Supervision Test 1 Review
Characteristics of a Successful Supervisor
- A successful supervisor has a Positive Attitude. - Successful supervisors are Loyal - Successful supervisors are Fair - Supervisors also need to be GOOD Communicators - To be successful, supervisors must be able to Delegate - Finally, a successful supervisor must Want A JOB
Human Relations Skills
-Are the skills required to work effectively with other people. -These skills include the ability to communicate with, motivate, and understand people. -Supervisors use their human relations skills to impress their superiors, inspire employees, defuse conflicts, get along with co-workers, and succeed in many other ways.
Decision-making Skills
-The ability to analyze information and reach good decisions.
Civil Rights Act of 1991
Places the burden of proof on the employer and allows for compensatory and punitive damages in discrimination cases.
What is Ageism?
Discrimination based on age
Technical Skills
-Are the specialized knowledge and expertise used to carry out particular techniques or procedures. (To be "technical," skills do not have to be mechanical or scientific; they can involve any work-related technique or procedure.) Example: 1. A United Way fundraiser's ability to persuade executives to write big checks is a technical skill. 2. A mechanic's ability to bring an automobile engine back to life relies on technical skills. 3. Other technical skills may involve bookkeeping, selling, and many other types of work.
Conceptual Skills
-The ability to see the relation of the parts to the whole and to one another. -For a supervisor, conceptual skills include recognizing how the department's work helps the entire organization achieve it's goals and how the work of various employees affects the performance of the department as a whole.
Status
A group member's position in relation to others in the group. -Status depends the person's role in the group, title, pay, education level, age, race, and sex.
What is a Supervisor
A manager at the first level of management, which means the employees reporting to the supervisor are not managers.
Benefits of Ethical Behavior
A reputation as an ethical vendor makes customers want to do business with you. -Some investors go out of their way to select companies with a good track record of ethical behavior. -Ethical behavior can improve the organization's relation with the community, which tends to attract customers and topnotch employees. -Ethical behavior tends to reduce public pressure for government regulation.
Stages of Team Development
A team typically must pass through several stages of development before it becomes fully productive. - Forming, Storming, Norming, Performing, Adjourning
Adjourning
Adjourning is the fifth stage of team development. Once the team has met all of its goals, it is appropriate for the team to disband. -This stage of team development is not required for every team, given that some teams meet for indefinite periods of time.
Why are employees afraid to be ethical?
Afraid that any information they report will not be private or will be used against them.
What is meant by Sustainability?
An organization's ability to meet it's present needs without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their needs. -That concern for the future requires managers at all levels to think broadly about the organization's impact on the natural environment, it's workers, it's investors, and the communities where it operates and serves customers.
Code of Ethics
An organization's written statement of its values and rules for ethical behavior -Meeting high ethical standards is especially challenging for those who work with people from more than one culture, because ethical standards can vary from culture to culture.
Size
As few as two people can form a group. -Up to 15 or 16 group members can get to know and communicate well with one another. -Beyond 20 members, however, informal subgroups tend to form.
What is Discrimination?
Discrimination: Unfair or inequitable treatment based on prejudice. Example: For example, the courts held that an employee could sue a store after the employee was treated unfairly when she converted to Islam and began wearing a robe and head scarf. The employee said store managers complained about her clothing, changed her work hours without notice, and treated her disrespectfully.
Task-related Activities
Efforts to carry out critical management-related duties, such as planning, setting objectives for employees, and monitoring performance.
People-related Activities
Efforts to manage people, such as by providing support and encouragement, recognizing contributions, developing employees' skills, and empowering employees to solve problems.
Change-related Activities
Efforts to modify components of the organization, such as monitoring the environment to detect a need for change, proposing new tactics and strategies, encouraging others to think creatively, and taking risks to promote needed changes
Fairness
Employment expect to be treated evenhandedly -Supervisors should avoid nepotism
Modern View of Management Skills
Expanding on the classic view of management skills, current thinkers have taken a fresh look at the activities a manager typically performs. This way of thinking starts with a list of activities and then identifies the skills required to carry out those activities successfully. The typical manager's activities fall into three groups: 1.Task-related activities 2. People-related activities 3. Change-related activities
Loyalty
Expected loyalty to the organization, managers, and subordinates can result in conflict and ethical dilemmas
Forming
Forming is the first stage of the team development process in which the team members become acquainted with one another and oriented to the idea that they are part of a team.
What is Stereotype?
Generalized, fixed images of others
Honesty
Give credit where credit is due -Your dishonest behavior encourages employee dishonesty -Be honest about what the organization can offer employees
Formal Groups
Groups set up by management to meet organizational objectives -Example: A customer service department and a committee charged with planning the company picnic are formal groups
Norms
Groups standards for appropriate or acceptable behavior -When a member of the group violates a norm, the group responds by pressuring the person to conform. -Formal groups have procedures for handling violations of norms that are group policies
Task Groups
Groups that are set up to carry out a specific activity and then disband when the activity is completed. A task group may be formed for a task that is ongoing. -Example: Whenever a nurse senses that a person has a condition associated with a heart attack, he or she pages for the team to respond. The team - which includes a critical-care nurse, respiratory therapist, critical-care doctor, and nursing supervisor - evaluates the patient and intervenes according to the symptoms observed. Like many task groups the rapid response team may operate for years with no definite end date, because the hospital will probably always have patients at risk for heart attacks.
Informal Groups
Groups that form when individuals in the organization develop relationships to meet personal needs. Example: Jogging Team at work
Functional Groups
Groups that fulfill ongoing needs in the organizations by carrying out a particular function. -Example: A hospital's accounting department has the ongoing responsibility for keeping accurate records of the flow of money into and out of the organization. In most cases, a functional group is one that appears on a company's organization chart.
Characteristics of Groups
Include: Roles, Norms, Status, Cohesiveness, Size, Homogeneity
Leading
Influencing people to act (or not act) in a certain way -The supervisor is responsible for letting employees know what is expected of them and inspiring and motivating employees to do good work.
Dimensions of Ethical Behavior
Loyalty, Fairness, Honesty
Age Discrimination in Employment Act (1967)
Makes it illegal to fail to hire, or fire, on the bases of age. When inexperienced younger workers are given preferences over equally or better qualified elders or when downsizing lets disproportionately more older (and often better-paid) workers go, ageism costs the organization the benefit of experience, perspective, and judgement that senior workers can bring.
Corporate Social Responsibility
Managerial obligation to take action that protects and improves the welfare of society and the organization's interests. - Supervisors are responsible for meeting goals not only within their organization but also those for the benefit of society. -One such area would be a supervisor working to meet the organizational goal of producing high-quality products. -Producing high-quality products not only helps to increase the marketability of company products but simultaneously benefits society by providing reliable products.
Controlling
Monitoring performance and making needed corrections -The supervisor is expected to provide employees with the resources and motivation to identify and correct problems themselves.
Norming
Norming is the third stage of team development. Norming is characterized by agreement among team members. -During this stage, there is understanding of what each person's role in the team is, and team members generally feel as through their voices have been heard by the other members.
Roles
Patterns of behavior related to employees' positions in a group. -Sometimes a person's formal position in an organization dictates a certain role. -Another source is a combination of the person's beliefs about how he ought to behave and other people's expectations about how that person will act.
Performing
Performing is the fourth stage of team development. Performing is characterized by solving organizational problems and meeting assigned challenges.
General Functions of The Supervisor
Planning, organizing, staffing, leading, and controlling **Planning comes first, followed by organizing, then leading, and finally, controlling. This order occurs because each function depends on the preceding function or functions. -Typically, supervisors spend most of their time leading and controlling
What is Prejudice?
Prejudice: Preconceived judgement about an individual or group of people. Example: Suppose a supervisor has a position to fill. if the supervisor assumes that a female job applicant could not make sales calls at night, that an older worker is not as physically, he or she is making judgments on the basis of prejudice.
What is Glass Ceiling?
Refers to a certain level of responsibility to which many qualified applicants find themselves rising, and then no higher, despite their ability and willingness to contribute further to the goals of the firm. Changes for the better are occurring everyday, but much progess still remains.
Planning
Setting goals for an organization, and developing an overall strategy for achieving the goals. -This includes planning how much money to spend, what level of output to achieve, and how many employees will be needed.
Organizing
Setting up the group, allocating resources, and assigning work to achieve goals -At the supervisory level, organizing involves activities such as scheduling projects and assigning duties to employees -Modern supervisors are increasingly responsible for settling up and leading teams of workers to handle special projects or day-today operations.
What is Sexism?
Sexism: Discrimination based on gender stereotypes Examples: -Passing over a woman for a physically demanding job -Asking a pregnant job applicant about child care arrangements -Denying a promotion to a qualified woman
What is Sexual Harassment?
Sexual Harassment: Unwanted sexual attentions, including language, behavior, or the display of images -Sexual harassment is illegal, and experts advise supervisors to adopt a policy of "ZERO Tolerance -Offenses have ranged from sexual jokes and displays of explicit pictures in the workplace to touching, sexual advances, and requests for sexual favors.
Teams
Small group whose members share goals, commitment, and accountability for results -Usually a group of 5-15 members who work together to produce an entire product.
What is the term Whistle-blower?
Someone who exposes a violation of ethics or law. -The whistle-blower's hope is that the negative publicity will spur the organization to do the right thing. -A whistle-blower's report may be embarrassing as well as costly to the organization. Nevertheless, whistle-blowers are protected by the federal laws, the laws of several states, and some recent court decisions. -Despite these protections, whistle-blowers often suffer for going public with their complaints. -Under a civil war-era law, whistle-blowers who report on companies that are cheating the government can receive up to 30% of whatever money the company ultimately pays as a penalty for fraud.
Storming
Storming is the second stage of team development. Storming describes a period of conflict in which group members assert their different roles on the team.
The three (plus decision making) basic Classic Understanding of Management Skills
Technical skills, Human relations skills, Conceptual skills, and Decision-making skills
What does the EEOC do?
The Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) was instituted by Title VII of the 1964 Civil Rights Act as amended in 1972. The EEOC consists of five members appointed by the president to serve a five-year term. This agency acts as the federal government's major means of enforcing equal employment opportunity laws and has the power to investigate complaints, use conciliation to eliminate discrimination when found, and file discrimination charges on behalf of an individual if needed.
Cohesiveness
The degree to which group members stick together. Why groups stick together: 1. Equal participation 2. Shared goals or characteristics 3. History of successes 4. Comfortable group size 5. Competition with other groups
Homogeneity
The degree to which the members of a group are the same. -Group members can be alike or different according to age, sex, race, work experience, education level, social class, personality, and interests. -People feel most comfortable around others who are like themselves.
What is Nepotism?
The hiring of one's relatives.
Ethics in the Workplace
The principles by which people distinguish what is morally right. -Some believe that profitability should be the overriding concern of business. -Others believe that organizations and their employees have an obligation to behave ethically, even if doing so cuts into short-term economic advantages.
Groups
Two or more people who interact with one another, are aware of one another, and think of themselves as a UNIT -What draws people to groups? *Pleasure in closeness *Strength in numbers *Common goals *Achievement of objectives
What is Diversity? (concept,recent trend ect.)
We define diversity as the characteristics of individuals that shape their identities and the experiences they have in society. -Dealing successfully with cultural, ethnic, age, gender, and racial diversity is a lifelong process. **Visible reminders and celebrations of our diverse heritage, such as Martin Luther King Jr. Day and Gay Pride celebrations, enrich and renew our society and our culture. Recent Trends: Trends in the composition of the workforce are are changing the way business firms operate. - Supervisors today need new skills to communicate and collaborate effectively with a broader range of people.
