links to an external site.. Blogs & Columns, Blog Directory - The Washington Post. Retrieved from http://voices.washingtonpost.com/plum-line/2010/07... (Links to an external site.)Links to an external site. Sherk, J. (2011, Sept. 8). Extended UI payments do not benefit the economy (Links to an external site.)Links to an external site. (Links to an external site.)Links to an external site.. Conservative Policy Research and Analysis. Retrieved from http://www.heritage.org/Research/Reports/2011/09/E... (Links to an external site.)Links to an external site. Question 2: Firefighters operate as highly effective and united teams when they are in action, which is no doubt a result of the morale-building and leadership of their station captain. Review the Viscuso article discussing seven key tips to building morale in their department. You will notice they all apply to nearly any work environment. Identity which three tips you think are most essential to building employee morale. As a manager, explain how you would effectively implement them in your own workplace. Respond to at least two of your classmates’ posts. Student Reply 3: Nicole Coffey The three tips I think are the most essential to building employee morale are leading by example, don’t be a micromanager and instilling team spirit. While I believe all of the tips are essential to being successful and having a successful team, I feel that these three tips all go hand in hand when trying to make your employees happy. As a Manger I would lead by example by always doing the right thing. Regardless of the situation or who may get upset, having your employees know that you will do what is right while also having their back is a quick way for your employees to trust you as a manager and a person. I would also always have an open door policy, where anyone can feel free to come in and talk about whatever issues they are concerned about and know that I would address them accordingly. I would also bring positivity into the workplace. I feel that if you as a manager shows positivity it will also bring that out in others. Being a micromanager in most cases I have seen almost always leads to more problems with the employees and negativity. We are adults and should be treated like one. I feel that as a manager you should trust that your employees are doing their jobs, and this should ultimately be your job to realize the employees that are not. The more you walk all over your employees and bother them, the quicker the employee will be walking out the door. As a manager we should instill into our employees that we are not there to hold their hands but simply are there when they are in doubt. Instilling team spirit I feel is extremely important. There will be days when employees are disgruntled with each other due to stress or work volume, but knowing how each other works, really will help the employees to understand each other and be willing to help each other out more when things do get hectic. Working as a team will get the job done easier and smoother. When your employees know what they have each other’s backs they will be more willing to do better and ultimately just be happier people. References: Pritchard, R. D., & Ashwood, E. L. (2008). Managing motivation: A manager's guide to diagnosing and improving motivation. Retrieved from https://www.vitalsource.com/ Student Reply 4: Diana Squire Employee morale can affect man facets in a workplace such as productivity and employee retention. It describes the overall outlook, attitude, satisfaction and determination employees feel at work. In every organization, employer focuses to have high and positive employee morale. Frank and Joseph Viscuso (2011) Argues that when firefighter’s morale is high fosters quality services, accident and injuries decreases and absenteeism is reduced. While low morale reduces employee work ethics, sabotage and increased absenteeism. The Viscuso article outline eight tips an organization leadership can utilize to foster positive and high morale in workplace. Leading by example, (Viscuso, 2011)it helps in setting the right example to employees as a source of inspiration for them. To lead by example a leader must be confident, competent and maintain consistency .A team that is led by a leader practicing these characteristics creates trust, respect and motivation to employees making them inspired to do the right thing. To implement this the as the manager I will ensure leaders recruitment in our organization are fair based on academic qualified and professional past record. Praise often and in public, employee acknowledgement in public for job well done serves as a big morale booster (Viscuso, 2011). When done in public other employees understand what should be done and how to do it right, they also strive to achieve similar results. To implement this I will encourage reinforcement. People want to be valued. Respect and appreciation are powerful (Pritchard, R. D., Ashwood, E. L., 2011). To make it effective, leaders should reinforce the right action immediately after the action, with positive words “job well done, keep it up”. I will also create thanks giving day where employees are rewarded publicly in front of others. Instill team work; team work is critical in any successful organization. To instill team work managers should create team attitude within the workplace. To implement in my organization I will organize common activities to our employees. For instance, organizing friendly competition, Training together and organizing department related events. In conclusion, building morale is a key pillar in any successful business. I strongly believe for a business to perform better and provide customer quality services, outstand in current business competition the manager and leaders should focus on morale building to all stakeholders References Pritchard, R. D., Ashwood, E. L. (2011). Managing Motivation. New York: Routledge Taylor & Francis Group. Viscuso, F. V. (2011, July). How To Build Department Morale. Fire Engineering, 77. Question 3: Review the case study, “Diagnosing and Improving Motivation.” In a two- to three- page paper (not including title or reference pages), respond to the following: Describe the strengths and weaknesses of Jessica’s existing sales force.Describe changes to the company’s processes that would help better motivate the sales force.Feedback was identified as a significant force in the sales team’s motivation level. Explain how Jessica could have enhanced her feedback process to improve the team’s productivity and sales numbers.Describe how Jessica changed the sales force’s customer service emphasis.In the end, two team members (Marius and Jose) were promoted off of Jessica’s team. Explain how she can maintain her positive momentum with their replacement team members. You need to use at least one scholarly source in addition to the textbook, and your paper needs to be formatted using APA style as outlined in the Ashford Writing Center.
