Case Study Analysis
David Berwanger
Comm/215
April 23, 2011
Gloria Reeves

Case Study Analysis
Even though very inspired, and goal driven, Carl managed to make a few mistakes that may have been avoided. These mistakes have now put him in danger of possibly not being able to put the new hires to work on time, which leaves the company is the same predicament of not having enough employees on the clock.
Eager to prove that he was the man for the job as a Campus Recruiter, he hired 15 new hires and may have been able to get away with a fewer number of new recruits. He should have started by making sure that the current budget supported the salary for 15 new hires. Next, he should have looked at the company’s training schedule to confirm that the training room he wanted to use was in fact free to reserve. Now there is a group of people expecting to receive training and nowhere to train them. This kind of action on behalf of the company can cause employees to self-terminate their employment and seek gainful employment elsewhere. Once Carl scheduled everything, he should have been tracking things on a regular basis to make sure that everything was on schedule. Waiting until the last mine to ensure everything was in place cost a lot of valuable time in creating a contingency plan. In addition, he should have personally created employee files for each of the candidates and managed them personally until orientation was completed. If he would have checked earlier on the paperwork, and made contact with each of the new hires personally, he would have known earlier that there were people missing pages of paperwork and other items from their new hire packet. He also could have found that the orientation material needs revision as well. Last, but not least, there is an issue with the fact that there were no drug tests scheduled for any of the new hires. This step is mandatory for any person wishing to work at this company. This should have been the very first thing that was scheduled for all of the new hires, a failure on the drug test automatically would stop the orientation process for each one that should fail.
Is this scheduled orientation a lost cause? Not just yet, it can still come together. First, Carl should schedule the mandatory drug testing for all 15 new hires for the same day. This sounds a little crazy, but by getting them all done on the same day, we will get the results all at the same time and know if any one of the new hires is ineligible to work here. If anyone of them should fail, then our training space would not need to be as big, nor there a need for the large number of orientation manuals. The next step to salvaging this is to find a conference room or something similar that could be just as useful on the scheduled day for the orientation.
Carl needs to start communicating with Ms. Carrolls, the Operations Supervisor, on a regular basis. He needs to inform her of what he is implementing as a contingency. If need be, include her and ask her advice on the steps he is taking. Maybe, he can even ask for a brainstorming session with her to see if she has any ideas or knows of any places that are available to hold the orientation. In addition, the orientation manuals must be complete. In order to accomplish this, start by finding the most complete manual and take pages from one of the other manuals to make one complete manual. Then run off the number of copies needed so that each new employee may have one. Ensure that he keeps one extra copy as a hard copy for future reference. Mr. Robins may also want to start making contact with each of the new hires personally to ensure that they have completed all the tasks required prior to orientation. This should include all drug testing and medical reviews, as well as applications and all needed transcripts. Mr. Robins should also update as necessary each individual new employee file so that everything is accurate.
If need be, Mr. Robins should bring in another person to help brainstorm on opinions and ideas on where and how to conduct the orientation that is approaching. Getting the input from someone else who is not directly involved may prove valuable. There may be another person in the office that has been through this same experience already and can shed some light on the situation and how to make it still work. Right now, Mr. Robins is only able to see things from one perspective, his own. Getting the perspective from someone else not directly involved may show another way of approaching the dilemma. He could always create a project management team. In doing so, he can delegate some of the tracking to each member of the team and lessen his own personal workload. In doing so, with each member of the project management team doing a little bit of the work, the task of putting this orientation may come together a little easier, and a little quicker. In the past, project management teams have proven to accomplish a goal more proficiently than any one individual does. In addition, there may be people on the team who have additional outside resources that can be beneficial in moments like this.
In the future, if Mr. Robins is to continue as a recruiter for this firm, then he must be able to perfect his communication skills. He needs to start by communicating with the person he is directly recruiting for first. He needs to develop a concise understanding as to the number of people needed and the timeline for getting them all oriented and trained employees ready for work. He should also start creating a schedule well ahead of time and getting things done early rather than waiting right before orientation. He should also make sure that he always has materials on hand for an orientation of any size. Chance favors the prepared mind. If his mind is always prepared for this type of situation, then chances are he will be able to overcome any dilemma no matter how big or small. If need be, he could also try working with department chairpersons to help track the company training log, this way everyone will be on the same page as to when the training center is being used and when it is free. Communication is a major key to every bit of success. Without communication, there is nothing.
Every bit of this dilemma was avoidable. If Mr. Robins would he used simple communication with those around him, then everything would have fallen into place. He should have communicated a need for materials to the person who handles our publications and they could have ordered more. Furthermore, if Carl would have spoken up sooner about the need for training space, then maybe he and the individual from the technology department could have worked out an arrangement on how they both could have utilized the same space. May this be a lesson to Mr. Robins for future knowledge. Hopefully should the same scenario present itself again, Mr. Robins will be better prepared and know exactly how to handle it without any confusion or delays.