http://blog.case.edu/svetlana.binshtok/ MGMT 250 Blog en-us Sun, 10 Dec 2006 22:28:54 EST Sun, 10 Dec 2006 22:28:54 EST svetlana.binshtok@case.edu svetlana.binshtok@case.edu http://blogs.law.harvard.edu/tech/rss Movable Type v3.121 http://blog.case.edu/svetlana.binshtok/2006/12/10/mgmt_250_entry_15 I strongly dislike judging/ evaluating my peers because I don’t believe that I’m in the right position to do... http://blog.case.edu/svetlana.binshtok/2006/12/10/mgmt_250_entry_15 MGMT250 case cwru Case Western Case Western Reserve University Sun, 10 Dec 2006 22:28:54 EST I strongly dislike judging/ evaluating my peers because I don’t believe that I’m in the right position to do so. When bosses evaluate their employees, they use their trained skills and superior knowledge to deliver constructive criticism and fair judgment. How can I evaluate a person on the same level as me? Our skills are obviously comparable because we’re on the same level, but who’s to say who is better? I try not to be partial when I evaluate my peers, but sometimes I give very generous scores because I don’t know enough to judge them more seriously. Other times, I grade too harshly because I’m afraid of being too lenient. Either way, evaluating my peers is something that I need to work on and become more comfortable with.

]]> http://blog.case.edu/svetlana.binshtok/2006/12/10/mgmt_250_entry_14 Recently, in class, we’ve been talking a lot about the best way to fire someone. When firing an employee,... http://blog.case.edu/svetlana.binshtok/2006/12/10/mgmt_250_entry_14 MGMT250 case cwru Case Western Case Western Reserve University Sun, 10 Dec 2006 22:14:47 EST Recently, in class, we’ve been talking a lot about the best way to fire someone. When firing an employee, I think that it’s best done in a one-on-one manner. It’s best for the closest superior, perhaps a direct supervisor, to fire the person in a short but polite manner. I think that this is the best situation because if there are too many people in the room, the person being fired can feel threatened or attacked. The one-on-one set up is intimate and as comfortable as the situation can be. A direct supervisor should be the one to do the deed because only the closest superior can offer proper constructive criticism and can pinpoint reasons why the employment is being terminated. The firing should be done quickly and without emotion because emotions can make the situation go out of control. It’s very important to be polite, but maintain professionalism.

]]> http://blog.case.edu/svetlana.binshtok/2006/12/10/mgmt_250_entry_13 Through the HR Simulation I’ve learned that it takes more than money to motivate employees. Every company offers money,... http://blog.case.edu/svetlana.binshtok/2006/12/10/mgmt_250_entry_13 MGMT250 case cwru Case Western Case Western Reserve University Sun, 10 Dec 2006 20:14:11 EST Through the HR Simulation I’ve learned that it takes more than money to motivate employees. Every company offers money, so you have to bring more to the table than a slightly larger paycheck. To keep morale high, you must instate different benefits (health plans, cafeteria service, daycare, etc.), and you should offer more safety training. These things will help increase and maintain motivation, but I believe that, in the end, motivation is internal. An employee can be motivated only so much. The rest is up to them.

]]> http://blog.case.edu/svetlana.binshtok/2006/12/10/mgmt_250_entry_12 In class we talked about a young man who worked in a factory in order to support his family.... http://blog.case.edu/svetlana.binshtok/2006/12/10/mgmt_250_entry_12 MGMT250 case cwru Case Western Case Western Reserve University Sun, 10 Dec 2006 20:03:26 EST In class we talked about a young man who worked in a factory in order to support his family. He was constantly tardy and when he actually came into work, he would mess around and disrupt other workers. Management gave him several warnings that his behavior was inappropriate and they transferred him to other departments, which he requested. In the end, his behavior didn’t change and he was fired. Prof. Johnson posed the question whether we would fire him or keep him.
He should, of course, be fired because his actions were simply inexcusable. The young man was seventeen-years-old. I’ve had a job since I was fourteen-years-old and I never experienced the difficulties in the work place that this boy had. Seventeen-years-old is old enough to be responsible for one’s actions.
I think that management was very accommodating because they placed him in the department that he desired. Still, nothing improved. Management can’t offer this young man too many chances because they must be fair to all the employees. If they are overly lenient with him then they must be equally lenient with any and every worker who chooses to be difficult. I feel bad for the boy because his father is sick and his family is needy, but if this job was really important to him, he’d find a way to focus on his work.

]]> http://blog.case.edu/svetlana.binshtok/2006/11/08/mgmt_250_entry_11 On Monday we wrote 17 life goals on post-it notes. I had a couple of post-it notes with the obvious:... http://blog.case.edu/svetlana.binshtok/2006/11/08/mgmt_250_entry_11 MGMT250 case cwru Case Western Case Western Reserve University Wed, 08 Nov 2006 17:46:13 EST On Monday we wrote 17 life goals on post-it notes. I had a couple of post-it notes with the obvious: “have a family,” “have financial stability,” “die happy,” etc., but most of my papers had insignificant achievements like: “learn to knit.” I don’t believe that I am necessarily unmotivated or unfocused. I just believe that the future is too far out there for me to think about it in here. Perhaps that is the wrong way to look at the situation. My mother often tells me that time passes us by before we realize it. However, today I’m still 19 and I don’t know whether I would be more happy making films, running a Fortune 500 company, or writing children’s books. I know that I want children but I don’t know when. I know that I want to make some money but I don’t know how. Is this really a problem or can I take my time?

]]> http://blog.case.edu/svetlana.binshtok/2006/11/08/mgmt_250_entry_10 We have gotten some very strange results from our HR simulation, but I’ve noticed some logical patterns. For example, morale... http://blog.case.edu/svetlana.binshtok/2006/11/08/mgmt_250_entry_10 MGMT250 case cwru Case Western Case Western Reserve University Wed, 08 Nov 2006 17:31:10 EST We have gotten some very strange results from our HR simulation, but I’ve noticed some logical patterns. For example, morale and quality are connected. When morale increases, so does the quality index. When morale decreases, so does the quality index. When morale remains the same, the quality index will remain the same or vary slightly. At times, the morale data, grievance data, and absentee data all show different trends. Some results suggest that the employees are happy and some suggest the opposite, but the morale data and the quality index data walk hand-in-hand. I guess a happy worker is an efficient worker.

]]> http://blog.case.edu/svetlana.binshtok/2006/11/08/mgmt_250_entry_9 In the beginning of the simulation, I didn’t know what to expect from my teammates because I began my long... http://blog.case.edu/svetlana.binshtok/2006/11/08/mgmt_250_entry_9 MGMT250 case cwru Case Western Case Western Reserve University Wed, 08 Nov 2006 17:26:20 EST In the beginning of the simulation, I didn’t know what to expect from my teammates because I began my long hospital stays right then. I missed the first meeting or two because I was either in bed or not on campus, so I was expecting to see three very angry students because they had to pick up my slack. Other than that, I expected the usual. The usual is that we would get together, toss around ideas and opinions, and get the assignment done quickly and well.
My group lived up to my second expectation. We get together weekly and are very comfortable expressing our opinions. Every member brings something to the table and isn’t afraid to voice disapproval. Everything is done democratically and we just work well together.
The only trouble we ran into was my health problems, but the team members worked through it by taking on a little heavier workload. Thankfully, they are also very understanding and cut me some serious slack when I finally returned to classes.

]]> http://blog.case.edu/svetlana.binshtok/2006/11/08/mgmt_250_entry_8 Today we talked about feedback methods and why someone would be afraid to receive feedback. I always say that I’m... http://blog.case.edu/svetlana.binshtok/2006/11/08/mgmt_250_entry_8 MGMT250 case cwru Case Western Case Western Reserve University Wed, 08 Nov 2006 16:38:11 EST Today we talked about feedback methods and why someone would be afraid to receive feedback. I always say that I’m afraid of evaluation because I don’t take criticism very well. I can’t help but take it personally even though I know that it’s not a personal attack, but rather a way to grow. However, if I look back on my interaction with my HR group, my actions prove the opposite. Whenever I’m the one to write something, I ask who wants to read it and give me their opinion on it. I want the feedback, positive or negative (preferably positive). Perhaps I’m more open to criticism because my work affects their grades, too, so I want to make sure that they’re okay with the way I’m representing the group.

]]> http://blog.case.edu/svetlana.binshtok/2006/11/05/mgmt_250_entry_7 In class we have been discussing motivation. We have talked about how to motivate employees and keep them excited about... http://blog.case.edu/svetlana.binshtok/2006/11/05/mgmt_250_entry_7 MGMT250 case cwru Case Western Case Western Reserve University Sun, 05 Nov 2006 22:43:37 EST In class we have been discussing motivation. We have talked about how to motivate employees and keep them excited about what they do. Very often, people think that they are a miniscule number in the grand scheme of things, or they believe that mistakes here and there don’t really add up to anything important.
I used to work for a coffee chain and they had mandatory quality training sessions every couple of months. These sessions were meant to remind the employees what the standards were and how to meet them. In a session there were about ten baristas in a small room with a video and some coffee and cake. At one of these sessions, everyone came in and got coffee as usual, but this coffee was horrible. There were grounds floating and the liquid actually tasted fried.
The supervising manager, who led this session, came in and acted as if everything was okay. When he was asked what was the problem with the coffee, he replied, “This is what happens when you don’t do your job. You think that not changing the pot on time, or not using the correct filter sometimes is okay, but this is what you send people out the door with and they pay money for that.”
I really like his teaching approach because it made us see why quality is so important. Sometimes you need to put yourself in the position of the customer to respect them more. That manager motivated us to do a better job because he showed us what happens when we don’t and it left an unpleasant taste in our mouths.

]]> http://blog.case.edu/svetlana.binshtok/2006/10/10/mgmt_250_entry_6 A good manager should be focused and goal oriented. How can a team reach a desired target if the leader... http://blog.case.edu/svetlana.binshtok/2006/10/10/mgmt_250_entry_6 MGMT250 case cwru Case Western Case Western Reserve University Tue, 10 Oct 2006 16:06:47 EST A good manager should be focused and goal oriented. How can a team reach a desired target if the leader is lacking concentration? My LSI results stated that I am an accommodator and a diverger which means that I need to seriously work on my abilities to commit to a given project and stick with it. I like to be involved so I tend to spread myself too thin by trying to be everywhere and do everything. My goal for this semester, and the future, is to hone my managerial skills, especially those involved with concentrating on and terminating the task at hand. Now, when I do homework, I finish everything that I need to do for a single subject instead of jumping around from a little of math to a bit of Spanish, and so and so forth. This is a small step that I am taking to get myself into the habit of completing everything that needs to be done in an efficient manner.

]]> http://blog.case.edu/svetlana.binshtok/2006/10/10/mgmt_250_entry_5 Though I am nowhere near ready to actually lead a company or a staff of employees, I still like to... http://blog.case.edu/svetlana.binshtok/2006/10/10/mgmt_250_entry_5 MGMT250 case cwru Case Western Case Western Reserve University Tue, 10 Oct 2006 12:46:26 EST Though I am nowhere near ready to actually lead a company or a staff of employees, I still like to believe that I posses some managerial skills. Of all the skills I have yet to learn, I think that so far I have learned committment, mutual trust and respect, honesty, loyalty, teamwork, and compassion (Tucker ch.3). Some people learn from textbooks, I, on the other hand, prefer to learn through experience. The managerial skills that I have come from years of leading students in school organizations and team projects.
During my senior year of high school, I was the president of two clubs so it was duty to oversee our events and to keep people interested in what we were doing. Other officers had to report to me as I distributed tasks (and, of course, took on several tasks of my own). I could relate to our class conversation about motivating those you work with even though the inner workings of a company are much more complex than that of a high school organization. Still, it is quite a chore to keep a 15-year-old motivated to donate his or her time.

]]> http://blog.case.edu/svetlana.binshtok/2006/10/10/mgmt_250_entry_4 There are many things to consider and account for when you go for an interview. Clothing should be appropriate, résumés... http://blog.case.edu/svetlana.binshtok/2006/10/10/mgmt_250_entry_4 MGMT250 case cwru Case Western Case Western Reserve University Tue, 10 Oct 2006 00:59:59 EST There are many things to consider and account for when you go for an interview. Clothing should be appropriate, résumés should be updated, but most importantly, you should prepare and review the basic interview questions so you can be comfortable when you’re actually at the interview. Some of the basic interview questions are: When have you filled a leadership position? What did you learn at your last job? Why do you want to pursue this career? And why should we hire you?
By reviewing these questions, and perhaps writing out short paragraphs for practice, you are making yourself more comfortable and therefore more confident. This helps during the interview because if you’re confident, you come off as more competent and prepared to work. In the end, it’s better to be over prepared than under prepared.

]]> http://blog.case.edu/svetlana.binshtok/2006/10/10/mgmt_250_entry_3 When it comes to employee rewards and incentives, it is very important for the employer to tailor the reward... http://blog.case.edu/svetlana.binshtok/2006/10/10/mgmt_250_entry_3 MGMT250 case cwru Case Western Case Western Reserve University Tue, 10 Oct 2006 00:46:12 EST When it comes to employee rewards and incentives, it is very important for the employer to tailor the reward to the employees. As we discussed in class this afternoon, for a reward to be effective, it must motivate the workers. For example, giving a third grader chocolate for selling catalog goods is a good incentive because children usually like candy and prizes. However, the “employee of the month” program that many stores utilize is foolish because an adult who is working in a store would probably prefer money to a their picture in a frame.
Of course, every person is motivated differently and an executive’s incentives will be different than that of an entry-level employee so I would suggest that a company, from time to time, should survey employees at different levels to see what motivates the majority.
These rewards should be administered somewhat frequently because as was mentioned in class today, when rewards are sparse, employees tend to forget about them. One person mentioned that at his previous job, the employer offered a bonus at the end of the year for employees with a perfect attendance. Most employees got lazy or just forgot about the rewards because a year is too long. The company would have gotten better results if they administered the bonus more frequently, perhaps every half-year.

]]> http://blog.case.edu/svetlana.binshtok/2006/10/02/mgmt_250_entry_2 My reason for studying management is a bit unorthodox. I want to be a film producer but unlike directors... http://blog.case.edu/svetlana.binshtok/2006/10/02/mgmt_250_entry_2 MGMT250 case cwru Case Western Case Western Reserve University Mon, 02 Oct 2006 23:46:39 EST My reason for studying management is a bit unorthodox. I want to be a film producer but unlike directors and screenwriters, producers need to know more about business than about film. This past summer, I did an internship with Apostle Pictures in New York City. I was very lucky to intern there because the two producers, Jim Serpico and Tom Sellitti, are very down-to-earth and they were nice enough to give me advice. Among other things, the men said that business is very important for a producer to know because a production company is basically like any other company so you have to manage people the same way you would if you were working at McDonalds or Apple Computers (for example).
However, I am realistic and I understand that film is a very risky aspiration. I am interested in going into management because it is very broad so if a film career doesn’t work out, I can apply a business degree to several other fields. Management will help me be a successful film producer and it allows me to have freedom if I don’t succeed with plan A.

]]> http://blog.case.edu/svetlana.binshtok/2006/09/14/mgmt_250_entry_1 I think that diversity in business is important because people of different walks of life can bring different ideas to... http://blog.case.edu/svetlana.binshtok/2006/09/14/mgmt_250_entry_1 MGMT250 case cwru Case Western Case Western Reserve University Thu, 14 Sep 2006 21:49:40 EST I think that diversity in business is important because people of different walks of life can bring different ideas to the table. Someone from Europe might approach a problem differently than a person from Asia, or South America, or wherever. Two different walks of life mean two different ways to attack an issue. However, due to racism, I believe that certain measures should be taken to protect minorities. I think that the current system works well but it would also be a good idea to have a job candidate interviewed by two or three different manager/ HR personnel of different races. This method could cause problems too because you are racially targeting to hire the personnel.

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