MSE 608 B Fall 2009 – Final exam
Question 1: What are the differences between your expectations to the expectations that the young engineer probably has?

Rather than necessarily focusing on the age gap, the true difference lies in the expectations that almost all new managers have upon starting their new jobs. It is likely that the old manager felt the same way as the new manager will. There will be generational differences, but the expectations of new managers will often be the same. The new manager will have a completely different sense of what the role entails compared to what actually happens when you are manager.

Most new managers assume that their primary responsibility will be to coordinate and plan, they enter their positions disillusioned and sometimes in shock. Many describe their new position as acting as a firefighter—dealing with whatever comes their way when it does without planning. Moreover, most new managers believe that the position is one of authority, done alone without much supervision or input from others. However, after the first few weeks, they soon realize that the job of a manager cannot be done alone. Believing at first that they must be experts in their industry, within the first year, they are hit with a wave of reality. Some of these realizations include but are not limited to:

- they are not experts

- they are not the sole authority

- their job is not just about planning and coordination

- subordinates will not automatically respect their new position of ‘authority’

- overload, ambiguity and conflict come with the role of manager and need to be embraced in order to succeed

More than expertise, managers soon realize the traits that will keep them afloat are managing their time wisely and having a lot of energy. Instead of having your work be analyzed and judged by superiors, people who report to you will determine how worthy of a manager you are, so it is important to value people who work for you.

Question 2: What are some of the sources of power that you thought you would have, and what were the sources of power you discovered you needed?

(Some of this comes from question 1 since 2 appears to be an extension of 1)

Most new managers believe they will have unquestioned power and that their workers will automatically respect what they believe and have to say. Managers walk into their new position believing that their source of power lies in managing tasks, but soon realize that it is more about managing people within their organization and keeping them happy while making sure they are doing their part. Although they begin thinking they have authority and later progress in trying to be the amicable boss, they finally reclaim their authority when they realize they need to make decisions against their subordinate’s wishes. Acting against the wishes of subordinates for the sake of the company automatically creates a rift between the two groups, making it easier for the manager to establish his role more effectively. However, this takes time and ultimately, the source of power the manager should discover that he or she needs is experience rather than inflated expectations.

Instead of skills and expertise, being an effective manager means thinking like one. Understanding that things are not fixed and hardly ever simple go a long way in acting like a good manager. The manager needs to realize that sources of power are not just in his or her title, but require being flexible, seeing subordinates as part of your team, placing importance on network building and time management.

Aside from these, the highest source of power likely rests in establishing credibility amongst your peers instead of focusing on your formal authority. The more credible you are, the harder people will work for you to seek approval as well as develop a sense of belonging within the organization. What a new manager has to do is prove how and why they deserve the respect and trust of their subordinates, which means that they cannot assume their power upon starting their new job. One way to do that is to motivate your subordinates and respect their opinions. Not being presumptuous goes along way in establishing your source of power as a new manager.

Question 3: Describe the transformation that you as a manger had to go through from being an individual contributor to a manager.

Going from an individual contributor to a manager is tough because you view your new position according to how you viewed your previous managers and bosses. I would look to the bosses who I admired most in adopting managerial styles. In order to understand my position, I have to act as a manager first and learn on the job rather than going into the position with high expectation if any at all.

The best thing I could do before accepting the new manager position is to interview as many managers about their positions and what their roles entail. In addition to studying the positions, a new manager should be introspective and try to understand their personal identity because self-awareness has been proven to be one of the most important things in being managerially effective.

In addition to understanding yourself, the new manager has to learn that it is not about managing individual subordinates but managing them as part of a team and ensuring that they work together well as a team. An effective team is one that performs well and one where individual team members are satisfied with their work, peers and manager. The more a team is willing to learn, the better for everyone else. The most important factor for a team’s success is one that can adapt and learn well. Teamwork is created by design, facilitation and coaching – not by command. After deciding who is on the team, the manager needs to make sure there is team chemistry and that responsibilities are handed down in a way that enhances productivity for all. The manager needs to foster support and confrontation, so that team members are encouraged but also open to constructive criticism. A successful team is one that is committed to continuously learning.

Question 4: Describe briefly the interview process. What type of questions did you as the candidate and what are some examples of questions you couldn’t ask?

The interview process is about more than just the interview itself. Human resources need to study the candidate’s career history extensively to see whether or not he or she is a fit for the managerial position in question. As the interviewer, I would ask the candidate about the positions he or she has held before. If they had previous managerial experience, why did they leave the job, what did they learn from it, what did he or she do that demonstrated strong managerial skills.

I would pose potential issues that are likely to rise within the company and pose them to the potential candidate to see what his or her response would be. I would want to know if the candidate is able to think quickly on their feet and provide a productive approach to the problem without running home to managerial books. Instead of only focusing on their technical and analytical background/skills, I would focus a lot on their interpersonal skills as well as introspective nature. A candidate who understands himself well and is always willing to learn could be a valuable asset to the company. However, realizing that interviews are not internships and typically take no more than two hours, I have to make sure the questions I ask will get me the most information.

There are many questions that I could and would not ask because of legality issues. I would not ask anything about the candidate’s religion, age, sexual orientation, nationality or relationship status. Doing so would open up the company to a lawsuit. In some countries, it is normal and expected to ask the candidate what his or her parents do for a living, but I would not dare ask questions so personal. I would make sure the interview is focused on the candidate’s professional side alone.

Question 5: You had a candidate from Germany, a candidate from China and a candidate from the US. Is there going to be a difference in how you would interview each one? Use Hofsted’s analysis for insight into how would you interview approach the interview differently.

While it may be dangerous to assume a candidate will behave or think a certain way associated with his or her nationality, it still needs to be taken into consideration. It is the job of the interviewer to find out how extensively the candidate is tied to their country and in what capacity. Were all the candidates from German, China and the US born and raised in their respective countries or have they moved around and been under more international settings? If we assume that the above candidates are quintessential examples of German, Chinese and US employees then we need to adopt a power distance approach developed by Hofstede.

Different cultures come with different cultural norms, which go into the workplace as well. A German person is more likely to be more closely affiliated with the US hiring process, but the Chinese candidate will likely come with a collectivist mindset. American candidates are more focused on the individual aspect with smaller power distance between the office hierarchy. It is for these reasons that I would interview each candidate different based on their culture.

I would interview the American candidate assuming that he will be more honest and open about his or her achievements and any disagreements he may have had in his previous job. If he says he is great at the job, it could be seen as self promotion, which is normal in American society. However, I cannot assume that if the Chinese candidate does not market himself and brag about his skills, that he is not competent or capable. It is in Chinese culture to be more modest and quiet about your achievements. Therefore, I will focus on their abilities and possibly references from others more.

With the German candidate, I would assume he or she expects a lot of fairness from the organization and I would want to know whether they are willing to work certain hours, what kind of holidays they require. Many Europeans will not take a job no matter how highly it pays if they are told they will only get 10 days off in a year. To an American or Chinese person, short vacation does not pose nearly as much of a deal breaker as it may for a European candidate. These are all things to consider. It is important to know from the very beginning if the candidate would actually be comfortable working within the organization regardless of how competent and skillful they may be.

Question 6: Describe the process of goal settings and explain what are SMART goal settings.

6. The process of setting goals is a continuous cycle, where it requires changes as the requirements change. A simple process could be developed by implementing a few procedures. The first step would be to understand the current situation. By doing so, this will give a thorough knowledge of what the present situation is, and what needs to be done. The next step would be to determine what all the requirements are to achieve the goals desired. Afterwards, it is crucial to analyse and determine the goals, ensuring that they are SMART (Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Realistic and Time specific). After doing so, action plans must be created setting deadlines for each goal. Afterwards comes the implementation of the action plans and the progress must be monitored. During the course of achieving the goals the action plans must be followed up to ensure the goals are being achieved timely.
The SMART acronym is a well-known and guideline for goal setting. SMART generally stands for Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Realistic and Time. Specific relates to the goal being defined as precise as possible with a target in mind which is required to be achieved. Measurable relates the effectiveness of each goal. It is important to ensure that a framework is determined to appraise the goal required. Achievable relates to the practicality of a goal. If the goal is not pragmatic it is useless. It should not be too difficult or too easy, yet it should be challenging and possible to attain. Realistic relates to how genuine the goal is, and how relevant it is to your requirements. Time relates to the deadline requirement to achieve the goals. The time set is crucial as it should not only provide enough time to achieve the goal, but also realistic.
The SMART process of goal setting is an effective tool to formulate action plans to achieve goals, but it is not the only way as well.

Question 7: Describe the process of 360 degrees performance evaluation what are the advantages and disadvantages.

Q7. 360 degree performance measure is an effective measure which enables individuals to improve, grow and develop their interpersonal skills. The traditional performance evaluation techniques are biased and ineffective and result in poor feedback. It is a crucial element to understand how others distinguish one’s abilities as a leader. The 360 degree input from fellow employees and other entities is highly valuable in order to enhance not only the individual but also the organization’s performance.
Several firms implement 360 degree performance assessments mainly on senior executives. There is significant evidence to support that 360 degree feedback assessments have positive results. There are significant benefits of 360 degree performance appraisal methods. To name a few: criticisms that are acknowledged are seen as opportunities for improvement, workers are trained in appropriate methods to give and receive feedback, feedback provided with customized coaching, feedback tool is developed based on organizational goals and values and feedback assured confidentiality.
However, there are drawbacks too, these are: complaints traced to individuals causing resentment between workers, feedback tied to increase pay or promotions, feedback not linked to organizational goals or values or poor implementation resulting in poor motivation.
However, the overall performance of an effective 360 degree performance measurement is positive and is extremely popular. Nevertheless, the benefits will help the personal development of workers only in the right organizational environment. If used inappropriately, the results could be catastrophic. When 360 degree performance measure is deployed, careful evaluation is strictly required.

Question 8: You can recall an incident where you needed several people to stay and work overtime for an extended period of time. You needed few hourly people from the warehouse and a couple of senior designers from the IT department. Using Maslow’s hierarchy of needs, what will be the difference in approach to motivate them to come and work over the weekend?

Maslow’s hierarchy of needs puts in order human’s needs for certain levels of personal attainment. At the very base of the pyramid lie needs that everyone physically needs in order to stay alive. These include food, water, sex, sleep, excretion, homeostasis and breathing. These are ‘things’ and actions that all humans do regardless of position in society or education. Going up the pyramid, people begin to require security of body, employment, resources, morality, the family, health and property. The next level of love/belonging involves friendship, family and sexual intimacy. At the penultimate level, people regard esteem as important, which include the need for self-esteem, confidence, achievement, respect of others and respect by others. At the very last level, the goal with Maslow believes we should all strive to attain is self-actualization which involves morality, creativity, spontaneity, problem solving, lack of prejudice and acceptance of facts.

In the situation posed above, we can assume that the hourly people only work for wages, not necessarily personal fulfillment as it is likely a very labor intensive job. Their hierarchy likely places most significance on food, shelter and family. To motivate the people from the warehouse, it is likely just a matter of demonstrating that working an extra weekend will increase their paycheck by 40% or more if the company wishes to pay overtime. A 40% increase for someone who performs labor for a living means knocking off an extra bill for the week—likely a very easy sell if the person has a family to support.

However, dealing with the senior IT personnel will be different because they are less likely to be motivated by extra money. If they are in a senior IT position, they are probably not struggling with money and therefore do not require the overtime for survival. So, motivating them to come in requires selling them on a self-esteem and self-actualization level. By motivating them on the grounds of creativity, problem solving and spontaneity, a company could encourage their senior IT to come in by suggesting that all of these will be enhanced if they do so.

Question 9: Was the above situation considered sexual harassment? What actions (if any) are you suppose to take?

Yes, the above situation would clearly be considered a case of sexual harassment even if it was done in an informal setting purely by reasoning of Kirk being many levels superior to Janine. Moreover, he didn’t end with a few jokes at trying to go out with her but he even offered her a bigger office. Whenever a superior offers something in exchange for dating, especially if it will be seen by others as preferential treatment, it is definitely a case of sexual harassment regardless of whether or not Janine found it hilarious. Janine could decide at any point that Kirk’s advances are not funny any more and are annoying or even disruptive or offensive, and Kirk will be turned in immediately for questions.

I might ask Janine how she feels about it and if it affects her work. I might also bring it up to Kirk’s superior because I do not think his behavior should go ignored. If what Janine says is correct in that Kirk does this to all the girls, then it is only a matter of time that someone else will not find Kirk’s advances funny. Janine might find it funny, but if someone else doesn’t and opens a sexual harassment lawsuit, then the company will be in jeopardy due to Kirk’s indiscretions.

It is very important to act swiftly in this case because of everything that is at stake. People can lose jobs, feel taken advantage of and the company can lose its reputation as well as millions of dollars among other resources. Hopefully, Kirk can get away with a warning and stop his behavior, but if it does not stop and if too much damage has been done already, it would likely be necessary to fire him. If the company fires him, they will be less responsible in the event of a lawsuit held against them because the courts will see that the company was proactive in dealing with the harasser.

Question 10: Presenting in front of an audience:

List 3 things that you should do prior to the presentation, list 3 things you should do while presenting and 3 things you should never do while presenting.

Presenting in front of an audience is all about engaging your audience. Of course, you need to make sure the material you cover, but keeping your audience interested is just as important.

3 things to do prior to the presentation:

1. Prepare everything fully. Make sure your presentation materials are complete. If you have a powerpoint presentation to do, make sure all your slides are in order. If you have products to show, make sure you have them with you.

2. Dress appropriately and smartly. Be well groomed so people will not focus on a bad hair day or lettuce in your teeth.

3. Arrive early

3 things you should do while presenting:

1. Move – do not hide behind the podium. Make sure you keep your audience engaged by moving across the floor and being animated

2. Present to your crowd. If your audience is corporate, then wear a suit and speak more formally. If you’re presenting to university students, consider wearing jeans and adding a touch of humor.

3. Smile.

3 things you should never do while presenting:

1. Speaking too quickly. You want people to understand you and retain your information. Speaking too quickly will make people lose interest but they will also not take in any information you so desperately need them to retain.

2. Do not mumble. This is the same reasoning as speaking too quickly. People will not hear you and will be annoyed that they either have to struggle to understand you or consistently ask you to speak up. Mumbling makes you look weak, so it also damages the impression people will have of you.

3. Don’t put too much information on one slide. Make your presentations simple and easy to follow instead.