...the American policy and I don’t have any friends in this class. It took me a while to adapt into this class style. First, we started from Shambaugh/Weinstein book, and the West Wing episodes. Shambaugh/Weinstein book is about introduction of the Art of policymaking process. From the web book description, it says Author Paul J. Weinstein Jr., who was Chief of Staff of the White House Domestic Policy Council during Clinton's administration; he brought a unique and valuable insider's view to the book. This book also provides some real life examples that helped me a lot in reading some of the concepts. For example, I had no idea of how to write a memo when Dr. Robert Wood introduced us different types of memos. After class, I went back home and read the format of a memo and examples related to that memo, I got the idea about what is a memo look like and how to write it. Indeed, I think the time I get to know about what was going on and what this course is about is right before spring break. Dr. Robert Wood was very thankful. The midterm study guide he provided for us helped me a lot about knowing the course materials, especially the White House staff members. I have learned a lot while I was reading and reviewing for the midterm and I got some ideas about what we had been through the midterm. Unfortunately, unlike others, I think I didn’t enjoy the West Wing episodes. The first reason is that I have lack of knowledge about US policy; second reason is my poor English skills. If...
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...communication today used in organizations. Determining what needs to be communicated is the first step in know what vehicle of communication needs to be utilized. In this paper, as a team we will discuss the various ways of communicating such as; face to face meetings, overhead announcements, letters, emails and memos. These are just a few ways companies communicate within their organization. The inventory of various communication channels used within an organization includes e-mails, and face-to-face meetings. These channels are among two of the most effective ways of communicating within an organization. E-mail is a fast and efficient channel most frequently utilized. This channel is used because most employees in my organization work in the field, and emails allow them to respond to their colleagues in a timely manner. Computerized communication has several advantages, according to the book Health Promotion and Interactive Technology (Street, Gold, & Manning, 1997): Most organizations in the health field use this type of communication to obtain messages throughout the organization more rapidly. The messages sent out, are based on updates, events, information about the job, Job openings, and request of medical information. This information is delivered from one department to another. This channel of communication also can be used to send medical information to other doctor’s office. This is a good source of communication when it is disseminating health information of patients or...
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...scenarios with limited amount of information on the JJJ Company, Riordan Mfg, Ad hoc Committee, CEO and the employees. Each team member was assigned a role from the accounting scenario and instructed to write and effective communiqué based on that roles. The communiqués could be n the form of a formal memo, email, power point, and text message. The types of communiqués were based on the information, i.e., formal, informal, long report, short report format, email, power point presentation, or memo, etc. Then each team member had to evaluate the business communication written by the other members and determine its effectiveness by using the following questions as a guide. 1) How well did the communication convey the intended message? 2) Would another type of communication have been more appropriate? Why? 3) Is the communication at the appropriate level for the intended audience? 4) How did the leadership styles in the scenario affect the communication within the group? 5) What changes would you recommend to improve the communiqué? 6) What are the ethical implications of the information being shared? 7) Does the communication share too much information? 8) Does the communication share too little...
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...CRITICAL THINKING EXERCISE University of Maryland University College Introduction: In the book, “Asking the Right Questions: A Guide to Critical Thinking (Eleventh Edition), by M. Neil Brown and Stuart M. Keeley”, the authors examine the benefits of critical thinking as it relates to the process of asking the right kinds of questions. The authors state that critical thinking is a method used to improve the way we think by asking the questions that would enable you to reach a personal decision that would eventually give credit to both sides of a discussion. Critical thinking is, in essence, the analysis, synthesis and evaluation of one’s experience, as it relates to the worth of the discussion at hand. The authors define critical thinking as, “the awareness of a set of interrelated critical questions, the ability to ask and answer critical questions in an appropriate manner; and the desire to actively use the critical questions” (p. 4). This paper will evaluate the nature of critical thinking as an intellectual process and apply that to the memorandum date October 10, 2012 to Cynthia Castle from Anil Ravaswami to determine if the issue stated of whether the CEO of the company, Cliffside Holding Company of Massapequa (CHCM) should invest $100,000 per year in leadership training program for junior insurance executives. Browne and Keeley (2010) make it clear that a critical evaluation cannot be done until the conclusion is found and instructs the critical...
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...a midlevel sales manager at InterClean, Inc. with three first-level managers under your responsibility. In response to a merger that is about to take place with EnviroTech, you have been instructed to draft a memo to your supervisory team about the importance of the behavior exhibited by managers. Review the InterClean–EnviroTech Merger Scenario on the student website. Write a 700- to 1,050-word memo that includes the following information: Explain how a manager’s behavior can affect the productivity of his or her workers. Describe the types of management action that align with employment laws and those that do not. Describe best practices for working within a diverse work environment. Note. Be sure to draw from your experiences and readings for each aspect of your memo. APA format is not required for this memo; however, you must include a title page and a references page. MEMORANDUM To: First-level Managers From: Sanjay Patel, Sales Manager Re: InterClean – EnviroTech Merger Date: February 21, 2011 First and foremost I would like to confirm the rumors you have been hearing about InterClean merging with EnviroTech. This is an exciting time for InterClean, as we look at this merger as a great opportunity for our company to gain market share and build for future success. While this merger may cause some uneasiness among our employees, it is vital for our management team to stay professional and address our employees concerns thru this transition...
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...many companies are looking at media technologies as way to market their product and learn about their competitors. This presence could produce a large following depending on the interest in the content created and information shared. The change stemmed from the speed at which information travel in the media arena. In most cases, the information environment outside the organization is changing far more rapidly than the information environment internally. Customers, partners, prospects, and employees can find, access, and share information in a way that corporate infrastructure, security, culture, and policies inhibit. Organizations are having a difficult time responding to or taking advantage of – these new environments. The path of information regarding the organization is no longer just the role of the marketing department. Employees talk to customers, colleagues, and suppliers. They share their experiences, impressions and expectations regarding their jobs, the organization and management. The speed at which the information travels is beyond the control of the organization. Every employee, customer and supplier has become a reflection on how the organization functions and operates. The power has shifted from what the company wants to relay to the public, to what employees, customers and suppliers say about the company—for better or worse. This transfer of power has affected organizations tremendously on all levels. Early...
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...memo Comments: Dear Mr. CEO of Company G As per your request I have done an evaluation of the company G financials, comparing Fiscal year 11and Fiscal year 12. I have chosen to evaluate the financials through thirteen (13) key financial Ratios. Below, you will find all thirteen (13) Ratios along with an explanation of those ratios, an evaluation and justification of all thirteen (13) ratios as a strength, weakness or satisfactory condition, and I will compare (where possible) these ratios to available information from other companies within the home center industry. Any and all financial information of Home Depot, Lowes and Orchard Supply Hardware Stores was retrieved from either www.nasdaq.com, or www.morningstar.com and I did use data sets from their fiscal year 2012 numbers. The evaluation of all thirteen (13) ratios is as follows. Current Ratio: For fiscal year 12 the current ratio is 1.77, and in year 11 it was 1.86. In my opinion, this ratio is a weakness, and should be watched as it shows a downward trend from the previous fiscal year. While any ratio over one represents that the company could repay their debt if required to, it is not as stringent of an indicator as the acid test ratio. It does take into account inventory which is up approximately 32 percent, and even with the increase in inventory and an increase in net sales, gross profit and Net Earnings, the current ratio shows a decrease year over year. In comparison with comparable companies such as Home Depot...
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...ENRON MEMO Subject: Enron Fraud Case Enron was once the sixth largest energy company in the world. It was led by Ken Lay who was CEO for the majority of its existence; Mr. Lay grew this corporate giant until its shocking downfall in 2001. At Enron’s peak in August of 2000, it traded at $90.75 per share. January 1, 2002, Enron’s stock price plummeted to a worthless $.67 per share. Enron is considered one of America’s worst cases of accounting fraud. They are still the poster child for Accounting Fraud 12 years after their fraudulent activities were exposed. Mr. Lay retired in February, 2001 to allow Jeffrey Skilling to take over the company as CEO. Mr. Skilling was the CEO until August, 2001 when he too retired for “personal reasons”. Both men received a large bonus payment during 2001. Ken Lay received $67.4 million while Jeffrey Skilling took away $41.8 million. Andrew Fastow joined Enron in 1990 and worked his way up to CFO of the company. Fastow created the SPE (Special Purpose Entity) accounts that helped Enron attain the level of profitability it reached. Sherron Watkins was the Vice President who also worked as an Accountant for Arthur Anderson, the accounting firm responsible for audits and financial statement regulations. Watkins joined Enron in 1993 until she too worked her way up to the position of VP. She soon became known as the whistleblower of the entire fraudulent operation that was occurring at Enron. The smoke and mirrors that Enron created started with...
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...Marine Enterprises Memo To: Chris Shakra From: Date: December 14, 2011 Re: Houston Relocation Mr. Chris Shakra, Congratulations on your decision to relocate Marine Enterprises to Houston. Our move to Houston will improve morale, cost effectiveness and profitability for Marine Enterprises. This is a big move for the company and the many employees willing to relocate. We are promoting the move by showcasing the many benefits of living in Houston and relocation assistance for an easy transition for our employees. Our employees will also have an opportunity to see a 1:18 scale model and take a virtual tour of our new facility. I have scheduled a seminar on Monday to announce the relocation, benefits of living in Houston and company assistance for the move. Below is an outline of the seminar we will hold on Monday. We will convey the many benefits of living in Houston to our employees: -Lower cost of living -Affordable Housing -Excellent Weather and Low pollution -Excellent School System -Lower Crime Rate We will review our company assistance program for the relocation: -$3,000.00 Relocation assistance to all employees -Real Estate Assistance -Job assistance for those who wish to remain in New York I strongly feel our employees will view this as a good move for them and their families. I am confident this transition will be a success for Marine Enterprises and it’s employees. Administrative Assistant II 30 Rock...
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...NOTES Source: Harvey, D. & Brown, D. (2001). An experiential approach to Organisation Development (6th. Ed.). Upper Saddle River: Prentice-Hall. President Ralph Larsen of Wengart Aircraft has become increasingly concerned about profits. Though he is not fearful of a company takeover, he does feel an obligation to maximize shareholders' return on their investment. He and about a dozen top executives receive sizable stock bonuses, so it is to their advantage to obtain a high share price. Wengart manufactures commercial and military aircraft. It is number two in its industry, which is composed of nine companies. Its profits, however, are ranked seventh. It is disturbing to Larsen and his top management team that they are not able to maximize profits. QUALITY PROBLEMS Quality has been identified by the top management team as one of the major problems at Wengart. Aircraft have to be reworked even after they are sent to the customer. The federal government, one of Wengart's largest customers, shares the concern for quality to the extent that several letters have been sent to Larsen from the Secretary of Defence warning him that unless quality is improved by 20 percent within 6 months, the government will exercise its contract provision to withhold partial payment as a penalty. This will place even more pressure on profits. Nongovernmental customers have also expressed serious concerns about quality. There have been major stories in The Wall Street Journal and Business Week...
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...Running head: INTERCLEAN INC Memo InterClean Inc Memo to Supervisory Team Jamie Yankaway University of Phoenix April 3, 2010 MEMO TO: Supervisory Team FROM: Jamie Yankaway DATE: April 3, 2010 RE: Management Behavior By now you’ve all heard of the merger between InterClean and Envirotech. I felt it vital that the merger be communicated throughout the company so that it is not perceived as a problem to our employees. Being managers I rely on all of you to help this merger occur with little issues. As with any organization the rumor mill has surfaced and employees are afraid that they may be losing their jobs. I am counting on you to make this a smooth transition. The primary goal of InterClean is to become an autonomous cleaning solutions resource for institutional and commercial organizations and we can’t do this without the help of all of you. Remember as first level managers I thought it imperative to remind you of the importance of the behavior exhibited by managers. Mmanagement’s behavior can have an impact on the productivity of InterClean’s workers. It is also important that you know the types of management actions that are in line with employment laws and those that are not, and some best practices for working within a diverse work environment. The employees may be afraid they lack the skills needed to maintain their positions after the merger. As managers communicate the different training that will be offered to the sale’s staff to help them better...
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...Team Leadership Memo and Presentation University of Phoenix Erin Thompson MGT/521 Christopher Nieto July 22, 2015 Team Leadership Memo Recently the company that I work for has decided to insert a brand new department to help the company’s strategic plan to enter a particular market. My current manager has informed me that I will be leading a team in the new department that has already been assembled consisting of Miriam, Patty, Amanda and Natalio. For our team to be successful, we have to accomplish efficiently the goals set by the company. I have developed a strategy on how to lead our team based on our diverse group of women. I believe with our wide variety and different personality traits that we will be very successful in our future team goals. I have evaluated each team member’s personalities along with my own to see what is going to benefit the department and how to put my particular strategy together. First, in determining what leadership approach I wanted to take I needed to first evaluate the team members including myself. For those individuals of the group that do not know much about my personality. I am proactive and resilient. Not only am I able to take challenges and overcome them, but also I am able to identify them as opportunities, take charge, and keep moving until things change. I am a social person and easy to get along with...
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...Memo To: Harrison Corporation From: Date: October 25, 2010 Re: Recruitment and Selection Strategy/Rewards and Compensation Memo Introduction Harrison Corporation is a global leader in producing office supplies with plans to expand the business to Central America. The global aspect of the organization stands on its foundation of providing excellent customer service, which does not always come easy. Providing excellent customer service as an organization entails excellent customer service skills at the individual level of all personnel, senior and new employees alike. To continue building on the factor of providing excellent customer service, this memorandum will outline certain key aspects including key qualifications for personnel and a proposed recruitment strategy. In addition, this memorandum reviews how candidates will be attracted to join the Harrison Corporation, how the selection process will be handled, and any incentives offered to promote excellent productivity and customer service. Key Qualifications In any organization, hiring the proper personnel ensures common goals are carried out to full potential and prevents many unnecessary problems. Staffing an organization involves more than simply hiring any applicant. When selecting the right personnel, there are key qualifications that must be present. The following will discuss key qualifications for a person filling the Customer Service Specialist (CSS) position. Customer service is an integral...
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...addition, e-mail is used for many different purposes, including contacting friends, communicating with professors and supervisors, requesting information, and applying for jobs, internships, and scholarships. Depending on your purposes, the messages you send will differ in their formality, intended audience, and desired outcome. Finally, the use of e-mail for advertising purposes has clogged communication channels, preventing some e-mails from reaching their intended audience. Writers are challenged to make their e-mail stand apart from “spam” and to grab and hold the attention of their audience. So—how do you know when sending an e-mail is the most effective way of getting your message across? When is a brief message o.k., and when it is more appropriate to send a longer, more professional-sounding e-mail? How should a writer decide what style of writing is appropriate for each task? How can you prevent your e-mail from ending up in the junk pile? Keep reading for answers to these questions! E-mail is a good way to get your message across when: • You need to get in touch with a person who is hard to reach via telephone, does not come to campus regularly, or is not located in the same part of the country or world (for instance, someone who lives in a different time zone). • The information you want to share is not time-sensitive. The act of sending an e-mail is instantaneous, but that does not mean the writer can expect an instantaneous response....
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...Struggling Nokia aims high with low-end phone Bargain-basement handset touted as cash spinner in battle to catch upmarket rivals Tuesday, 30 April, 2013, 5:32am * The Nokia 105 has been released in some Asian markets. As Nokia battles to catch Apple and Samsung Electronics in the market for smartphones costing US$500 or more, it's counting on a bare-bones handset that sells for just US$20 to give it an edge. Priced 97 per cent below the latest iPhone, the Nokia 105 features preloaded games, a colour screen, a radio, a speaking clock and a torch. The phone, Nokia's cheapest, has been available for a few weeks in India and Indonesia and will soon start selling in Europe. Even with its bargain-basement price, the 105 is critical to Nokia's entire handset business. Nokia reported on April 18 that it sold about 11 million fewer mobile phones in the first quarter than analysts had projected, with sales of basic phones plunging 21 per cent to 55.8 million units. A failure to revive the low-end business would leave Nokia without an important source of cash as it seeks to develop challengers to the iPhone and Samsung handsets that run Android. Falling sales of simpler phones were "definitely worrisome", said Mika Heikkinen, a fund manager at FIM Asset Management in Helsinki."They have to get this under control." Nokia chief executive Stephen Elop points to the 105 as a signal that the low-end business can recover after a difficult quarter. While demand for the iPhone...
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