Monthly Archives: February 2023

What does “white anti-racist” mean? How can guilt get in the way? And what’s all this talk about being “colorblind”? Teaching Tolerance asked community activists to share their thoughts on these questions, and others. Their answers shine light on the concepts of comfort, power, privilege and identity.

Read the following panel discussion on race and social justice, and then address the following discussion questions.

1.  Guilt and white privilege, these activists say, can sometimes get in the way of white people being effective allies in the struggle against racism. What qualities or actions can help white people be effective allies?

2.  The activists all reject the idea of “colorblindness.” Many people contribute the “goal” of colorblindness to a quote from Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.: “I have a dream that my four children will one day live in a nation where they will not be judged by the color of their skin but by the content of their character.” Was Dr. King advocating that people ignore color? Ignore racism? Why?

  

This problem-solving application profiles electronics retailer Best Buy. The entrance of Amazon and Walmart into the online resale marketplace gashed Best Buy’s instore sales. When you couple that with inefficient processes and procedures at the organization, and scandals with senior leadership, the organization really was in dire straits. Organizations such as Circuit City, CompUSA and RadioShack could not survive their problems, could Best Buy? In came new CEO Hubert Joly and CFO Sharon McCollam. They are now in the middle of the many challenges Best Buy is facing and need to find solutions to these major problems.

Question 1

Some of Best Buy’s internal issues could best be addressed by ______

Multiple Choice

窗体顶端

changing customer preferences

internal competition

demographic changes

participation/suggestions by employees

mergers and acquisitions

Question 2

If Best Buy chose to compete by introducing online sales direct to the consumer, this would be an example of ______ change

Multiple Choice

窗体顶端

innovating

adaptive

radically innovative

Product

Process

Question 3

Which type of analytical framework could help Best Buy develop a strategic plan?

Multiple Choice

窗体顶端

competing values analysis

SWOT analysis

systems analysis

force field analysis

organizational development analysis

Question 4

Best Buy might use all of the methods of change listed below. Which of these includes inputs, strategic plans, target elements of change, and outputs?

Multiple Choice

窗体顶端

organizational structure plan

social factors method

organizational arrangement

three-stage model of planned change

systems model of change

Question 5

When other tactics will not work or are too expensive, the best approach to overcoming resistance to change is

Multiple Choice

窗体顶端

facilitation and support

manipulation and co-optation

explicit and implicit coercion

participation and involvement

education and commitment

Question 6

6. The majority of problems Best Buy is facing have been brought about by ______ forces.

窗体顶端

external

Question 7

The change brought about by online competition from Amazon and Walmart are examples of _____

Fill in the blank

窗体顶端

changing customer preferences

Question 8

Best Buy’s new CEO and CFO will need to function as catalysts in helping the organization to deal with old problems in new ways. They would then be known as

Fill in the blank

窗体顶端

change agents

Question 9

Recommend a solution to the problem outlined above in no more than 175- words

Essay

窗体顶端

Best Buy is facing several problems including competition from Amazon and Walmart, inefficient internal processes, and scandals with senior leadership. Best Buy needs to develop a new strategic plan with radically innovative ideas, and quickly implement the plan. Company should try multiple strategies and choose trial and error phase to determine which strategy is the most effective one. Some of the strategies that can work for Best Buy are:

1. Give more attention to e-commerce and use this mode to enter new markets.

2. Set up ad-hoc shops that give heavy discounts and super deals. These shops will be set up for short period, and used to get customer attention.

3. Implement combination of online and brick-and-mortar strategy. Customers can check items in store and buy online. Also, customer can buy online and get delivery from store, or store delivers at doorstep.

4. To attract customers, Best Buy should offer attractions at store. For example, Best buy stores can have a gaming area, coffee shop, and other attractions that attract customers.

 This assignment will be submitted to Turnitin®.Instructions

You are the Employee Relations Specialist for a national retail company with locations across the United States. The nearly 500 company employees are diverse in terms of age and demographic differences. Your primary work location is Southeast Pennsylvania. Recently, the employees in the mid-Atlantic region, managed by Kristopher Kolumbus, have expressed dissatisfaction with the work environment. There are approximately 125 employees in the mid-Atlantic region. Their specific concerns include receiving small pay raises for the past 2 – 3 years, limited employee benefits, lack of career mobility and progression, and heightened security controls implemented due to theft concerns. There has been recent talk among the employees about the possibility of unionization, and some workers have begun exploring options such as United Food & Commercial Workers International Union and the Retail, Wholesale, and Department Store Union. Before either of these unions will send an organizer to the organization, it wants to be sure that sufficient employees will back union representation. Some employees have started company-wide communication to increase interest in unionization.

As the Employee Relations Specialist, it is your responsibility to ensure that supervisors and managers follow the rules regarding a union organizing campaign. In response to this potential campaign, you decide to take some initial actions and prepare several documents to share with your boss, the Director of Human Resources: [You must use the underlined headings as separate discussion areas in your paper and in the order provided below. -.5pt if fail to do this.]

Late penalties: Paper is due by due date. There will be no extensions granted for this paper. 

This paper will require outside of the class room research to fully address all questions. 

• A summary email to the Director of Human Resources describing the issues and what actions you are taking (which includes the below items)
• A one-page memo to all managers and supervisors indicating what they can and cannot do during any union organizing effort.
• An email to your human resource colleagues about actions the HR team should consider in response to some of the concerns raised by the Mid-Atlantic Region employees
• An outline for a meeting to be held between Human Resources and the organization’s leadership team regarding the organizing effort.

Each document must be double-space, Times New Roman font 12, and APA format. Paper must be in narrative format, not bullets. [in word document not pdf] -.5pt if fail in any of these formatting requirements.

“Ethical Issues in Business”  Please respond to the following:

• Read the article titled, “Recognition, Reification, and Practices of Forgetting: Ethical Implications of Human Resource Management.” Be prepared to discuss. Next, analyze one (1) human resource ethical issue that you believe is prominent in today’s organizations. Suggest two (2) approaches that organizations could take in order to resolve this issue. Provide a rationale for your response.
• Rank the major ethical issues and dilemmas in business in order of importance (one [1] being the most important). Provide a rationale for your response.

 

You are the Employee Relations Specialist for a national retail company with locations across the United States. The nearly 500 company employees are diverse in terms of age and demographic differences. Your primary work location is Southeast Pennsylvania. Recently, the employees in the mid-Atlantic region, managed by Kristopher Kolumbus, have expressed dissatisfaction with the work environment. There are approximately 125 employees in the mid-Atlantic region. Their specific concerns include receiving small pay raises for the past 2 – 3 years, limited employee benefits, lack of career mobility and progression, and heightened security controls implemented due to theft concerns. There has been recent talk among the employees about the possibility of unionization, and some workers have begun exploring options such as United Food & Commercial Workers International Union and the Retail, Wholesale, and Department Store Union. Before either of these unions will send an organizer to the organization, it wants to be sure that sufficient employees will back union representation. Some employees have started company-wide communication to increase interest in unionization.

As the Employee Relations Specialist, it is your responsibility to ensure that supervisors and managers follow the rules regarding a union organizing campaign. In response to this potential campaign, you decide to take some initial actions and prepare several documents to share with your boss, the Director of Human Resources:

• A summary email to the Director of Human Resources describing the issues and what actions you are taking (which include the below items)
• A one-page memo to all managers and supervisors indicating what they can and cannot do during any union organizing effort.
• An email to your human resource colleagues about actions the HR team should consider in response to some of the concerns raised by the Mid-Atlantic Region employees
• An outline for a meeting to be held between Human Resources and the organization’s leadership team regarding the organizing effort

Requirements include:

• Cover Page with Name, Date, and Title of Assignment
• Each of the 4 items indicated above (summary email, one-page memo, email to your human resource colleagues, and outline for a meeting)
• Headings to separate the sections of the paper
• A minimum of three sources (two must be from the course materials) for each response
• In-text citations in APA style
• Reference page using APA style

  

Analyze this situation.  You are the Human Resources Director for a new start-up company.  Choose two work-life programs or policies you want your organization to implement to improve the quality of work life for employees and support your decisions with examples. 

 

WORK MUST BE ORIGINAL!   

Paper will be checked for plagiarism. 

WORK MUST MEET ALL OF ASSIGNMENT DESCRIPTION.

ALL ASPECTS OF THIS ASSIGNMENT MUST BE COVERED. 

MUST BE A CLEAR DISTINCTION OF EACH POINT MADE  

INSTRUCTIONS TO BE FOLLOWED IS ATTACHED.

 

Visit the WHO website http://www.who.int/en/ and search for information on global and world health. Select and discuss the following concepts:

1) Social justice (disparities, availability of services, cost) *Who has found solutions? Are there any solutions?

2) Achieving the goal of health (efforts of agencies, governments, civic/social organizations) *Who should be responsible?

  

HR managers who pass certification exams in human resource management are knowledgeable in all of the following aspects except __________.

Question options:

  

strategic management

 

information technology

 

employee and labor relations

 

occupational health and safety

 

Question 2

5 / 5 points

       

No manager wants to __________.

Question options:

  

have his or her employees not   performing at peak capacity

 

hire the wrong person for the job

 

find employees not doing their   best

 

all of the above

 

Question 3

5 / 5 points

       

A(n) __________ examines current organizational practices for potential action violations.

Question options:

  

EEO representative

 

training specialist

 

job analyst

 

compensation manager

 

Question 4

5 / 5 points

       

A __________ is a system that enables employees to manage their own benefits and update their personal information.

Question options:

  

company portal

 

cybernetic portal

 

formulation system

 

software-based system

 

Question 5

5 / 5 points

       

Strategic human resource management refers to __________.

Question options:

  

formulating and executing human   resource policies and practices that produce the employee competencies and   behaviors the company needs to its achieve strategic aims

 

planning the balance of internal   strengths and weaknesses with external opportunities and threats to maintain   competitive advantage

 

emphasizing the knowledge,   education, training, skills, and expertise of a firm’s workers

 

extending a firm’s sales,   ownership, and manufacturing to new markets

 

Question 6

5 / 5 points

       

The __________ HR group focuses on being HR business partners to specific departments.

Question options:

  

embedded

 

corporate

 

centers of expertise

 

transactional

 

Question 7

5 / 5 points

       

Which term refers to letting vendors abroad provide services for a firm?

Question options:

  

external work systems

 

application service providers

 

offshoring

 

data warehousing

 

Question 8

5 / 5 points

       

Which of the following is an issue that HR managers have to deal with today?

Question options:

  

managing ethics

 

managing employee engagement

 

adding value

 

all of the above

 

Question 9

5 / 5 points

       

Of the 10 most serious ethical issues, how many were HR related?

Question options:

  

six

 

10

 

seven

 

four

 

Question 10

5 / 5 points

       

__________ maintain contact within the community and publicize openings.

Question options:

  

Job analysts

 

EEO representatives

 

Recruiters

 

Compensation managers

 

Question 11

5 / 5 points

       

In today’s business environment, __________ are often the firm’s main source of competitive advantage.

Question options:

  

machines

 

highly trained and committed   employees

 

superior organizations

 

superior ad campaigns

 

Question 12

5 / 5 points

       

Which of the following demographic issues represents a challenge for human resource managers?

Question options:

  

an increasingly diverse workforce

 

an aging workforce

 

an increasing use of contingent   workers

 

both A and B

 

Question 13

5 / 5 points

       

Which organization provides professional certification for human resource managers?

Question options:

  

Academy of Management

 

Society for Human Resource   Management

 

Academy of HR Partners

 

Association of Business   Administration

 

Question 14

5 / 5 points

       

Which of the following is an example of HR management’s changing role?

Question options:

  

HR managers must measurably   improve organizational performance.

 

HR managers must represent the   organization even when they are off the clock.

 

HR managers must be individually   centered so as to ensure that there will be no favoritism.

 

None of the above.

 

Question 15

5 / 5 points

       

All of the following are new HRM skills except __________.

Question options:

  

improving off-shoring skills

 

supplying transactional services   while serving more strategic, internal consulting activities

 

improving internal consulting   skills

 

all of the above

 

Question 16

5 / 5 points

       

Over the next few years, employers may face a severe labor shortage because __________.

Question options:

  

there are fewer people entering   the job market than there are retiring baby boomers

 

one-third of single mothers are   not in the labor force

 

people are living longer

 

all of the above

 

Question 17

5 / 5 points

       

Which of the following job titles indicates a position in human resources?

Question options:

  

recruiter

 

training specialist

 

EEO coordinator

 

all of the above

 

Question 18

5 / 5 points

       

The __________ HR group may provide specialized support for organizational change.

Question options:

  

transactional

 

corporate

 

embedded

 

centers of expertise

 

Question 19

5 / 5 points

       

Which strategic management tool provides a departmental performance overview indicating how the department helps achieve the firm’s strategic plan?

Question options:

  

an HR score card

 

a strategy map

 

a department performance report

 

a digital dashboard

 

Question 20

5 / 5 points

       

The ________ HR group works with the top management team to develop long range plans for the company.

Question options:

  

transactional

 

embedded

 

centers of expertise

 

corporate

Discussion 1

 “People in this organization don’t talk to one another anymore. Everything is e-mail, e-mail, e-mail. If you are mad at someone, you can just say it and then hide behind your computer.” With these words, Joe expressed his frustrations with Delta General’s operations. Charley echoed his concerns, responding, “I agree, but surely the managing director should be able to improve organizational communication without losing the advantages of e-mail.” As a consultant overhearing this conversation, how do you suggest the managing director respond to Charley’s challenge? 

Discussion 2

 Describe some of the side effects of organizational controls in a large mechanistically structured organization, such as the United States Postal Service. Identify at least one other large mechanistically structured organization that could have the same problems. Use and cite the course textbook in your initial post. 

Assignment Week 5

 

Final Paper

The purpose of the final paper is to maximize the learning achieved in the course by describing your understanding and application of knowledge in the field of Organizational Behavior. The final paper should also focus on real life, real time application of topics covered in this course; the uses you have seen and the uses you can envision. Devote your attention to situations you have experienced and situations you would have approached differently if given the chance to make adjustments.

Focus of the Final Paper

Select a topic of interest in organizational behavior that you would like to explore with additional research (must use at least five references). Some suggested topics for your paper are:

• Personality
• Organizational Culture
• Stress
• Attitudes
• Motivation
• Attribution
• Performance Management
• Conflict Resolution
• Team building
• Leadership
• Decision Making Process 
• Communication
• Organizational Goals

In your paper,

• Apply the research to your personal working environment, or an environment you have previously experienced.
• Describe how will you use the knowledge you have gained in this course to change the way you interact and do business in the future?

The Final Paper

• Must be six to eight double-spaced pages in length (not including Appendix, References, Exhibits, title and references pages), and formatted according to APA Style (Links to an external site.) as outlined in the Writing Center’s APA Formatting for Microsoft Word (Links to an external site.) resource.
• Must include a separate title page with the following:
  • Title of paper in bold font
    • Space should be between title and the rest of the information on the title page.
  • Student’s name
  • Name of institution (Ashford University)
  • Course name and number
  • Instructor’s name
  • Due date
• Must include an introduction and conclusion paragraph. Your introduction paragraph needs to end with a clear thesis statement that indicates the purpose of your paper.
  • For assistance on writing Introductions & Conclusions (Links to an external site.) as well as Writing a Thesis Statement (Links to an external site.), refer to the Writing Center resources.
• Must use at least five scholarly sources in addition to the course text.
  • The Scholarly, Peer-Reviewed, and Other Credible Sources (Links to an external site.) table offers additional guidance on appropriate source types. If you have questions about whether a specific source is appropriate for this assignment, please contact your instructor. Your instructor has the final say about the appropriateness of a specific source for a particular assignment.
  • To assist you in completing the research required for this assignment, view this Ashford University Library Quick ‘n’ Dirty (Links to an external site.) tutorial, which introduces the Ashford University Library and the research process, and provides some library search tips.
• Must document any information used from sources in APA Style as outlined in the Writing Center’s APA: Citing Within Your Paper (Links to an external site.) guide.
• Must include a separate references page that is formatted according to APA Style as outlined in the Writing Center. See the APA: Formatting Your References List (Links to an external site.) resource in the Writing Center for specifications.