The Well Paid Receptionist Free Essays

The Well Paid Receptionist Values, Attitudes and Work Behaviour from Johns, G. Saks, A. M. We will write a custom essay sample on The Well Paid Receptionist or any similar topic only for you Order Now (2010). Organizational Behaviour. Pearson Education: Toronto. Case Study The Well-Paid Receptionist Harvey Finley did a quick double take when he caught a glimpse of the figure representing Ms. Brannen’s salary on the year-end printout. A hurried call to payroll confirmed it. Yes, his receptionist had been paid $127 614. 21 for her services last year. As he sat in stunned silence, he had the sudden realization that since his firm was doing so well this year, she would earn at least 10 to 15 percent more money during the current fiscal year. This was a shock, indeed. Background Harvey began his career as a service technician for a major manufacturer of copy machines. He received rather extensive technical training, but his duties were limited to performing routine, on-site maintenance and service for customer. After a year’s experience as a service technician, he asked for and received a promotion to sales representative. In this capacity, he established many favourable contacts in the business community of Troupville and the surrounding towns. He began to think seriously about capitalizing on his success by opening his own business. Then, seven years ago, he decided to take the plunge and start his own firm. He was tired of selling for someone else. When he mentioned his plan to his friends, they all expressed serious doubts; Troupville, a city of approximately 35 000 people located in the Deep South, had just begun to recover from a severe recession. The painful memories of the layoffs, bankruptcies, and plummeting real estate values were too recent and vivid to be forgotten. Undeterred by the skeptics, Harvey was optimistic the Troupville’s slow recovery would soon become a boom. Even though his firm would certainly have to be started on a shoestring, Harvey thought his sales experience and technical competence would enable him to survive what was sure to be a difficult beginning. He was nervous but excited when he signed the lease on the first little building. A lifelong dream was either about to be realized or dashed forever. Troupville Business Systems was born. While he has managed to borrow rent, lease, or subcontract for almost everything that was absolutely necessary, he did need one employee immediately. Of course, he hoped the business would expand rapidly and that he would soon have a complete and competent staff. But until he could be sure that some revenue would be generated, he thought he could get by with one person who would be a combination receptionist/secretary and general assistant. The typical salary for such a position in the area was about $30 000 per year; for Harvey, this was a major expense. Nevertheless, he places what he thought was a well-worked ad in the â€Å"Help Wanted† section of the local newspaper. There were five applicants, four of whom just did not seem quite right for the position he envisioned. The fifth applicant, Ms. Cathy Brannen, was absolutely captivating. Ms. Brannen was 27 years old with one child. Her resume showed that she had graduated from a two-year office administration program at a state university. She had worked for only two employers following graduation, one from five years and the most recent for two years. Since returning to her hometown of Troupville two months ago, following her divorce, she had not been able to find suitable employment. From the moment she sat down for the interview, Harvey and Ms. Brannen seemed to be exactly the same wavelength. She was very articulate, obviously quite bright, and most importantly, very enthusiastic about assisting with the start-up of the new venture. She seemed to be exactly the sort of person Harvey had envisioned when he first begun to think seriously about taking the plunge. He resisted the temptation to offer her the job on the spot, but ended the hour-long interview by telling her that he would check her references and contact her again very soon. Telephone calls to her two former employers convinced Harvey that he had actually underestimated Ms. Brannen’s suitability for the position. Each one said without equivocation that she was the best employee he had ever had in any position. Both former employers concluded the conversation by saying they would rehire her in a minute if she were still available. The only bit of disturbing information gleaned from these two calls was the fact that her annual salary had risen to $32 900 in her last job. Although Harvey thought that the cost of living was probably a bit higher in Houston, where she had last worked, he was not sure she would react favourably to the $30 000 offer he was planning to make. However, he was determined that, somehow, Cathy Brannen would be his first employee. Ms. Brannen seemed quite pleased when Harvey telephoned her at home that same evening. She said she would be delighted to meet him at the office the next morning to discuss the position more fully. Cathy Brannen was obviously very enthusiastic about the job as outlined in the morning. She asked all the right questions, responded quickly and articulately to every query posed to her, and seemed ready to accept the position even before the offer was extended. When Harvey finally got around to mentioning the salary, there was a slight change in Cathy’s eager expression. She stiffened. Since Harvey realized that salary might be a problem, he decided to offer Cathy an incentive of sorts in addition to the $30 000 annual salary. He told her that he realized his salary offer was lower than the amount she has earned on her last job. And he told her he understood that a definite disadvantage of working for a new firm was the complete absence of financial security. Although he was extremely reluctant to guarantee a larger salary because of his own uncertainty regarding the future, he offered her a sales override in the amount of two percent of sales. He explained that she would largely determine the success or failure of the firm. She needed to represent the firm in the finest possible manner to potential customers who telephoned and to those who walked in the front door. For this reason, the sales override seemed to be an appropriate addition to her straight salary. It would provide her with incentive to take an active interest in the firm. Cathy accepted the offer immediately. Even though she was expecting a salary offer of $32 500, she hoped the sales override might make up the difference. Who knows,† she thought, â€Å"two percent of sales may amount to big money someday. † It did not, however, seem very likely at the time. Troupville Business Systems began as a very small distributor of copy machines. The original business plan was just to sell copy machines and provide routine, on-site service. More extensive on-site service and repairs requiring that a machine be removed from a customer’s premises were to be provided by a regional distributor located in a major city approximately 100 miles from Troupville. Troupville Business Systems did well from the start. Several important changes were made in the services the firm offered during the first year. Harvey soon found that there was a greater demand for the leasing of copy machines, particularly the large expensive models that he originally planned to sell. He also soon discovered that his customers wanted to be able to contract directly with his firm for all their service needs. Merely guaranteeing that he could get the machines serviced was not sufficient in the eyes of potential customers. In attempting to accommodate the market, he developed a complete service facility and began to offer leasing options on all models. These changes in the business all occurred during the first year. Growth during that year was steady, but not spectacular. While sales continued to grow steadily the second year, it was early in the third year that Harvey made what turned out to be his best decision. He entered the computer business. Harvey had purchased a personal computer soon after Troupville Business Systems was founded. The machine and its capabilities fascinated him, although he knew virtually nothing about computers. He was soon a member of a local users club, was subscribing to all the magazines, and was taking evening computer courses at the local university- in short, he became a computer buff. Harvey recognized the business potential of the rapidly growing personal computer market, but he did not believe that his original business was sufficiently stable to introduce a new product line just yet. During his third year of operations, he decided the time was right to enter the computer business. He added to his product line a number of personal computers popular with a small business in the area. This key decision caused a virtual explosion in the growth of his firm. Several key positions were added, including that of a comptroller. By the fourth year of operations, computers produced by several other manufacturers had been added to Harvey’s product line, and he had developed the capability of providing complete service for all products carried. His computer enterprise was not limited to business customers, because he quickly developed a significant walk-in retail trade. Rapid growth continued unabated. During the first seven years of the company’s existence, Cathy Brannen had proven truly indispensable. Her performance exceeded Harvey’s highest expectations. Although her official position remained that of secretary/receptionist, she took it on herself to learn about each new product or service. During the early years, Harvey often thought that she did a better job than he did whenever a potential customer called in his absence. Even after he acquired a qualified sales staff, Harvey had no concerns when Cathy had to field questions from a potential customer because a regular salesperson was not available. The customer never realized that the professional young lady capably handling all inquiries was â€Å"only† the receptionist. Cathy began performing fewer sales functions because of the increased number of professional salespersons, but her secretarial duties had expanded tremendously. She was still Harvey’s secretary, and she continued to answer virtually every telephone call coming into the business. Since her office was in an open area, she still was the first to greet many visitors. Cathy took a word-processing course at a local business school shortly after joining the firm. As she began working with Harvey’s first personal computer, she, too developed into a computer aficionado and became the best computer operator in the firm. The Current Situation Harvey was shaken by the realization that Cathy Brannen had been paid over $127 000 last year. As he wondered what, if anything, should be done about her earnings, he began to reflect on the previous seven years. Success had come almost overnight. It seemed as though Troupville Business Systems could do nothing wrong. The workforce had grown at a rate of approximately 15 percent per year since the third year of operations. Seventeen people were now employed by the firm. While Harvey’s dad acknowledged that some of this success was due to being in the right place at the right time, he also had reason to be proud of the choices he had made. Time had proven that all his major decisions had been correct. He also could not overestimate Cathy’s contribution to the success of the firm. Yes, certainly, one of the most important days in the life of the firm was the day when Cathy responded to his ad in the newspaper. Success had brought with it the ever-increasing demands on his time. He had never worked so hard, but the rewards were certainly forthcoming. First, there was the new Jaguar, then the new home on Country Club Drive, the vacation home on the coast, the European trips†¦Yes, success was wonderful. During these years Cathy, too, had prospered. Harvey had not thought much about it, but he did remember making a joking comment the first day she drove her new Mercedes to work. He also remembered commenting on her mink coat at the company banquet last December, Cathy had been dazzling. Now that Harvey realized what he was paying Cathy, he was greatly disturbed. She was making almost twice as much money as anyone else in the firm with the exception of himself. The best salesman had earned an amount in the low nineties last year. His top managers were paid salaries ranging from the high sixties to the mid-seventies. The average salary in the area for executive secretaries was no probably between $30 000 and $35 000 per year. A good receptionist could be hired for under $28 000, and yet Cathy had been paid $127 614. 21 last year. The sales override had certainly enabled Cathy o share in the firm’s success. Yes, indeed. As Harvey thought more and more about the situation, he kept returning to the same conclusion. He felt something had to be done about her compensation. It was just too far out of line with other salaries in the firm. Although Harvey was drawing over $200 000 per year in salary and had built an equity in the business of more than $1 million, these facts did not seem relevant as he pondered what to do. It seemed likely that a number of other employees did know about Cathy’s compensation level. Harvey wondered why no one ever mentioned it. Even the comptroller never mentioned Cathy’s compensation. This did seem quite odd to Harvey, as the comptroller, Frank Bain, knew that Harvey did not even attempt to keep up with the financial details. He relied on Frank to bring important matters to his attention. With no idea of how to approach this problem, Harvey decided to begin by making a list of alternatives. He got out a piece of paper and, as he stared at the blank lines, overheard Cathy’s cheerful exchange with a customer in the next room. 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Challenges in Interpersonal Relationship free essay sample

On one hand it is communication but not effective communication. Effective Interpersonal communication requires effective listening, empathetic listening, and being able to get your personal feelings out of the way. According to Kathy Sole, in order for you to be an effective communicator you must first learn how to decode and encode effectively. An encoder is a sender of the message that is transmitted to the other person. The sender must encode the message properly so the receiver can fully explain the message. The receiver of the message must then decode message and hopefully decode it properly so the message would be fully understandable (Sole, 2011). Challenges In Interpersonal Relatgionship Class 101 DEVELOP STRATEGIES FOR ACTIVE, CRITICAL, AND EMPATHETIC LISTENING Empathic listening is a way of listening to another person which involves understanding and much trust. You must be able to understand what the other party is feeling and what they are mentally, physically or emotionally going through. We will write a custom essay sample on Challenges in Interpersonal Relationship or any similar topic specifically for you Do Not WasteYour Time HIRE WRITER Only 13.90 / page The material from this class will be taken from articles and guidelines wrote by Richard Salem, EMPATHIC LISTENING. You can download much of his information off the internet. According to Mr. Salem, there are many benefits to empathic listening such as, â€Å"builds trust and respect; enables the disputants to release their emotions; reduces tensions; encourages the surfacing of information, and creates a safe environment that is conducive to collaborative problem solving† ( Salem, 2003). This part of the class is my favorite and much of the information will be personal information gathered from the students in the class including myself. In this part of the class we will continue on learning how to become effective listeners and being empathetic as well as choosing the right terminology to use. WORDS can kill a person’s trust, their ego, self-esteem, love, and ultimately themselves. This part of the class will teach us how to choose our wording whether you are engaging in a conversation with a friend or in a heated argument with your spouse or mate. Challenges In Interpersonal Relationship Class 101 DEFINE EMOTIONAL INTELLIGENCE AND ITS ROLE IN EFFECTIVE INTERPERSONAL RELATIONSHIPS Emotional intelligence is the ability to identify, assess, and control the emotions of oneself and of others. Once you have mastered how to control your emotions, having disagreements will become somewhat easier to handle. Much of our information will come from Managing With Emotional Intelligence  by B. Porter. Porter stated in his article, â€Å"Developing effective interpersonal relationships is critical to successful organizational management Managers can employ emotional intelligence (EI) to build trust among employees, to effectively handle crises, and to produce an efficient team-oriented work environment EI is defined as being able to recognize and regulate emotions in ours elves and others (Porter, B. , 2010). Porter’s article is directed more on interpersonal relationship in management, but it also can be implemented in our everyday life with our spouse and family. This article has some great ideas and strategies. DESCRIBE STRATEGIES FOR MANAGING INTERPERSONAL CONFLICTS This section of the class we will learn how to manage conflicts in a healthy manner. If conflict is handled poorly, it creates secondary problems that will also go unmanaged and before you know it, you have several conflicts on hand as stated by R. G. Stockwell in his article Effective Communication in Managing Conflict (1997). UNDERSTAND THE IMPACT OF GENDER AND CULTURE ON INTERPERSONAL COMMUNICATIONS Challenges In Interpersonal Relationship Class 101 During the segment of the class we will talk about the difference in gender and their behavior. Men and women are totally different in many ways. Once we understand how the other thinks, why they react as they do, and understand their cultural environment which they have lived we will be more at apt to understand our mate more fully. Jace and Kelli you can see we much to offer in this class. I’m very excited in having you join me as we venture out together in Interpersonal Relationships. If you follow the guidelines I guarantee a healthier relationship between the both of you now and in the future when you marry. A healthy relationship is a happy relationship. Once you know how to communicate and listen effectively, become an empathetic partner your relationship will blossom. I’m looking forward with meeting with the both of you. Sincerely, Laura Lyles References Porter, B. , (2010). Managing with emotional intelligence. Library Leadership Management (online), 24, 199-201.

U.S Drones free essay sample

It could potentially help find lost hikers in mountains, It could help follow suspects and SSP on them without them knowing. This although raises a lot of questions from citizens, because it invades there privacy. Americans dont want this, because not only are they being invaded of their privacy but they are feel somewhat threatened. Threatened because these same similar drones are the ones used overseas to attack enemies of the state. These drones do have the ability to help local, state and federal law enforcements, n order to make everything quicker, cheaper, and safer. This could plan could help out in all sorts of domestic problems, whether its anything from a shooting to a natural disaster. It would make mobility quicker, and also be able to pinpoint certain desired locations without a problem. It could help solve crimes, bring down the crime rate and at the same time, save lives because the drones are unmanned and inexpensive that compared to the man flying planes. We will write a custom essay sample on U.S Drones or any similar topic specifically for you Do Not WasteYour Time HIRE WRITER Only 13.90 / page The technology is evolving faster than the law, points out the flaw of the drone. The act and use of these drones are held back because of its unethical use.The people believe it will be crossing the line and lead to criminal trespassing, and break privacy laws. The FAA is the group responsible to make licenses, regulation, and conduct the proper order of business with these drones. They have until September 201 5 to have regulation put in place so It can officially start. Civil liberty groups have been protesting to these unjust decisions by the government. These liberty groups can be classified under the political linkage cause they are parties, groups with some political influence that are trying to get there point across to the government, so that something can be done.The structure that supports the political linkage is the fact that Americans do not agree and do not feel its right. So the push for a more justified way of going about with this drone situation, the civil liberty groups, political linkage, have been able to influence some people within Congress, Government. In Congress, Reps. Ted Poe (R-Texas) and Zoe Aloofer (D-San Jose) Introduced privacy legislation Thursday that would require Alice to get a warrant or a court order before operating a drone to collect 1 OFF this and government action. Threw all these actions that are occurring about with the drones, I was able to set up a framework to show the flow of how something can be done in this American Democracy. This article informs people of the situation by describing both sides of pros and cons while advocating for the possible Justification in using drones to help law enforcement agencies do there Job better and more efficiently. It has all the right intentions to do so.

The eNotes Blog Big Brother, Where ArtThou

Big Brother, Where ArtThou Oh yes, there you are, with your party hat on. What with the recent NSA scandal, George Orwells dystopian caution that Big Brother is watching you has never seemed so relevant. In fact, sales of 1984 skyrocketed just after news broke that the US government was tapping into your average Verizon members mundane phone calls. So, how better to celebrate Orwells birthday this week than by a subtle nod to the constant gaze of the Partycomplete with party hats? Such was the idea of the Dutch artist duo Thomas Voort Hekke and Bas van Oerle (known collectively as FRONT 404). Their simple concept was to decorate the ubiquitous security cameras of Utrecht with eye-catching birthday hats. I think its both a great reminder to the public that eyes are on you at basically all times (not saying thats a bad thingjust something to be aware of) and a fun way to honor the late Orwell. What do you think? Big Brother is watching YOU Images courtesy of junk-culture.com. Looking for more Big Brother fun? Check out our 1984 study guide and free chapter and character quizzes.

Organizational Design, Culture, and Adaptation Essay - 2

Organizational Design, Culture, and Adaptation - Essay Example The internal factors that were considered during the restructuring and reengineering were mostly comprised of the attitudes that the employees had on a day to day basis. The external factors were mostly to do with the patients, who were essentially the customers for the sake of the hospital facility. The healthcare manager, therefore, suggested that these two factors formed the very core of knowing where anomalies were coming in and how these needed to be resolved at the earliest and without much hassle. The transformation came about due to the changing attitudes of the employees (the internal factor), which was the reason why the transformation was required in essence. The external factors were given similar importance because the patients are the basis of any hospital’s long term success. If they are contented, then this means that the healthcare facility is doing well but if these are not, and as the healthcare manager suggests, then there is much to learn on the part of al l and sundry. This outlines how well the hospital facility has been able to rein in commitment towards its transformation. The healthcare manager faced quite a few obstacles and barriers in the beginning when the restructuring and re-engineering aspects were outlined in essence. This meant that he needed to face them, analyze them and turn them in his own favor with the passage of time. There were attitudinal problems that the healthcare manager talked about with the internal domains not being beefed up properly.

Explication of a poem Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Explication of a poem - Essay Example This is evident in the line â€Å"I’ve known rivers†. The line that says he â€Å"bathed in the Euphrates when dawns were young† symbolizes that this struggle is as old as the civilization of Euphrates. River is not just the body of waters here but rather symbolic of the long and continuing struggle of the Negroes. Langston Hughes may have spoken about the river in the poem but this poem does not literally talked about the idyllic or the pastoral quietness of the river but rather the deep struggle that they have been. â€Å"The Negro Speaks of Rivers" is actually a political statement of a Negro of his struggle often beset by discrimination and injustice that had gone too long that it already ran deep like the river. The depth of the river or their struggle is not only long in terms of history beginning from the ancient time but also the pain that it can caused them. The setting of the poem was also carefully chosen. Why Euphrates and Congo, the Nile and the pyramids above it suggesting that it is Egypt? Why not California or better yet the South region of America where discrimination and oppression was notorious? It is because these are old civilizations where the Negro came from, indicating that he is capable of greatness as the Nile and the pyramids if only not on the bondage that was imposed on him by the white man. So much so that when the river went down to New Orleans, it became muddy indicating that the Negro was free as the river until it reached New Orleans where he is enslaved. The setting of the poem is more than geography, it is a representation of the objects of Langston Hughes topic that he would like to talk about. The poem is spoken by an old soul who had â€Å"bathed in the Euphrates when dawns were young† and that he knew â€Å"Ancient, dusky rivers†. He is not just a regularly old person but an ancient sage

Illegal Immigration Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Illegal Immigration - Essay Example These people who make the entry are known as immigrant (Immigrant Assist, 2012). An immigrant who enters another country without going through the laid down laws therefore becomes an illegal immigrant. In the United States of American and in all legal jurisdictions around the world, illegal acts are offensive and punishable by law. For this reason, the fact that a person is touted as an ‘illegal’ immigrant alone renders the fellow an offender. Presently, there are very strict laws that prescribe various forms of punishments for people who are caught to be illegal immigrants. As a way of fighting against illegal immigration also, there are a lot of restrictions that have been put on people in the country who are not legal residents. Generally, the debate continues as to what should be done to people who are caught to be illegal immigrants. PROPONENTS Proponents of this debate argue on two major reasons why illegal immigrants should not be punished by the law. First, they argue on humanitarian grounds stating that people would generally travel to the United States of America by crook means because of the need to make greener pastures and alleviate themselves from the hardships they face in their countries. From a humanitarian perspectives therefore, these proponents advocate tempering justice with mercy. There also is an argument by the proponents that illegal immigrants contribute largely to the economy of the United States of America through their trade and other economic activities and thus the need to allow their integration into the United States population. In the light of the growing debate, there have been formal studies and research to confirm the quantitative contribution of illegal immigrants to the economy of the United States. For instance the White House Council of Economic Advisors (2007), reports that â€Å"U.S. natives gain an estimated $37 billion a year from immigrants’ participation in the U.S. economy, according to the Pr esident’s Council of Economic Advisors† (Drum Major Institute, 2012). This figure is by no means a small amount of money to the economic growth of the United States. For each illegal immigrant that is expelled from the country therefore, there is a percentage of this amount that is lost to the United States economy. OPPONENTS There are also those who do not agree that illegal immigration should be entertained. In the view of these opponents, illegal immigrants should continue to be sanctioned and expelled from the United States of America. These opponents argue on two major grounds. The first has to do with the argument of security reasons whiles the second has to do with improper national planning policy. First, it is argued that the continuous stay of people whose information cannot be accounted for constitutes a major security threat to the country. Especially as it is becoming clear that the United States is having more and more international enemies, it is always i mportant that authorities in the country can monitor each and every resident and their activities. However, this is not possible if people enter the country illegally or overstay their visa dates. Again, because the country does not have any formal information on illegal immigrants, it becomes very difficult to include them in national planning