Course 1-Module 3
Properly order the eight steps for carrying out an effective intervention?
1. Document your conversation. 2. Objectively identify the specific behavior that is prohibited. 3. Identify the policy that prohibits that behavior. 4. Respond to questions and concerns from the employee. 5. Ask the employee to stop the prohibited behavior. 6. Ask for and receive the employee's commitment to stop the specific behavior now and any similar behavior in the future. 7. Contact the HR department to report your conversation and the outcome. 8. Monitor your workplace to ensure that the behavior has stopped.
What are two ways to help recognize subtle sexual harassment?
1. Focus on the impact of the behavior rather than on its intention. Even if the employee is "just joking around", the behavior may make some people uncomfortable. 2. Try to determine if the person experiencing the behavior, such as a hug or nonsexual comments about appearance, initiates and participates in the same behavior. If he or she doesn't, then the behavior is usually unwelcome
The six tips that can help you as you plan the budget for the next year are: _____________ early, keep track of _______________ in your workload, look for ways to make your work unit more ______________, focus on _____________________ measures to make sure you are measuring the right things, __________ with other supervisors, and _____________.
1. Prepare 2. Changes 3. Efficient 4. Performance 5. Talk 6. Practice
What are the nine tips suggested in the text to "manage your manager"?
1. Share information strategically 2. Respect your manager's role as a generalist 3. Be a problem solver 4. Exercise initiative 5. Under-promise and over-deliver 6. Avoid surprises and never bluff 7. Support your manager's leadership 8. Meet your manager where he is 8. Earn trust by doing good work
Chapter seven describes the fact that nowhere is the commitment to ______________ , ____________________ , and _________________ operation more important than in supervising local government employees.
1. Teamwork 2. Collaboration 3. Efficient
What questions can a supervisor ask to help develop and nurture a team?
1. What should all members of the team expect of the team leader? 2. What should the team leader expect of every member of the team? 3. What should every member of the team expect of each other? 4. What are the ground rules that every member of the team must follow, such as honesty, openness, and advance preparation? 5. What does the team need to do differently to be more effective?
Keeping in mind that real-life rarely happens in a smooth sequence like the information presented in a textbook, correctly identify the correct order of steps for the budgeting process.
1. Budget planning 2. Department budget preparation 3. Internal budget review 4. External budget review 5. Implementation 6. Planning for next year
The purpose of any disciplinary measure is to ______________ employee behavior or _______________ job performance, not to punish the employee.
Change Improve
[x] is the exchange of information, facts, ideas, and meanings.
Communication
Chapter 10 - Give an example of a time you used one of the suggestions listed in the book to provide praise, recognition or rewards to someone in your workplace or your personal life.
I am very conscious of acknowledging that my deputy city secretary deserves the credit when I am given praise for something that she has done for our department. I also make a point to let her know that her work was acknowledged by whomever, (Mayor, City Manager, etc.).
Chapter five tells us that Dwight Eisenhower developed a matrix to help prioritize the competing demands he faced as president. He recognized that tasks have not only ______________ but also ______________ .
Importance Urgency
[x] involves setting priorities in relation to the organization's vision.
Strategic planning
Answer the question posed in Supervisory Situation 5-2. Choose one type of meeting for each situation: daily check-in, staff tactical meeting, monthly strategic meeting, and quarterly review.
A. Discuss consolidating two departments - Monthly strategic meeting. B. Give a team a new project - Staff tactical meeting C. Make sure that the streets are cleaned in a certain neighborhood - Daily check-in D. Balance an ongoing budget deficit for your department - Staff tactical meeting. E. Find out where your team members are on certain projects - Quarterly review F. Make a decision on where to put a new highway that goes though your town - Staff tactical meeting G. Set goals for your department - Monthly strategic meeting
[x] listening requires you to give your undivided attention to another person and to attempt to understand what is being communicated.
Active
Which of the following is NOT one of the three "A's" that help to define ethics in action? Accountability Acuteness Awareness Authenticity
Acuteness
Chapter six states that an [x] is a local government's single most important financial responsibility.
Annual budget
The five guidelines for using e-mail to communicate with your employees are: ______ for feedback, don't _________________ e-mail, never pass along ______________ in the workplace, and before using the "reply to all" button, check to see who __________________ the original e-mail.
Ask Overuse Jokes Received
Which of the following is NOT one of the seven steps to building a close-knit, highly motivated, productive work team? Set goals with your team members Assume automatic compliance from all team members Let team members tell you things you may not like to hear Respect diversity
Assume automatic compliance from all team members
Which of the following is NOT one of the guidelines that a supervisor can follow to prepare for and carry out difficult evaluation interviews? bring in a third party to support your claims show that you are concerned about your employee be firm if you have critical comments to make keep the discussion focused on job-related issues
Bring in a third party to support your claims
A performance evaluation tool is of little value unless it is carried out effectively. Typical evaluation errors include: _______________ _______________ effect, _________________ factor, __________ __ __________ effect, and personal ___________.
Central Tendency Recency Halo or Horn Bias
The textbook lists specific behaviors that are good predictors of leadership success. Which of the following is NOT one of those nine behaviors? charismatic personality treating subordinates as equals giving employees control over their work giving credit for a job well done
Charismatic personality
Chapter 13 of the text states that as change is introduced in the workplace it is important to seek _________________ from employees instead of enforcing _________________. You can build commitment among team members with three steps of change leadership: promote the why, promote how, and maintain momentum.
Commitment Compliance
Chapter eight of the textbook states that poor communication can lead to __________________, ___________________, and low _____________________ .
Conflict Resistance Morale
Empowering employees means giving employees ____________ over their work and the __________________ to make decisions within established boundaries.
Control Authority
The local government budget serves three important functions: ___________ , ______________ , and ___________________.
Control Management Planning
Pick one of the several factors listed in the text that are essential to providing high-quality customer service. Describe how your organization is displaying this factor.
Courtesy - Our organization takes pride in how we show courtesy to our customers. They greet them warmly, both over the phone and in person. They treat them with respect, listen with empathy when necessary, and take immediate action to rectify concerns. Customer service is greatly stressed during the interview process - searching for clues of how applicants felt about or handled customers in the previous jobs. We look for those individuals who have a desire to follow the golden rule, "Do unto others as you would have others do unto you".
The textbook focuses on the broad dimensions of your job and the skills you will need to be successful. The authors of the text list nine supervisory responsibilities. They are: _______________ your team produces high-quality work; leading, _________________ , supporting, coaching, and motivating your team; holding team members ________________ for both outcomes and behavior; being a ___________ and ______________ model of ethical, responsible, and respectful behavior; _____________________ regularly both inside and outside the organization; setting the _____________ for your work unit and for individual team members; managing ________________ ; creating and sustaining a _______ , secure, healthy, and ____________ organization; and, ______________ change and being ready for the challenges that lie ahead.
Ensuring Developing Accountable Constant Consistent Communicating Direction Workloads Safe Respectful Managing
The four phases a group must generally pass through before it becomes a team are ______________ , _____________ , _____________ , and ___________.
Forming Storming Norming Performing
Which of the following is the second step in the five steps of a performance improvement plan? get input develop the plan create the schedule identify and document the problem
Get input
Chapter 14 describes ways to help ensure a respectful workplace free. Definitions are offered for three negative behaviors. ________________ ___________________ is making biased employment decisions against a person because of their protected characteristic. ____________________ is a legal term describing a form of discrimination where a person is subjected to threatening, intimidating, embarrassing, or other offensive and unwelcome behavior because of gender, race, ethnicity, religion, age, disability, or some other protected characteristic. __________________ _________________ describes actions that insult or indicate hostility or aversion toward someone.
Illegal discrimination Harassment Disrespectful behavior
On page 15 of the text, the checklist provides some good ideas to help municipal clerks be leaders in their organization. Pick one of the items on the list and describe how you could accomplish this in your current position.
Involve employees in decision making to draw on their expertise and to gain their commitment. I currently have a new employee working for me. I've been providing her with a wide variety of assignments as I have been assessing her skills and interests. Noticing that she is detail oriented and skilled with the computer I assigned her to a job of updating a map (normally handled by our GIS Technician, who was out of the office for several days). She did a marvelous job - which I told her. My goal is that it instills confidence and a feeling of belonging and one of being appreciated.
Chapter 11 states that it is essential that you discuss and clarify the ________ _______________ and ________________ you will use with your employee early in the performance cycle. This includes both organization wide evaluation factors and goals tailored specifically to individual jobs.
Job expectations Standards
Interview questions should be based on the essential ___________ _____________ and the ______________ and _____________ required to perform them.
Job functions Knowledge Skills
________________ focuses on establishing direction, aligning employees based on the direction, and motivating and inspiring employees to succeed. Leading produces ___________ , with an emphasis on achieving long-term outcomes. ________________ focuses on short-term results. Managing involves planning and budgeting, organizing and staffing, and control and problem-solving functions.
Leading Change Managing
The three most frequently used operating budget formats are ________________ budget, __________________ budget, and ___________________ budget.
Line item Program Performance
The strongest influence on employee behavior is the behavior of ________________ and ___________________.
Managers Supervisors
By explicitly laying out job standards, as well as the methods to be used to achieve them, a [x] can help you evaluate both procedures and standards.
Manual
The three major components of a local government budget are the budget ________________ , ________________ estimates, and program ________________.
Message Revenue Expenditures
To enhance your communication skills, you must pay equal attention to __________________________ as well as _____________ aspects of communication.
Non-verbal Verbal
A supervisor needs to provide _________________, ___ _______________feedback in order to reinforce expectations.
Ongoing Constructive
The two types of local government budgets are _______________ budget and ___________________ budget.
Operating Capital
Chapter 15 of the text states that the four major causes of workplace accidents are ___________, ______________, ________________, and __________ _____________.
People Equipment Materials Work environment
The seven common causes of [x] are dislike the task, bored, too tired, afraid of failing, competing commitments, don't know where to start, and resentment of an imposed task.
Procrastination
______________, ________________ ,_________________ and are early casualties when teams are constantly asked to do more with less.
Productivity Effectiveness Morale
Chapter nine of the text describes the partnership between supervisors and human resources staff. The supervisor is expected to provide a current and accurate job description for each job needed to be filled. A complete and legally compliant job description includes: __________________ duties and responsibilities; _______________ requirements, if any; ________________ knowledge, skills, and abilities; __________________ knowledge, skills, and abilities.
Specific Physical Required Desirable
True or False: You can can you lead your employees toward ethical behavior by: making ethics a part of your daily life in your work unity, using staff meetings as an opportunity to talk about values and ethical challenges, sharing with your employees tools for helping them to make ethical decisions, offer simple reminders once a week, and encouraging and supporting employee participation in both required and optional training sessions related to values and ethics.
True
In chapter three of the text, we learn that citizen [x] in government is based on the behavior and performance of the people who represent the government—from the chief elected official to every employee.
Trust
Chapter four of the textbook states that the components of a strategic plan are _____________ , ______________ , __________ , __________ , ________ , and _________________.
Vision Mission Values Goals Tactics Measures
Chapter 1 - Among the challenges that today's public sector supervisors face are: a growing ______________ with shrinking resources, frequently changing ________________ and needs, a diverse and multicultural workforce that creates new _____________ and leadership responsibilities, and high expectations from _____________ seeking the best return on their tax dollars.
Workload Priorities Dynamics Citizens
List and describe the six steps to maximize your time in meetings.
Create an agenda: At the top of the agenda identify the name of the group that is meeting, the type of meeting, meeting date, meeting start & end times, and meeting location. List each topic of discussion and estimated time for each item. If appropriate, identify presenter or lead for each topic. Distribute the agenda: Distribute agenda and supportive documentation at least one day in advance to allow team members preparation time and the ability to review and think about the topic before the meeting. You may need to remind participants to bring their copy of the information to the meeting. Chair the meeting: The meeting chair manages the time and topics covered for a more successful outcome. Respect people's time by starting & ending the meeting on time. Keep the discussion focused on the agenda topics if the conversation begins to stray to unrelated topic. Place unrelated topic on a future agenda. Listen: Allow everyone the opportunity to participate and be heard. Invite a quieter member of the team to comment. Invite the opinions of those who have not participated in the meeting. Move on once the subject is "talked out". Summarize outcomes, actions, and responsibilities: Summarize key points and follow-up action items. Identify lead responsibilities and deadlines. Allow time for final questions or issues that need to be addressed. Ask for requests or suggestions for topics for the next meeting. Set date and time for the next meeting. Thank everyone for their time & adjourn the meeting. Prepare for your next meeting: Review your notes right after the meeting when the discussion is still fresh in your mind and begin drafting the next agenda. Keep all meeting notes for the same group filed together so you can reference previous topics and discussions when necessary.
Effective management of differences can increase ________________ and improve _____________ ___________ by introducing new perspectives and ideas.
Creativity Problem solving
Chapter 16 defines quality [x] as meeting or exceeding customer expectations.
Customer Service
The four basic types of meetings are: _________ check-in, staff ___________ meeting, monthly _____________ meeting, and quarterly _______________.
Daily Tactical Strategic Review
[x] is an essential part of supervisory success because it helps employees feel valued, encourages creative and innovative problem solving, motivates employees to take full responsibility for their work, increases productivity and ensures that the work gets done, and helps you manage your supervisory workload.
Delegation
A leader must invest time in _________________ and _________________ the team by establishing performance expectations and desirable behaviors to establish a foundation for collaborative work.
Developing Nurturing
The three primary components of an effective employee onboarding program are: __________________ job expectations, ____________________ new employees, and __________________ new employee retention.
Discussing Engaging Promoting
The four categories that are useful when reviewing memos, e-mails, telephone messages, etc. that are requesting action are: ____ ___ , ____ ___, _______ ___ , and _____ ____.
Do it Delegate it Defer it Delete it
[x] communication is behavior that transmits a meaning (the message) from one person (the sender) to another (the receiver) in a way that the message is understood.
Effective
Go to the TMCCP/TMCA, Inc., web page http://municlerks.unt.edu (Links to an external site.) and print the Texas Municipal Clerks' code of ethics. Explain how you subscribe to one of the principles contained in our code of ethics.
Recognizing their responsibilities to the people, desiring to inspire public confidence and respect for government, and believing that honesty, integrity, loyalty and courtesy form the basis of ethical conduct, members of the Texas Municipal Clerks Association, Inc., do hereby subscribe to the following principles and ethics which will govern the personal and professional conduct as a municipal clerk: To uphold constitutional government and the laws of my community; To conduct my public and private life as to be an example to fellow citizens and co-workers; To never disclose confidential information gained by reason of my position nor use such information for personal gain; To be ever mindful of my neutrality and impartiality, rendering equal service to all and to extend the same treatment I wish to receive myself; To impart to my profession those standards of quality and integrity that the conduct of the affairs of my office shall be above reproach and to merit public confidence in our community; To record that which is true and preserve that which is entrusted to me as if it were my own; and To strive constantly to improve the administration of the affairs of my office through independent study, courses, meetings and seminars, and through sound management practices to produce continued progress and so fulfill my responsibilities to my community. First and foremost I consider myself to be a public servant. I derive pleasure by helping others. I strive to assist others in a professionally and consistent, and impartial manner.
A good way to overcome [x] to feedback is to ask your employees to give you feedback on your performance.
Resistance
There are four parts to successful delegation: ______________ , ______________ , _______________ , and _________________ .
Responsibility Authority Instruction Accountability
Chapter two of the text describes the three primary sources of influence a supervisor has. These influences are ________________ , _______________ , and _______________.
Role Reputation Behavior
Herzberg's theory of motivation divides sources of motivation into two categories: those that prompt ________________ and those that prompt _____________________ .
Satisfaction Dissatisfaction
Which of the following is NOT one of the steps a supervisor should follow when a rule has been violated or poor performance persists? Act promptly Get all the facts Decide what action to take Seek fast resolution
Seek fast resolution
One way to increase [x] is to gather information about others' perceptions of your leadership style and be receptive to their feedback.
Self-awareness
The four-part model for emotional intelligence includes ________-__________, ___________-____________ , _______________ ___________________ , and _______________ _____________________.
Self-awareness Self-management Social awareness Relationship management
The six parts of the communication process as described by the book are: the _______________, the _________________, the _________________, the ___________________, _____________________, and ________________________.
Sender Message Medium Receiver Feedback Noise
A key concept of teamwork is _______________ ________________ where management and employees work together. Employees are actively involved in areas of decision making traditionally reserved to management including defining mission, goals, and objectives; establishing values, norms, and organizational climate; and improving work systems and processes.
Shared Leadership
In chapter 12 of the textbook, the reader learns about Maslow's hierarchy of needs. This hierarchy describes the theory that posits that human behavior is driven by unsatisfied needs, and as long as a more basic need remains unsatisfied, it will dominate. Which of the following is the third level in Maslow's hierarchy? social needs physiological needs security needs esteem needs
Social needs
Look at the decision-making rules for team members as described by the authors of the text. Choose one role you have assumed during decision-making and explain how you were able to effectively influence decision-making.
Team Members: Share opinions and contribute ideas. Bring objections or concerns to the attention of the right person or to everyone in a meeting before a decision is finalized. Our city recently had a training on project management. We were all split into various groups working on real projects that we are starting to develop for our city. Our project involved planning for the construction of a new city civic center. I raised a concern regarding parking availability and was pretty much dismissed by the person who was the "project manager". I did not like the way I felt my opinion was cast aside because I believed it to be a valid one. Once our City Manager came to join our group I raised the concern again, I felt in a diplomatic way, not throwing anyone "under the bus". The City Manager and training facilitator agreed with my concern and discussions ensued regarding the destruction of a nearby building & incorporation of it's occupants into the new building, thus allowing for additional parking space.
What are the characteristics of a legally acceptable performance evaluation system?
The performance evaluation instrument is developed from a systematic analysis of individual jobs Job descriptions used in the evaluation process are kept up-to-date The performance evaluation focuses on specific, job-related behaviors rather than traits, abilities, or personal characteristics Performance standards or goals are communicated to employees Supervisors are trained to evaluate employees Written documentation about the evaluation process is maintained.
E-mails and tweets cannot communicate [x]. As a result, the receiver may experience a tone that isn't what was intended.
Tone
True or False: If you must refuse a (citizen) request it is important to be short, direct, and to the point while explaining why the request can't be accommodated.
True
True or False: Successful supervisors must try to function as brokers who balance competing interests to achieve broad goals.
True