Free Essay

Attendance in the Manufacturing Work Place

In: Business and Management

Submitted By imcobra1
Words 4004
Pages 17
ATTENDANCE IN THE MANUFACTURING WORK PLACE

August 10, 2011 EXECUTIVE SUMMARY
Carrier’s absenteeism rate has grown tremendously in the last three years; this report show’s changes in the attendance policy could elevate problems that could affect the bottom line profits. Over the last year September 2009-September 2010, the trend of absenteeism has risen to 11.2 percent with a standard deviation of 2.8 percent, this would increase amount of employees needed in the plant that is required for production by at least sixty five, from June 2010 –August 2010 average absenteeism rat jump from 11.2 percent to 13.2 percent with a standard deviation of 3.04 that would increase our head count to seventy extra people to ensure that for at least sixty eight percent of the time we have enough employees to run our product..
Absenteeism generate manufacturing problems such as throughput and missed opportunities. Absenteeism causes throuput to be interupted because of less talented employees having to step up. Quality suffers, createing unsatisfied customers. Also, Overtime is generated due to rework or additional production, this is a financial hit on the bottom line, and the extra manpower generate additional cost of salary and benefits
Attendance policies vary from one manufacturing facility to another. The effects are over whelming to each group for a variety of reasons. Whether union or non-union, these policies allow companies to curtail an attendance problem, which allows for a minimum back lash from shareholders, due to declining profits resulting from poor attendance.
Our recommendation to tighten the attendance policy and FMLA policy will enhance attendance, adding a raise in bonus for end of year perfect attendance will give incentive to employees to come to work

TABLE OF CONTENTS

EXECUTIVE SUMMARY …………………………………………………………………I
INTRODUCTION: CAUSES FOR EXCESSIVE ABSENTEEISM ………….……..….II
BACKGROUND: EXCEESIVE ABSENTEEISM CREATES MANAGEMEENT
PROBLEMS …………………………………………………………………….………….III
DISCUSSION: ATTENDANCE POLICIES TO MINIMIZE CHRONIC
ABSENTEEISM AT WORK……………….………………….…………….……………..IV
MAJOR CAUSES OF POOR ATTENDANCE ………………………………….…........IV
CURRENT IMPACT ON WORKPLACE MORALE, PRODUCTIVITY………………...V
CONCEPT/THEORY CORRELATION………………………………….……………….VI
CONCLUSIONS AND RECOMMENDATIONS…………………………………………XI

REFERENCES…………………………………………………………………………… XVII

INTRODUCTION: CAUSES FOR EXCESSIVE ABSENTEEISM
This paper is written to evaluate the many causes of absenteeism at Carrier Corporation and the direct causes of failures that Carrier have in retaining employees. Specifically the study seeks to answers to these questions:
• What are the Major causes of poor attendance?
• What is the Current impact on workplace morale, productivity, and economic value?
• What impact does poor attendance have on a company’s bottom line profits for share holders?
• Is poor attendance attributed to the abuse of FMLA
• Attendance policy, can it really work?

BACKGROUND: EXCEESIVE ABSENTEEISM CREATES MANAGEMEENT PROBLEMS
Carrier’s biggest challenge in today’s workplace is dealing with employee absenteeism; this is a common workplace problem. Legitimate illness still accounts for the majority of absences, although they are many instances where employees simply do not report for work, without a viable excuse, although employers offer vacation, sick leave, paid time off, and other forms of time of whether paid or unpaid.
Common issues that arise with human resource departments are how to deal with absenteeism by both exempt and non-exempt employees. Federal and state employment laws give employers guidelines on four critical absenteeism issues, the Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA), the American with Disabilities Act (ADA), the Uniformed Services Employment and Reemployment Act (USERRA), and Title VII of the civil Rights Act of 1964 (VII) (HRHero.com, 2011).
In addition to the four issues above, the law protects employees in two other instances, jury duty and religious practices of beliefs (HRHero.com, 2011). Disciplining workers for absenteeism problems can lead to employee lawsuits if the there is no policy in place or when they are not followed consistently.
Absenteeism generate manufacturing problems such as throughput and missed opportunities. Absenteeism causes productivity to be interupted because of less talented employees having to step up. Quality suffers, createing unsatisfied customers. Also, Overtime is generated due to rework or additional production, this is a financial hit on the bottom line, and the extra manpower generate additional cost of salary and benefits. In the last year absenteiism has atributed to hiring excess operators to fill in for excessive absenteeism, In one year period average absenteeism per day was eleven percent with a deviation of two percent Figure one also shows during the summer months the number jump to over thirteen percent.
Figure 1 Note: Data compiled shows from September 2009 through September 2010 average absenteeism at 11.2 percent with an standard deviation (STD) of 2.8 percent. To ensure 68 percent of the time we have enough employees to achieve schedule attianment we would have to employee 65 more people. To ensure we achieve goal 95 more people would be hired.
DISCUSSION: ATTENDANCE POLICIES TO MINIMIZE CHRONIC ABSENTEEISM AT WORK
Attendance policies vary from one manufacturing facility to another. The effects are over whelming to each group for a variety of reasons. Whether union or non-union, these policies allow companies to curtail an attendance problem, which allows for a minimum back lash from shareholders, due to declining profits resulting from poor attendance. Lost wages, lost bonuses, lost wages and lost incentives are a night mare for companies. Report losses to share holders, can be a nightmare, as with the threat of losing your position in the company. Share holders responsibility is to support, and line their pockets with profits.
MAJOR CAUSES OF POOR ATTENDANCE
All employers recognize that there are times when employees have legitimate reasons to miss work, be tardy, or leave early. Unfortunately, it is not uncommon to suspect an employee’s stated reason for an absence is a lie, especially when it is reoccurring. Take, for instance, a worker who is repeatedly “sick” the Monday after payday. With the emergence of direct deposit, those employees who are constantly late or absent on Monday after pay day, those who are chronically late, and those who feel they can come to work when they feel good and ready. Most employers think laws govern people with poor attendance, so they do not question employees as to their whereabouts.
While there are laws, such as the Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA), and Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) that impose limits on employers’ management practices. However, there are several “structural” considerations you can implement to help minimize employee abuse of your attendance policies and gain greater flexibility in combating chronic violations of those policies.
CURRENT IMPACT ON WORKPLACE MORALE, PRODUCTIVITY
Low workplace morale leads to low attendance, high employee turnover, lack of motivation and an issue of respect between employees and management. A total impact on employee’s morale is inevitable when there is no respect in the workplace. When decisions are made without input or even taking their needs into account, morale can be affected. Scheduling weekend work or overtime throughout the week without choice, for some it is welcomed for others it is truly a hardship. Whereas management on a time crunch to get on time delivery or make a customer happy, your workforce should be considered with extreme caution (fink, 2011).
Poor Leadership A lack of morale in the workplace means a leader or manager has not addressed the issue that caused it. It might be their management style or they just don’t get it. Leadership is imperative in manufacturing, each person comes to work with daily problems, each person is an individual, and has to be addressed as such.
No Clarity in Expectations Employees want to know what is expected of them. Although in manufacturing must supervisors indicate their main expectation is to never stop the line except in safety, and emergencies. Communicating expectations should be first priority; managers sometimes do not clarify what they want from employees. They may become distressed that they are not meeting expectations which they know will hurt them on their performance review. This problem is caused by managers who have not taken the time to give clear expectations of the position.
Other Employees This is where the saying “one bad apple can spoil the whole bunch” applies. When management fails to deal with an underperforming employee it can quickly spread negativity. In addition to underperforming employees, manufacturing seem to take the undertone of high school childish behavior. Rumors started general dislike because of looks, not being in the right click or group, even racial issue still exist. This can be a particularly bad problem with teams who are dependent on each other. Employees who feel they are not “fitting” in can miss work.
CONCEPT/THEORY CORRELATION
Carriers attendance policy is vague at best, the policy needs to be clear, consistent, documented and progressive discipline needs to be enforced (Stephen Dellinger ESQ., 2010), its concept is to have a no fault attendance policy, based on sixteen points, no matter the issue if an employee miss one day your absence will earn points access in the following order, three points for Monday, two points Tuesday thru Sunday. Once points are accumulated, points obtained to ten pints will be recouped at 30 days unless an infraction occurs within the thirty days, then your recoup time starts from the latest infraction. After ten points your recoup moves from 30 days to yearly from last infraction. FMLA, ADA, medical leave, and APS (approved physicians statement) can be taken without points added, as summarized in Figure 2.
FIGURE 2
Carrier’s attendance policy is written as:
1 point late arrival- Arrive late within the first 2 hours of the start of shift
1 point long lunch - Leave anytime outside lunch hour, or take more than 30 minutes for lunch during the normal lunch hour.
1 point leave early- * Supervisory approval required
0 point leave early - *Supervisory approval required, for employees with six (6) points or fewer on their attendance record
2 points one shift absence – Arrive at work more than 2 hours later than the start of the shift or miss entire shift.
3 points one shift Absence on Monday – Arrive at work more than 2 hours later than the start of a Monday shift or miss entire Monday shift.
• A leave early is defined as leaving after half of the scheduled shift has been completed (i.e. 5 hours of a 10 hour shift or 4 hours of an 8 hour shift). All supervisory decisions on leave early request are considered final.
• Vacation days will not be approved to excuse any absences as defined in this policy.
DISCIPLINE WILL BE ISSUED IN THE FOLLOWING PROGRESSION.
• Points will accumulate on a rolling calendar year basis. Contractual absence are excluded from the attendance policy (including jury duty, bereavement, FMLA, and approved leave of absence)
• Employees with less than 1 year of seniority will have a total of 10 points available to them until reaching one (1) year of seniority.
• All other employees will have a total of 16 points available.
Three day suspension on paper-
• Employees with less than one year seniority – 6 points
Termination
• Employees with less than 1 year Seniority
• Receive a third attendance suspension within a rolling calendar year (regardless of points)
• 10 points
• All other employees
• 16 points
• In addition, any employee who fails to report an absence every three (3) days will also be subject to termination.
Recoup
• An employee’s oldest absence on record will recoup on a rolling 30-day period of perfect attendance for employees with (10) or fewer points
• For all other employees, points are removed from an employee’s record on the one-year anniversary date of receiving point(s).
• (Note, if the first recorded occurrence is recouped when the calendar date rolls around the total points will not be affected but the record will be deleted from the employee point information)
APS
On a rolling calendar year basis, the company will accept an APS from a medical or dental physician; in the following manner an hourly associate and no attendance points will be assessed. (Only for non-FMLA qualified events) (Carrier, 2005)
• Employees with less than 1 year seniority – 1 APS
• All other employees – 2 APS
As shown in figure 1. Carrier’s policy is ambiguous at best, an associate can miss one day a month and still maintain a zero balance all year. With carriers current attendance policy associates tend to play the “system” and keep their points below six points, this will ensure them the chance to take two –three days extra every six months in a year and still able to recoup by December 1st to receive attendance bonus. Attendance bonus is given by the company if an employee’s point is at zero, this is considered perfect attendance.
In addition to abusing the attendance policy, there is speculation that many employees abuse the FMLA policy. FMLA is an employee entitlement, and sometimes employees believe that it entitles them to take off from work for almost any reason at almost any time. Some even might see it as a safety net in case their vacation request is denied. Employers and supervisors have long complained abuse of the FMLA, however because of the status of FMLA and it serious implications of lawsuit and wrongful allegations of harassment of employees who use FMLA.
The consequences of abuse go beyond the loss of productivity associated with a single absent worker. When one worker abuses the system it has trickledown effect on the rest of the work force, this also brings down morale as their peers wonder “why am I doing the right thing and he/she is getting away with murder”.
Writing an attendance policy in a union environment will create headaches for management and union official alike; commonality will need to be a factor if both sides are going to agree. Of course issue will arise, arguments and tempers will flare, the main thing is to get the union to agree that each employees need to be present daily.
Carrier 400 FMLA employees represent twenty six percent of the 1500 employees that is employed.
Conclusion and Recommendation
It may sound simple, but many employers, particularly those with smaller operations, don’t have written attendance standards. Often it’s because the company either has never had to address a suspected abuser or wants to be perceived as a supportive employer that offers employees flexibility (under the unspoken assumption that employees will use that flexibility responsibly). While that approach can foster positive employee relations, it is also ripe for abuse.
While written attendance standards aren’t legally required, they are useful in setting and reinforcing your expectations when addressing individual employees who have fallen short. The more objective and universal your standards are, the better. Some employers adopt point systems with varying tiers of discipline based on how many times the infraction occurs. Others establish one or more general principles ― e.g., “five or more occurrences in a six-month period will generally be considered excessive absenteeism and result in discipline.”
Some organizations opt to maintain flexibility at the expense of some clarity by simply prohibiting “excessive” absences. Whatever standard you choose, it should fit the needs of your organization (or a specific department) and be clearly disseminated to all affected employees. Your written attendance standards ― along with a demonstrable and consistent history of enforcement ― are the foundation for managing individual attendance issues.
A radical change is recommended in the point system and the way we handle FMLA, staying within the guidelines but yet make it difficult for those who abuse the system. Point system will be revised and sent to union, and management for approval as summarized in figure 3.
Figure 3
Carrier’s new attendance policy is written as:
2 point late arrival- Arrive late within the first 2 hours of the start of shift
2 point long lunch - Leave anytime outside lunch hour, or take more than 30 minutes for lunch during the normal lunch hour.
1 point leave early- * Supervisory approval required
0 point leave early - *Supervisory approval required, for employees with six (6) points or fewer on their attendance record
3 points one shift absence – Arrive at work more than 2 hours later than the start of the shift or miss entire shift.
4 points one shift Absence on Monday – Arrive at work more than 2 hours later than the start of a Monday shift or miss entire Monday shift.
• A leave early is defined as leaving after half of the scheduled shift has been completed (i.e. 5 hours of a 10 hour shift or 4 hours of an 8 hour shift). All supervisory decisions on leave early request are considered final.
• Vacation days will not be approved to excuse any absences as defined in this policy.
DISCIPLINE WILL BE ISSUED IN THE FOLLOWING PROGRESSION.
• Points will accumulate on a standard calendar year basis. Contractual absence are excluded from the attendance policy (including jury duty, bereavement, FMLA, and approved leave of absence)
• Employees with less than 1 year of seniority will have a total of 8 points available to them until reaching one (1) year of seniority.
• All other employees will have a total of 10 points available.
WRITTEN VERBAL WARNING
• All Employees with less than one year seniority – 4 points
• All other Employees-6 points
THREE DAY SUSPENSION ON PAPER-
• All Employees with less than one year seniority – 6 points
• All other Employees-10 points
Termination
• Employees with less than 1 year Seniority
• Receive a second attendance suspension within a rolling calendar year (regardless of points)
• 10 points
• All other employees
• 12 points
• In addition, any employee who fails to report an absence every three (3) days will also be subject to termination.
RECOUP
• An employee’s oldest absence on record will recoup on a rolling 180 day period of perfect attendance for employees with (10) or fewer points
• For all other employees, above 10 points, their points are removed from an employee’s record on the one-year anniversary date of receiving point(s).
• (Note, if the first recorded occurrence is recouped when the calendar date rolls around the total points will not be affected but the record will be deleted from the employee point information)

APS
On a rolling calendar year basis, the company will accept an APS from a medical or dental physician; in the following manner an hourly associate and no attendance points will be assessed. (Only for non-FMLA qualified events)
• Employees with less than 1 year seniority – 1 APS
• All other employees – 2 APS
VACATIONS
Vacation will only be rewarded to those employees who request within 24 hours of dates requested, and by seniority of classification that an employee is in.
PERFECT ATTENDANCE PROGRAM
This program will be exactly what it is called “Perfect” attendance employees that maintain a perfect record of attendance throughout the calendar year will be given a bonus of 500 dollars for having not recorded any absences. This is to include late, unexcused absences, unexcused early outs.
Minimizing FMLA Abuse Recommendations
The Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA) is an employee entitlement, and sometimes employees believe that it entitles them to take off from work for almost any reason at almost any time. Some even might see it as a safety net in case their vacation request is denied. There ways to minimize such abuse (Dolly Clabault, 2011).
Double check eligibility, when employees request FMLA leave make sure they are eligible, enforce regulations to provide at least 30 days in advance notice if practical. When employees fail to provide timely notice FMLA coverage may be delayed upon verification. Of course Carrier will act depending on facts and circumstances involved in the situation. If an employee cannot provide notice, that would be taken in to consideration on a case by case basis.
Call in procedures when an employee takes FMLA leave needs to be enforced, usual customary practice is to be used unless there are extenuating circumstances. If employees do not follow the company policies/procedures, FMLA coverage for the absence may be delayed or denied. Again, any unusual circumstances would need to be considered.
Eligible employees may take FMLA-protected leave only for qualifying reasons—including for a birth, an adoption or foster care; for an employee’s serious health condition; for the serious health condition of an employee’s family member (including serious injury/illness because of military duty); and for a qualifying exigency (specific non-medical-related military duty).
In addition, it helps to ensure that when employees are taking time off because of a serious health condition (theirs or that of a family member), the condition meets the regulatory definition. This can be a challenge, but a certification supporting the need for leave can help.
Employers are not required to request a certification but are allowed to do so, and doing so can put some of the FMLA burden on employees. It might help to highlight the area of a medical certification where it indicates that “terms such as ‘lifetime,’ ‘unknown,’ or ‘indeterminate’ may not be sufficient to determine FMLA coverage,” to help ensure that the health care provider sees it (Dolly Clabault, 2011).
Review certifications, when and for how long, and the employee can be held for the information, if an certification states two days per month, and the employee wants to take more time off than that, this may be reason enough to take action. Certification should include a minimum duration of the condition (Title-29 labor, 2008). If these conditions are not met then that individual will need to recertify. Request second opinion if a certification’s validity is doubtful.
If an employee is absent beyond what is indicated, it can be argued that the circumstances have changed significantly. Arguably this s helpful in showing an abuse pattern, such as being absent on Monday and Thursdays, in those situations a recertification request may include a rundown of the absence pattern and may ask the health care provider to indicate whether or not the pattern is consistent with the condition.
Finally train managers and supervisors their eyes and ears will help identify suspected abuse, managers and supervisors should know the law basics. Employees will use FMLA to get out of work, they trade of an employee not wanting to do a job and request to visit medical, and return with a FMLA slip needs to be investigated, surveillance can be used to suspect fraud. Although the FMLA is an employee entitlement, there are some tools employers can arm themselves with to help minimize abuse of the entitlements. Most of these tools require little effort but can pay off in the long run. Using any of them can send a message to employees that the FMLA isn’t there to be abused but is there for employees who really need to take time off (Dolly Clabault, 2011).
The reasons for employee absences are as numerous as the stars, and your response needs to be customized appropriately to each case. However, when you suspect an employee is abusing your attendance policy, having the above processes built into your policies and procedures will almost always provide you with greater ― and better ― response options

REFERENCES
HRHero.com. (2011). Employee absenteeism and attendance. Retrieved 2011, from HRHero.com: http://www.hrhero.com/topics/absenteeism.html
Fink, N. (2011). The high cost of low morale: How to address low morale in the workplace through servant leadership. The Leading edge , 1-8.
Stephen Dellinger ESQ., B. c. (2010). Follow four keys to legally manage employee absenteeism. The HRSpecialist.com , 1.
Dolly Clabault, J. K. (2011, February 14). Society for Human Resource Management. Retrieved August 25, 2011, from SHRM Leading people Leading organizations: http://www.shrm.org/hrdisciplines/benefits/Articles/Pages/FMLA_Abuse.aspx
Carrier. (2005). UTC Indianapolis facility Associate hand book. In H. COOK, Associate Handbook (pp. 4-5). Indianapolis: Carrier.
Title-29 labor. (2008, November 17). Electronic Code of Federation 73 FR 68073. Retrieved August 31, 2011, from E-CFR 49: http://ecfr.gpoaccess.gov/cgi/t/text/text-idx?c=ecfr&sid=48d6ee3b99d3b3a97b1bf189e1757786&rgn=div5&view=text&node=29:3.1.1.3.53&idno=29

Similar Documents

Free Essay

Gap Analysis: Riordan Manufacturing

...Gap Analysis: Riordan Manufacturing MMPBL/530 Situation Analysis Issue and Opportunity Identification The employees of Riordian Manufacturing feel that the supervisors of the company are demotivating them. They expressed his in focus groups. The employees initially stated that the supervisors treated them well when they were discussing their treatment with the consultant that was hired. Willingness to perform key behaviors is an important determinant of behavior. That is, employees must be “motivated” if they are to perform behaviors such as high task performance, job seeking, attendance, or cooperation with others” (Dreher & Dougherty, 2001). The motivation level at Riordian Manufacturing is at a tremendous low point. The company has the opportunity to increase the motivation level. Employees feel that the promotions that have taken place at Riordian Manufacturing are based on politics rather than merit. The employees also feel that there is a lack of career information, development opportunities and career advancement. The literature on sponsorship and mentorship in organizations, which suggests that employees with impressive ability and motivation may be constrained in their level of achievement and career success by a lack of opportunity (Dreher & Dougherty 2001). The consultant that Riordian Manufacturing hired suggested that other companies have implemented extensive career development and mentoring programs. Riordian Manufacturing has the opportunity to institute...

Words: 1046 - Pages: 5

Premium Essay

Oman

...continuous improvement. These tools, techniques and philosophies have been used worldwide by best-in-class companies to improve their bottom line, make them more competitive, and drastically improve their responsiveness to the customer. Topics: • Development of the concept of a lean organization and what benefits it will deliver • Identification of waste activities and understanding why they should be eliminated • How to use flow analysis to analyze a process and identify non-value-added activities • Understanding of the standard lean operations tools: 5S, visual workplace and visual order control, manufacturing cells, use of task time, setup time reduction, standard worksheets, etc. • The benefits of incorporating lean concepts during the development phase of new products • Error-controlling devices and how they can be used during the Manufacturing process to reduce errors • Introduction to how to conduct kaizen blitzes, and why continuous improvement is important to the organization Course...

Words: 1342 - Pages: 6

Premium Essay

Absenteeism in Ireland

...Absenteeism in Ireland An analysis and assessment of absenteeism and absence management in Ireland It’s been well known that excessive workplace absenteeism can be quite costly to organisations. Irish Business and Employers Confederation, the biggest employers association in Ireland, conducted a broad study of absenteeism in Irish workplace and found that the total cost of absenteeism in 2002 was astronomical - €1.58 billion (2004). Subsequently, other organisations have started to pay more attention to this rocketing issue. A survey done by Irish Small and Medium Enterprises Association claimed that the direct cost of absenteeism for small businesses is approximately €1.1 billion per year and that the indirect ‘unseen’ costs of absenteeism such as loss of productivity, administration costs, etc. could be even greater than the direct ‘seen’ costs, e.g. sick pay, replacement cost and so on (ISME, 2007). Another report done by the Small Firms Association in 2008 revealed that small businesses in Ireland lose about €793 million annually because of the absenteeism (SFA, 2008). Even though there is considerable variation among their findings, the bottom line is that absenteeism is expensive for companies and thus becomes a big problem for them. As it can significantly undermine their productivity, competitiveness and in a worst scenario even their existence, employers started to look for measures to address the issue and to reduce absenteeism in their plants. This report aims...

Words: 2576 - Pages: 11

Premium Essay

Riordan

...Riordan Manufacturing Inc., implemented and established human resource information system (HRIS), which was included as part of a financial package. The HRIS package included functions such as maintaining personnel information, pay rate and tax information, hire and seniority dates, vacation leave for non-exempt employees, and organizational information. However, certain areas of the HRIS could be improved upon and developed. One area that needs improvement is the network communications between headquarters and all the Riordan plants. Improvements are also needed in central repository, resume storage, maintaining training and knowledge skills information, online employee user interface, and a central location for updating and maintaining employee personal and professional information. Improving the current HRIS activities would be advantageous to Riordan leadership and their employees. Hugh McMCauley, the COO for Riordan Manufacturing requested that the human resources (HR) system be analyzed to integrate the existing variety of tools in use in the present day to a single integrated application. The request will take advantage of a more sophisticated look for information systems technology in the HR department at Riordan Manufacturing. After the project is to be completed, Riordan Manufacturing will then be left with a detailed project plan that will provide a list of tasks, resources, schedule and budget required for the project plan. The plan is for all of this to take place in...

Words: 3888 - Pages: 16

Premium Essay

Mgt2 Task 1-3

...final quarter of last year—up from just over $4M in sales the prior year. 8 One new project that you will read about in this newsletter is the possible implementation of a new HRIS system with payroll functions. We are hoping that the HRIS side of this new system will impact your work life at GenRays very positively, allowing you to create a career track for yourself that aligns with your own goals. It will allow for more transparency in hiring, as all employees will be able to see and apply for open positions as they wish. It will also allow management to ensure that applicants for new jobs are well-qualified. The payroll side will ensure that your paychecks and expense reports are processed more or less automatically, which will make it faster and easier for you to be reimbursed or to make changes to your auto-pay options. We have hired a new project manager to lead up this initiative and make recommendations about whether we can move forward and how to go about it. The PM will meet with employees, vendors, and management to identify important parts of the project and make sure we meet our goals. I know you will make our new PM feel welcome and that you will provide your honest feedback about what works—and what does not—in our current HR and payroll systems. The...

Words: 5675 - Pages: 23

Free Essay

Awa Samples for Gmat

...Analysis of an argument 1. The following appeared as part of an annual report sent to stockholders by Olympic Foods, a processor of frozen foods. “Over time, the costs of processing go down because as organizations learn how to do things better, they become more efficient. In color film processing, for example, the cost of a 3-by-5-inch print fell from 50 cents for five-day service in 1970 to 20 cents for one-day service in 1984. The same principle applies to the processing of food. And since Olympic Foods will soon celebrate its twenty-fifth birthday, we can expect that our long experience will enable us to minimize costs and thus maximize profits.” Discuss how well reasoned you find this argument. In your discussion be sure to analyze the line of reasoning and the use of evidence in the argument. For example, you may need to consider what questionable assumptions underlie the thinking and what alternative explanations or counterexamples might weaken the conclusion. You can also discuss what sort of evidence would strengthen or refute the argument, what changes in the argument would make it more logically sound, and what, if anything, would help you better evaluate its conclusion. Citing facts drawn from the color-film processing industry that indicate a downward trend in the costs of film processing over a 24-year period, the author argues that Olympic Foods will likewise be able to minimize costs and thus maximize profits in the future. In support of this conclusion...

Words: 4015 - Pages: 17

Premium Essay

Bsbmgt516C

...and structured approach to organizational management that seeks to improve the quality of products and services through ongoing refinements in response to continuous feedback. Question 2 Lean manufacturing is a performance based, continuous-improvement process that focuses on eliminating waste and unnecessary steps all the processes of the operation so that it can meet the aim that is to provide high levels of throughput, or speed. Question 3 5 S is a technique, which can results in well-organized workplace complete with visual controls and order. The principles are Sort, Set in Order, Shine, Standardize and Sustain. * Sort means to remove what is not needed and keep what is needed. * Set in order means arrange essential items in order for easy access * Shine means keep things clean and tidy; no trash or dirt in the workplace * Standardize means maintain and make the “sort”,”set in order” and “shine” habitual. * Sustain means on going application of knowledge, skills, and abilities, gained from the 5S process in order to improve organization wide effectiveness. Question 4 Six Sigma and DMAIC is a disciplined data-driven approach and methodology for eliminating defects in any process within the operation of the business from the designing and manufacturing process of products to transactional, to delivery of the product. Six sigma or DMAIC consist of the following features: * Define – who is the customer and what are their needs * Measure...

Words: 1915 - Pages: 8

Premium Essay

Samer Ghraizi

...Management as practised in organisations. It provides an overview of key aspects of operations management from both manufacturing and service sectors’ perspective within modern organisations. The module considers operations strategy in the broadest sense. The broad aims of the module are: * To develop and introduce and develop a critical understanding operations management for modern organisations in a variety of sectors of activity; * To consider operations strategy in its broadest sense and relate this to the internal management and organisation of the production of goods and services within organisations in different sectors of the economy; * To examine how to organise resources and operations, and how to improve them using a variety of quality tools and techniques and process improvement activities; * To consider the organisation in its wider context; examining how inputs on the supply side can be managed and improved, and on the demand side how customers, and customer satisfaction can be understood. Module Status: Core Module run in Semester 2 of the Masters in Business Management Programme and is credit rated at 20 M level credits. Teaching Staff: Mr. Hadi Matarhmatar@mubs.edu.lbTel: 01740050 | Learning Outcomes: After successfully completing the module, you should be able to: * Evaluate the nature, scope and extent of manufacturing and service operations strategy; * Critically evaluate the use of quality tools and techniques for a wide...

Words: 4803 - Pages: 20

Premium Essay

Etatuhjhjka Uisdfua

...procedures. Learning is a fundamental process in organizations. This chapter discusses principles of learning that managers can promote to maintain desired organizational behaviors such as good customer service or manufacturing high-quality products. L earning consists of a relatively permanent change in knowledge or behaviors that result from practice or experience. This definition has three key elements: (1) permanent, (2) change, and (3) through practice. A temporary change in behavior or knowledge is not characteristic of learning. Learning takes place through practice, or the experience of watching others, although it is tempting to take shortcuts. Theories of learning, operant conditioning, and social learning theory emphasize different ways of learning. Methods of Shaping Behavior   Reinforcement is the process that increases the probability that desired behaviors occur by applying consequences. Managers use reinforcement to increase the likelihood of higher sales, better attendance, or observing safety procedures. Reinforcement begins by selecting a behavior to be encouraged. Correctly identifying the behavior is important, or reinforcement will not lead to the desired response. A manager must decide if attendance at meetings is the desired behavior or attendance and participation. The manager would need to reinforce both behaviors if both are...

Words: 640 - Pages: 3

Premium Essay

Workplace Motivation

...Workplace Motivation Ronald Ford PSY/320 April 2, 2014 Wesley Benton Workplace Motivation Working in a vehicle manufacturing plant, I deal with an extrinsic form of motivation. In other words, a performance or incentive based approach. Our goal is to meet monthly and yearly sales goals set by the companies’ sales team. We have a training model that calls for teamwork and accountability. There are financial incentives to meet goals along with the competitive hourly wages. There are also penalties for poor performance, quality, and negative behavior. These plans are put in place to regulate, manage, and sustain the companies’ performance goal and quality standards. The pathway program is a motivational model put in place by Nissan to offer associate employees; employed by Yates services, an opportunity to become a full time Nissan technician. This program utilizes the reinforce method to motivate employees to try achieve company requirements and goals. In order to transition from a Yates associate into a full time Nissan employee, one must have excellent attendance, very low defects or quality issues, be active in the companies’ improvement initiative, and display good character. After two years of performing these task, the employee may be eligible for an evaluation that if passed will allow him or her an opportunity to become full time, and receive a number of benefits. This program is the biggest motivational model the company utilizes. It is a positive reinforcer...

Words: 1188 - Pages: 5

Premium Essay

Understanding Work Team

...Overcoming Absenteeism at Unique Schweppes Ltd Unique Schweppes Ltd was multinational Public limited Company with its head office at London. The company’s 51 % shares were held by Unique and 49% by Government financial Institutions and individual shareholders. Unique owns three factories and three partly manufacturing units i.e. they had 6 primary manufacturing units located at Jammu, Nagpur, Agra, Pune, Gorakhapur and Hyderabad. The total manpower in these six units was 1900, and was held by Mathew Thomas as managing director. Five directors looking after various financial areas like technical, operations, commercial, HR and marketing, supported him. Agra unit was situated near Mathura with a manpower capacity of 450 employees, including 41 executives, 12 managers and remaining operators. A representative union was also registered in the name of Association of Chemical Workers in the company. This unit was working in 3 shifts and for all the seven days. The average age of the employees was around 30 years. Agra unit was the only automated plant among the plants of Unique India. It had a unique feature of cross-functional activities at the managerial level with the result a strong networking was observed. Emphasis on financial relations among the employees was given to promote simplified working and better understanding among them. Unique was known for its welfare facilities like – free canteen, free transportation, free uniform, medical re-imbursement up to 5% of the gross...

Words: 916 - Pages: 4

Free Essay

Marketing Plan

...2Mission9 4.3Target segment9 4.4Positioning10 4.5Communication Program10 5.0Action Program11 6.0Expenses Forecast12 7.0Implementation Controls13 1.0Executive Summary The consortium of Memphis community theatres including Germantown Community Theatre, Theatre Memphis, Playhouse on the Square, Circuit, TheatreWorks, Harrell, and Arlington Arts Group provide immeasurable value in increasing cultural quality of life in the community. By working together with a strategic marketing plan they can increase the audiences from 60% to 75% of capacity, while building strong support for the years to come. Memphis corporate leaders support the arts, including the community theatres, to ensure that Memphis is a place the best and the brightest will come to work and live. Young professionals are the audiences of today and the board members and supporters of tomorrow. We determined to target the young professionals with needs of networking in the artistic world in the greater Memphis area. Our intention is to direct a greater share of the Memphis professionals' entertainment dollars and time towards community theatre. To fit the needs and wants of our target audiences, the theatres have to position and project themselves at a unique level compared to other commercial forms of live entertainment. Community theatre cannot compete if all it offers to its audience is the stage. A theatre experience has to be much more than watching a play. We need to combine the theatre ambience...

Words: 3479 - Pages: 14

Free Essay

Organizational Issues

...Introduction A work environment can be identified as the place that one works, which means the milieus around a person. The work environment has a significant impact upon employee performance and productivity. By work environment we mean those processes, systems, structures, tools or conditions in the workplace that impact favourably or unfavourably individual perform. The work environment also includes policies, rules, culture, resources, working relationships, work location, and internal and external environmental factors, all of which influence the ways those employees perform their job functions. It is the quality of the employee’s workplace environment that most impacts on the level of employee’s motivation and subsequent performance. How well they engage with the organization, especially with their immediate environment, influences to a great extent their error rate, level of innovation and collaboration with other employees, absenteeism and, ultimately, how long they stay in the job. The environment that people are required to work in can have a significant impact on their ability to undertake the tasks that they have been asked to do. This can affect productivity and employee health and well-being. People spend almost as much time in the office as they do at home, sometimes even more. The average American spends about 8.7 hours a day working and doing work related activities. That is more time than they spend doing anything else on an average day. A work...

Words: 4882 - Pages: 20

Premium Essay

Operation

...Skip to main content ------------------------------------------------- Top of Form | | Bottom of Form * Business   * History   * Languages   * Math   * Psychology   * Sciences * Home * Business * Management * Organizational Behavior ------------------------------------------------- Behavioral Performance Management By Luthans, F. Edited by Paul Ducham Share on facebookShare on twitterShare on google_plusone_share Contents * BEHAVIORISTIC THEORIES * COGNITIVE THEORIES * SOCIAL LEARNING THEORY * LAWS OF BEHAVIOR * REINFORCEMENT THEORY * BEHAVIORAL MANAGEMENT * POSITIVE AND NEGATIVE REINFORCERS * ANALYSIS OF MONEY AS A REINFORCER * SOCIAL RECOGNITION * PERFORMANCE BEHAVIORS * MEASUREMENT OF BEHAVIOR * FUNCTIONAL ANALYSIS OF BEHAVIOR * INTERVENTION STRATEGY * PERFORMANCE IMPROVEMENT * BEHAVIORAL MANAGEMENT * SERVICE APPLICATIONS BEHAVIORISTIC THEORIES The most traditional and researched theory of learning comes out of the behaviorist school of thought in psychology. Most of the principles of learning and organizationalReward Systems and the behavioral performance management approach discussed in this chapter are based on behavioristic theories, or behaviorism.           The classical behaviorists, such as the Russian pioneer Ivan Pavlov and the American John B. Watson, attributed learning to the association or connection between stimulus and response (S-R)...

Words: 10313 - Pages: 42

Premium Essay

What to Do About Howard

...this job. Working with Agrigreen, for 18 years meant he had gone through 5 supervisors. Each supervisor had their own attitude and own way of doing things. He starts out with Jerry Givens, whom was a hard headed boss. There was very specific things and ways that things would be done. Since being hired, Givens retires and now he is supervised by Paul Jackson, this supervisor expected LIneberry to plan his own day, this is something different from what Givens wanted. Jackson and Lineberry did not get along very well, Jackson felt a helper was needed for Howard as the helper would check for errors that Howard would make. This is when Dan Richards is hired. Richards felt Lineberry was slow and stupid and was eventually transferred to manufacturing. Howard did not get off easy on having a helper, Mel Cutler replaced Richards. Cutler wound up being someone that Howard liked, as time went on though growing pains set in and nothing was the same as in the beginning. The two of them barely spoke. By this point though, a new manager Lee Miller is put in charge. Howard and Mel move to another office and are then told to report to Frank Silverton. After a few years, Mel is placed on a project and Howard doesn’t take it well because he feels he has more experience than Mel. When Lee Miller steps down Burt Jacobs, is then put in charge. Mel feels moving to the other office was bad because by this time, Howard does his own thing. Howard comes in late, leaves early, took frequent snack breaks...

Words: 2512 - Pages: 11