Employee Relations And Work Environment Success - 1639 Words

Assignment 2: Unions Shirley A. Allen Argosy University B7426 Strategic Talent Management M3 Assignment 2 Dr. Marianne Greenfield September 16, 2015 Assignment 2: Unions Students are required to assume the role of a collective bargaining consultant. The collective bargaining consultant duties are to review the employees’ policies of the global retailer business. This company has been operating for many years, with effective employee relations and work environment success. However, a topic of union organizing was introduced to the employees because some workers were frustrated by new regulations implemented by management. Global retailer’ has been operating without a union since inception. Senior management is against allowing any of its workers to organize a union, but due to the increasing demands from both workers and the media, they are evaluating the consequences of agreeing to the union organizing within the stores. The bargaining consultant will be reviewing four major benefits to starting a retail company by using organized labor. The benefits are employees will be represented for the purpose of improving th e workers economic status, working conditions, employee’s unjust dismissal, and training. However, without organized labor operating the retail company this will give management more control over business decisions. Not including a union, the management can negotiate their own employee agreements, and make exceptions to policies asShow MoreRelatedA Company s Total Rewards Program1227 Words   |  5 Pagesculture and values. HR professionals should work with organizations to create a holistic and integrated total rewards program. As business objectives and priorities evolve HR professionals should work to make sure the company rewards program stays relevant and attractive. Creating and successfully executing the company total rewards package requires HR staff who are knowledgeable of market rates and trends. There are many ways to measure the perceived success of a company’s rewards program; I believeRead MoreThe Importance Of Employee Well Being For Employees1483 Wo rds   |  6 Pagesexternal environment as well as changes in the work demands and contractual position of employees, employee well-being has become an issue that cannot be simply swept away (Vanhala Tuomi, 2003). According to Bakker (2015) employee well-being is one of the most popular researched area among organisational psychologist. Further Grant, Christianson Price (2007) comment that employee well-being is a hot topic in organisational life and that organisations are seriously investing in employee well-beingRead MoreEmployee Relations Issues1696 Words   |  7 PagesEmployee Relations Issues Individual Research Project Employee Relations Issues By Oksana Kirsanova GB520: Strategic Human Resources Management Kaplan University April 25, 2011 Abstract Abstract The aim of this report was to explore the problems and trends of Employee Relations and learn how the right approach can control organizational success. If a small amount of time is spent on implementing an effective performance management system within a company then it can lead to a large impact onRead MoreThe Success Of Total Rewards Program Essay1577 Words   |  7 PagesQuestion 1: Assume an organization wants to gauge the success of its total rewards program. Discuss at least two possible metrics or outcomes it might use. Be sure to explain why you chose the metrics you discuss and how they are indicative of a successful total rewards program. A total rewards system is utilized to motivate, attract, and retain employees whom offer talents to an organization. Total rewards can be either intrinsic and extrinsic rewards, which can include compensation, benefitsRead MoreHealth, Safety, Wellness, Security Impact on Employees from the HR Perspective1031 Words   |  5 PagesSafety, Wellness, Security impact on employees from the HR perspective. Every organization wants to provide a good work environment to all employees to attract possible employees, ensure retention and guarantee employee satisfaction. This protection to employees is due to the fact that employees are the most valuable asset to any organization. Providing a safe and secure work place is the employer priority to ensure the employees health, safety security and wellness. The terms health, safetyRead MoreHuman Resource Management620 Words   |  3 PagesHow employees are managed in an organization is important to the workflow of the workplace. Human resource management has several roles that encompass employee management, which include staffing, employee relations, training, benefits, and workplace safety. These roles are vital to the success of an organization. Human resource management in the health care industry is especially important because this department is responsible for hiring the best and most qualified health care workers. The abilityRead MoreNhs : National Health Services903 Words   |  4 Pagesand dental services, can charge their patients for payment. NHS is providing health services to 64.1m people in UK and 53.9m in England. (http://www.nhs.uk/NHSEngland/thenhs/about/Pages/overview.aspx) NHS is the fifth biggest entity in terms of its work force. NHS employs 1.6 million employees across UK and 1.3 million in England. These include 40,236 General Practitioners, 351,446 nurses and 18576 ambulance staff. The number of staff working in Hospital, community health services and dental servicesRead MoreHuman Resource Department And The Human Resources Department1629 Words   |  7 PagesThe Human Resource Department is one of the essential divisions in an organization with a complete structure. Its function involves maximizing employee performance, improving the company policies, enhancing the skills of the employees through training, established system in the organization, managing people, give rewards and privileges, planning, implementing and a lot more. Why there is a need of this department? This is because people are the biggest asset of a company that no one can ever replicateRead MoreHuman Resource Department And The Human Resources Department1509 Words   |  7 PagesThe Human Resource Department is one of the essential divisions in an organization with a complete structure. Its function involves maximizing employee performance, improving the company policies, enhancing the skills of the employees through training, established system in the organization, managing people, give rewards and privileges, planning, implementing and a lot more. Why there is a need of this department? This is because people are the biggest asset of a company that no one can ever replicateRead MoreEmployee Engagement : A Leading And Primary Source And Tool Of Competitive Advantage And Business Success Essay1166 Words   |  5 PagesEmployee engagement has been recognised by many organisations as a leading and primary source and tool of competitive advantage and business success. Based on research conducted, engaged employees are recognised as being more productive than disengaged employees; thus leading to improved employee performance, increased workplace productivity and profitability, and ultimately, organisational success. The term employee engagement is primarily associated with the employee’s commitment to the objectives

The Determinants Of Australian Consumers Attitudes...

1.0 Introduction and Background The growth of online retail shopping has experienced an extensive growth in Australia and also worldwide in the last few years, the rapid growth in numbers of internet users buying products online. Research shows that the growth of online shopping has continued to outperform that of traditional retail, since November 2011 and November 2012 The National Australia Bank retail index shows online retail sales have increased by 27% since previous years. Factors that may be driving the growth of online shopping in Australia may include: (16 January, 2013, Logistics Materials Handling Blog) †¢ Consumers are seeking better value in their purchases †¢ There is a greater selection of goods †¢ The increase of widespread usage of mobile Phones (increase in convenience) †¢ Increasing level of simplicity and comfort with technology and the internet surrounded by consumers across all age groups †¢ Use of social media by both consumers and retailers to drive brand awareness of group buying sites This research assignment will search to recognize the determinants of Australian consumers’ attitudes toward online retail shopping. It will examine possible differences across market segments including demographic segments and behavioural segments (e.g., Internet usage patterns). Interviews have been conducted to explore the drivers of online retail shopping behaviour. 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This allows for the researcher to learn new ways on how improve their study, making it more user friendly and less research orientated. â€Æ' EXECUTIVE SUMMARY This report examines the online shopping industry and attitudes of Australian consumers towards online shopping. The sample size was of 741 males and females, aged between 18 and 41+. The methodology used was a short Likert scale survey and various fixed format questions. The ethics of this research followed the guidelinesRead MoreAMB201 Tutorial 21216 Words   |  5 Pagesresearch? a) Exploratory c) Causal b) Descriptive d) Analysis Practice Questions 2. A researcher is interested to learn about the reasons for why some people continue to buy physical newspapers, despite the same content being available for free online. Which type of research is most suited? a) Exploratory c) Causal b) Descriptive d) Analysis Practice Questions 3. 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Competitors and Context (Appendix D, E F) A PEST analysis of the Australian market reveals a demographic shift to the under -15s market (Euromonitor 2012), which was an opportunity for Billabong to target. Using Porter’s Five Forces (Appendix E), a Positioning Map and Competitor Threat Analysis (Appendix F) to analyseRead MoreAustralian Hardware Industry Marketing Analysis2901 Words   |  12 PagesROYALTY ESTABLISHMENT RECOMMENDATION THREE-FEATURES DIFFERENTIATION REFERENCE â€Æ' Introduction Australian hardware industry showed a considerable growth in the last 10 years. The market sees a cash revenue of $22 billion per year. Bunnings owned by wesdfarmers is the market leader. Launched in 2011 Masters is the home improvement big box retail offer, offering Australian consumers a retail experience they have never seen before. Each store stocks over 35,000 different product lines from outdoorRead MoreThe Digital Camera Industry (Comparison of Canon and Sumsung)3760 Words   |  16 Pagestoday’s society as well as several factors, which influence consumer behaviour in the buying process. This report uses Canon Inc as an illustration along with the discussion of each topic. Firstly, this report will discuss the background and size of the digital camera industry. The digital camera industry is getting bigger with the technological advancements in society today. Marketers thus need to be aware of the needs of consumers in order to cater to specific target groups as also gain a competitiveRead MoreFactors of Customer Loyalty in Banking Industry13412 Words   |  54 Pagesstrategy and give their customers an exclusive experience with their products and services. The primary aim of them is to assure and win their loyalty for their company. In order to accomplish this, each bank wishes to offer an outstanding service towards their customers. If a firm failed to keep and improve their services, it is impossible for them to accomplish their targets. So, customer loyalty can be said as a remarkable strategic objective for businesses. While studies on customer loyalty haveRead MoreMobile Banking11695 Words   |  47 Pages2010]. Concerning the difference between online banking and mobile banking contexts, customers considered mobility as the most valued feature of mobile banking [Suoranta Mattila 2004] and the time-critical consumers considered the always-on functionality as the most important feature of mobile banking [Singh et al. 2010], while banking users considered that Internet banking took significant advantage in Usefulness and Purpose [Natarajan et al. 2010] and online banking was suggested as the cheapestRead MoreImpact of E-Shopping on Travel Behavior in Netherlands6585 Words   |  26 Pagesï » ¿Exploring th e use of e-shopping and its impact on personal travel behaviour in the Netherlands ABSTRACT The Internet makes it possible to conduct activities, such as working and shopping, without travelling to activity places. As e-shopping becomes popular, it can fundamentally change peoples travel behaviour. In this study we have used a literature review, an Internet survey of e-shoppers, and the Netherlands National Travel Survey to analyse the possible impact of e-shopping on travel behaviour

Prediction and Control of Occupant †Free Samples to Students

Question: Discuss about the Prediction and Control of Occupant. Answer: Introduction The situation described in this particular case study is that a fast growing law firm, Cheetham and Wyne is located in Aucklandand specializes in commercial law. The law firm was initially founded by Owen Cheetham and Jack Wyne. Then the partners list increased by two more lawyers who were Mark Cheetham and Cathy Wyne. With the arrival of new faces and hiring of new staff, the old premises of the office became quite small for accommodating the total number of employees, thus the entire office was shifted to a new premises that overlooked the harbor. Mark and Cathy also convinced their fathers to restructure the office design into an open plan design. This study particularly focuses upon the changes in office after the installation of the open office design and the reactions of the partners and employees in relation to this. The discussion has been presented in the form of answers in relation to the questions mentioned in the project. There are a number of reasons for employees resisting the change to an open-plan office approach. One of the major reasons is that employees in general are resistant to change. This means that employees after working in a certain environment for a long period of time tend to get used to such environment, thus resist any kind of change. To be more specific, generally a particular individual is the most comfortable in his own house, similarly an employee is the most comfortable in the known environment that he is working in since the beginning, therefore prefers his or her old desk rather than a new table (Creemers 2014). The founders or the senior partners Jack and Owen though did not like the idea of transforming the design of the office into open plan design they listened to their children and changed the design of the office. Similarly like Jack and Owen many of the employees think that enclosed spaces rather than open wide ones enable a person to work in a better way, thus they resist the open plan approach (Kim and de 2013). Another reason for resisting change to an open-plan office approach is that some employees especially those among the senior staff of the law firm feel that they have lost their privacy and that they are treated a little too much equally with the other staff that is their subordinates. This is a reason of concern because in general most of the senior staff are old men who like their privacy and do not like the idea of working in open spaces. Some other employees are of the opinion that the open-plan office approach has hampered their work because earlier they could spend their little intervals of breaks in between work, just by sitting in their own enclosed spaces and chatting over the phone but now as the entire concept of walls has been demolished under the design of open-plan office approach, they are not being able to spend their leisure time in accordance to their wish. In fact this is very true and advised by experts that the smallest measure of time that an employee gets withi n his or her work should be quality time spent by him or her. If this is blocked then the quality of work is ultimately hampered. Therefore this is a major reason for resisting change. Another reason is that the online booking system that Cathy had introduced for booking rooms for conducting meetings has not been a success among the employees. Even the playpen created for the relaxation of the employees is of no use as the employees use it for the purpose of chatting and wasting time. Thus the founders Jack and Owen resist the change (Hongisto et al., 2016). Another major reason for employees resisting the change to an open-plan office approachis that, an office is the meeting point of different individuals from different backgrounds and all of them have an unique style of thinking and belong to different cultures. This may be a positive point for many but in case of working in an office where there is no option other than communicating with everyone as the work place is designed in such a way, it may be a barrier or an issue of concern for many. For an instance the topic of interest for a particular employee may not be the same for another and as the design of the office is such that there are no walls or enclosed spaces, an employee is left with no other option but to participate. This may not be a major issue of concern for others but some employees may be hackneyed by this de (Bakker et al., 2017). The most concerning issue with the concept of open-plan office is that it directly affects business. This is because a law firm handles a variety of clients and as a result there will be certain client-centric critical information that is private and should only be shared between the client and his lawyer. A design of open-plan office is such that there will be no enclosed spaces where such exchange of confidential information can take place, thus imposing a breach on the clients data security. Therefore these are the primary reasons for the employees posing resistance to change (Austin, Kimmons and Sigmar 2014). The partners in order to minimize the resistance to change might have adopted a number of ways. The first action that could be taken is that along with the wide open space shared by employees there also could be the provision of meeting rooms or enclosed spaces available so that the employees could avail the option of both communicating with everyone and maintaining their privacy as and when required. The next action that could be taken on the part of the partners is that before implementing the open-plan office design, a feedback from the staff could be taken so as to plan the design in a better and competent way. This would also ensure that the needs and choices of the employees of are kept in mind while implementing anything in the office or in the process of decision making. The management of the law firm should be very keen on maintaining the privacy of client information. Client information is crucial information in the hands of the firm and should be handled with utmost care. For this purpose small, totally enclosed rooms could also be installed inside theoffice premises where lawyers and clients could meet and discuss the case accordingly. Lastly the senior staff who have been in the firm for a long time should be treated with due respect meaning personal rooms should be arranged according to their hierarchy of authority (Konis 2013). The barriers of communication that appear to exist in the law firm are numerous. According to the case study there has been loads of complaints from many of the staff in the law firm. The major barrier to communication is the deficiency of the use of written communication. For an instance a particular employee as mentioned in the case study comments that he had been employed as an accountant in the law firm along with loads of promise like he would be in charge of the administrative and the paralegal staff. He was further promised that he would be managing the entire staff other than the lawyers but after nine months of employment he was just managing four of the staff and even the restructuring of the firm had not taken place. When enquired, the accountant had been informed that due to shifting of the office to the new premises the restructuring was on hold and would progress once the shifting to the new premises had been done. But post shifting the needful still had not been done i n the past three months. The particular employee also enrolled himself in a MBA related to law with thehope that the fees of the course would be borne by the firm as discussed with him informally via verbal communication. This as usual was not maintained on the part of his employer. The reason that was presented to him was that normally course fees amounted to $6000 per annum therefore his MBA fees that amounted to $30000 could not be borne by the company. Therefore no usage of written communication is most definitely a barrier to communication (Shahzad 2016). Another barrier is lack of interaction among the employees. For instance there are several events that take place in office outings. The way of expressing humour by some individuals may not be the same for others. As mentioned in the case study Cathy putting ants inside the top of Pauline during the office picnic was not at all appreciated by Pauline but this was not communicated by Pauline. Had this been sat and discussed between the two then the personal grudges and complaints could be excluded. Another instance is that another employee post the process of performance review, did get only a raise of two percent. When he enquired the reason for such a low raise he was informed that he was too slow in processing contracts and his work had some errors but when further enquired about the errors he was informed that the errors were corrected and that his no further assistance was required. This is also a barrier to communication because had the doubts regarding the raise been cleared by the higher authority official then the confusion and complaint on the part of the employee could have been avoided (Chraibi et al., 2016). There are also issues regarding the communication of the policies of the firm. For an instance a particular situation is described in the case study where a particular employee claims that he has shared certain tampered and provocative information about Cathy in the social media by addressing her with a different name. Now if the rules and regulations about sharing any kind of data related to the office over the social media could be very well communicated to each and every employee then the occurrence of such nuisance could have been averted (Vassie and Richardson 2017). The ways in which the barriers to communication can be avoided are increasing both inter level and intra level communication. The communication issues that are highlighted in the above answer to part a clearly suggest that there has been a huge gap in communication. It is evident that the employees are not at all comfortable in sharing their complaints and grievances with the management of the firm. Either they are in fear of losing their job therefore do not take up their issues to the higher authority officials or they think complaining or putting forth their grievances will minimize their chances of getting promotion or excelling in their area of work. Thus more and more initiatives must be taken on the part of the partners to encourage the employees so that they can develop a free attitude and communicate clearly with the management (Brown 2015). The law firm had been initially founded by Owen Cheetham and Jack Wyne. Later their children Mark Cheetham and Cathy Wyne had taken over the law firm. Cathy especially had convinced her father to restructure the firm. In fact both Cathy and Mark convinced Owen and Jack as to hire new staff, an idea which both Owen and Jack strongly opposed because they thought that not every lawyer could work had like they did. Cathy even could convince her father to change the design of the office into an open office. Thus it is evident that Mark and Cathy have much power in their hand. A further example of them exercising their power can be understood from the instance when Cathy and Mark in order to support another lawyer travelled to Hamilton. Thus it is clear that they have much power in their hands and are using it in the interest of the firm as well as the employees (Danielsson et al., 2015). Conclusion An influence tactic used by the partners is the concept of performance review. As mentioned in the case study there are no judgment rules or standards by which the performance of a particular employee can be measured. To be more clear many employees are of the opinion that they have no understanding of the ways in which their performance has been measured and how they are getting a low raise in their basic salaries. Another tactic used by an employee is that she did bring business for the firm but in exchange did share certain information with the client which she did hide from the office. These are some of the basic tactics used by the partners and other staff of the firm (Hongisto 2017). It is understood from the entire study that the law firm is in a good position to prosper but the new imposed design of open-office plan has not been a much success. In fact it has become a barrier in the road to excellence for the law firm. Thus initiatives should be taken to remove employee grievances and should be encouraged in order to share the issues they are facing in the office. References Austin, T.L., Kimmons, J.V. and Sigmar, L.S., 2014. LOST IN SPACE: THE CASE FOR (OR AGAINST) THE OPEN OFFICE. Business Studies Journal, p.19. Brown, M.J., 2015, August. Prediction and control of occupant generated noise levels in open plan collaborative office spaces. In INTER-NOISE and NOISE-CON Congress and Conference Proceedings (Vol. 250, No. 2, pp. 4693-4704). Institute of Noise Control Engineering. Chraibi, S., Lashina, T., Shrubsole, P., Aries, M., van Loenen, E. and Rosemann, A., 2016. Satisfying light conditions: a field study on perception of consensus light in Dutch open office environments. Building and Environment, 105, pp.116-127. Creemers, P.P., 2014. Satisfying dimming speed for co-workers in an open office: optimal fading time of a granular lighting system in an open-plan office. Danielsson, C.B., Bodin, L., Wulff, C. and Theorell, T., 2015. The relation between office type and workplace conflict: A gender and noise perspective. Journal of Environmental Psychology, 42, pp.161-171. de Bakker, C., Aries, M., Kort, H. and Rosemann, A., 2017. Occupancy-based lighting control in open-plan office spaces: A state-of-the-art review. Building and Environment, 112, pp.308-321. Hongisto, V., Haapakangas, A., Varjo, J., Helenius, R. and Koskela, H., 2016. Refurbishment of an open-plan officeEnvironmental and job satisfaction. Journal of environmental psychology, 45, pp.176-191. Hongisto, V., Varjo, J., Oliva, D., Haapakangas, A. and Benway, E., 2017. Perception of Water-Based Masking SoundsLong-Term Experiment in an Open-Plan Office. Frontiers in psychology, 8. Kim, J. and de Dear, R., 2013. Workspace satisfaction: The privacy-communication trade-off in open-plan offices. Journal of Environmental Psychology, 36, pp.18-26. Konis, K., 2013. Evaluating daylighting effectiveness and occupant visual comfort in a side-lit open-plan office building in San Francisco, California. Building and Environment, 59, pp.662-677. Shahzad, S., Calautit, J.K., Hughes, B., Brennan, J. and Theodossopoulos, D., 2016, January. Thermal Comfort and Energy: CFD, BES and Field Study in a British Open Plan Office with Displacement Ventilation. In Proceedings of 9th Windsor Conference: Making Comfort Relevant.. Vassie, K. and Richardson, M., 2017. Effect of self-adjustable masking noise on open-plan office workers concentration, task performance and attitudes. Applied Acoustics, 119, pp.119-127.

Public Schools Are The Building Blocks Of Our Societies. They Can Be C

Public schools are the building blocks of our societies. They can be considered our foundational instruments. Although these institutes of learning play such an important role, they are unable to provide the best they can, due to their numerous flaws. It is evident that these problems exist by the number of school dropouts, falling test scores, and increased number of reported crimes. These problems all intermingle, with one another. Some can even be direct causes of each other. In other words, by making the necessary adjustments, for at least one of the problems, every problem could benefit. With the help of some basic tactics and methods, reform of public schools is possible. A basic example of this can be seen dealing with the problem of overcrowded schools. When there are too many students in a class, everyone suffers. Teachers have a hard enough time, trying to keep an average size class focused. Students are also affected, because teachers are not able to spend enough time with them individually. The overcrowding is not only a direct effect of the world's growing population, but is also caused by the lack of federal spending. To build a new school, expenses would be incurred for the construction, engineering, and furnishing of the school. To boot, infrastructure reconstruction, such as streets, sewers, and utilities, can be costly. A solution to all this is for schools to be open all year. Year-round-education (YRE) is one of the simplest and most cost-effective ways to deal with the insufficient classroom space. A school on a year-round calendar, has students in class for approximately 242 days, each year, (Brekke, 1992). In this type of schooling, instead of having on long vacation, students would have several smaller breaks. YRE is the best way to educate children, without having to cut corners. Obviously, it costs more to keep a school open for 242 days, rather than 180. All faculty, custodians, nurses, and counselors, must be on-hand, for the whole year. In actuality, it is less expensive to keep a school open, for the whole year. When you look at the per-pupil-cost, there are great savings (Brekke, 1992). Besides being cost-effective, there are multiple advantages in having kids attending school all year. Children will not forget so much information, over short breaks, compared to what they would forget over long vacations. Students would also be able to advance quicker, because teachers would not have to waste time reviewing. This is especially true, for those students whom English is a second language. A majority of the year-round schools have students attending during different periods of the year. Three groups of children would be in school, while one group would be on vacation ( ). This would allow for even more students to attend the same school. A school that would normally hold 1000 pupils would now be able to house 1300. The creation of charter schools, would be the next best idea, to handle overcrowding. During the 1960's, educators began looking for new ways to deal with the problem of overcrowded schools. Mostly in-part to court-ordered desegregation laws, school systems began opening up specialty schools. Whether a child was learning disabled or was considered at-risk, schools to help their particular needs emerged. By 1988, the American Federation of Teachers (AFT) endorsed the charter concept (Federal, 1997). Charter schools are extremely similar to public schools. These schools are free to the public. There is no discrimination in the selection process. All local, state, and federal laws must be followed. The same standardized tests, which are given to public school students, are given to charter school students. There are also various key concepts missing from public school education that are found in charter schools. One of the key concepts is charter schools' accountability. Charter schools have to show results. If only a small percentage of students graduate, a charter school could faced being closed. These schools have their charters renewed, every few years. This is a great incentive to provide the best education possible. Choice and flexibility are key factors, which make charter schools attractive. School officials can hire quality faculty members, maintain high academic standards, and allow parent involvement, because of the school's freedom. This flexibility allows schools to be designed for each community's specific needs.