Critical Thinking Application
Leslie A. Gregoire
350 MGT
December 20, 2010
Nancy Boston

Critical Thinking Application
Critical thinking is a style of thinking about any topic, subject matter, or obstacle where the scholar increases the value of his or her thinking by proficiently taking control of the composition natural in thinking and inflicting academic principles upon them. This process is vital and beneficial in everyday life. Everyone has to apply critical thinking skills on one level or another within the workplace in order to make the best decisions for the success of the organization.
Describing critical thinking is challenging because the definition itself means something different to each person. Why is critical thinking necessary? “Everyone thinks; it is our nature to do so. But much of our thinking, left to itself, is biased, distorted, partial, uninformed or down-right prejudiced. Yet the quality of our life and that of what we produce, make, or build depends precisely on the quality of our thought. Shoddy thinking is costly, both in money and in quality of life. Excellence in thought, however, must be systematically cultivated” (The Critical Thinking Community, 2009).
Leslie works for AT&T in the central office as a Facilities Technician. Her job duties include using a computer to retrieve orders, sweep floors, stock wire, connect equipment from the inside to the cables that run outside, talk to inter-company departments to ensure the orders are typed correctly, and talk with the technicians that work in the field. Every day she is faced with having to use critical thinking skills to ensure the orders are properly processed and the technicians get the best possible service.
Sometimes new software is put on the computers which makes retrieving the orders difficult. AT&T gives a “mini” course on how to operate the new software, but it is not enough so everyone completely understands how to use all of the software’s functions. When all the orders are finished, Leslie goes into the computer and looks at every tab to figure out what each function of the new software program is. This includes how to pull up reports of orders that have not completed in the system yet, reports of cable transfers that are still pending, orders that are in jeopardy because they are missing some information or waiting on a technician to call on the order to work it in the field. Because Leslie takes the time to analyze the new software program, her manager often calls her and asks her to pull up certain reports to make sure the system does not get bogged down with old and out of date orders. This makes Leslie indispensable and shows her manager that she is using her critical thinking skills to ensure the most can be made of the new software program.
On many occasions Leslie’s manager calls her to ask her about the software and how it works, or where to go to get certain reports. Some of the information that is available in the new software is the ability to pull up extra orders when there is nothing else to do, or to change some of the information on the actual order. When the employees know how to change this type of information it is not necessary to put the order in jeopardy or call the center that would modify the order because it is something that can be done within the new program by each employee. Leslie’s peers ask her how she gets these reports or orders and she gladly walks them through the steps of how to retrieve these orders or the screen to make changes themselves.
“Thinking critically in a work related environment is crucial for a business to be successful. Critical thinking is not only beneficial for a work environment but critical thinking can benefit each person individually. Applying critical thinking to the decision process will give individuals the knowledge to learn from mistakes, view the situation from a third persons point of view and the most important, think before action is to be taken. Applying critical thinking will bring ease to everyday life as well as the work environment” (Hoopes, 2008). Leslie’s peers have shown her some of the mistakes she has made in running the orders in so that she can prevent these mistakes in the future. If Leslie does not know how to do something she asks one of her peers to show her so she has a complete understanding of how it is properly completed.
Critical thinking is more a part of everyday living than anyone realizes. It takes methodical thought planning what to wear to work, what to eat, where to go, or even which way to travel to get to one’s destination. The workplace is the one place where critical thinking is used most frequently because that is where each employee spends a majority of their time. Some employees hold higher positions within an organization which requires them to use their critical thinking more often. It would be safe to say that critical thinking is the backbone of any decision-making process. References
Hoopes, R. (2008). Critical Thinking Application. Retrieved from http://associatedcontent.com/article/1137124/critical_thinking_application_pg3.html?cat=17
The Critical Thinking Community. (2009). Defining Critical Thinking. Retrieved from http://criticalthinking.org/aboutCT/define_critical_thinking.cfm