Archives for the Month of November 2005 on D online journal of David Corn
Training Day
While I thought that the training exercise day was a fun alternative to our usual class discussion, I felt that it was a little anti-productive. My biggest criticism is that creativity was stressed and I think that was interpreted by the class as permission to implement any sort of ridiculous ideas into their plan. While it was a breath of fresh air to hear some of the humorous plans by the other groups in the class, I couldn’t help but feel bored by the more serious plans presented by some of the groups, which were in my opinion all terrific. My problem with this is that in reality, a creative training program would get the job done, and by that I mean provide adequate training to employees, and be cost efficient at the same time; many of the presentations that I enjoyed were neither of these things. What I am trying to say is that while I appreciated the entertaining ideas that my classmates came up with, I enjoyed, as well as appreciated, the realistic ideas that my classmates presented even more.
Human Resources Simulation
After preparing some analyses to use in our annual report, I found it fascinating to compare our results to the industry average. One of the most interesting observations was made by the team leader, who pointed out that our quality index was very close to the industry average while our budget for quality was almost 50% of the industry average. This is interesting because it shows that the quality of output is not completely dependant on the amount of money that is spent on improving quality. This highlights the importance of other factors on quality, for instance wages, which is what my team focused on. My team increased wages more than the industry on average every quarter; while this didn’t prove to increase our quality index as much as the industry average, we were able to accomplish nearly the same results while improving other things like turnover and morale without spending as much money. If any other groups have not check out this strategy, they should consider it.
Harrah's Casino
I thought that the Harrah’s Casino case was an interesting exercise and a unique view into the inner-workings of an entertainment firm like Harrah’s. My overall opinion of the firm and the case was that the solution to Harrah’s problem motivation problem was simply spreading the reach of the gain sharing program to target other problems they wanted to solve. In a sense, I think about this tactic as sort of a binding procedure of the employees to the company’s success, much like contactors and employees in other industries are bound to make them liable for the materials or machinery they are using. I think that combining monetary rewards with non-material rewards like contributing to your company’s success is an excellent way to motivate employees. Basically if Harrah’s broadened the reach of its gain sharing program, Winn would have to look no further for a source of motivation.
Red Roof Inn: We're Raising The Roof and Painting It Red
I write this to you as a changed person. In my last set of blogs I was a member of a group. Now I am the member of a team.
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Business Ethics
I think about management a lot when I'm not in class.