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supervision concepts skill
Supervision Concepts And Skill Building 10th Edition Samuel Certo - Solutions
Describe four guidelines for disciplining employees effectively.
What additional type of information should be included in the following warning to an employee?“I noticed that you returned late from lunch yesterday and three days last week. This upsets the other employees because they get back promptly in order to give others a chance to take their breaks.
What are the steps in the discipline process? In what kinds of situations would a supervisor take all these steps?
How can a supervisor at an organization with self-managing work teams help the organization avoid violations of federal labor law?
Peter Wilson is a supervisor who also leads a team that has been working on revamping an old product—snow saucers—to make them seem new and more attractive to a new generation of customers. The team includes both design people and salespeople. What type or types of rewards might Peter consider
A supervisor observes that the members of a committee seem to spend a lot of time complaining and have trouble focusing on the issues the committee was formed to address. How can the supervisor help the committee move into the performing stage of team development?
Yolanda Gibbs supervises employees in the reference department of a public library. Her team meets once a month to discuss ways to improve the quality of services delivered at the library. Yolanda wants the team to be cohesive so that its members will work hard. How can she encourage the
Why do supervisors need to know about each of the following characteristics of groups?Roles of group membersStatus of group members
Joseph Dittrick is a supervisor in the marketing department of a toy manufacturer. He is responsible for leading a group of employees in finding ways to improve a problematic product. In what ways can Joseph encourage the group to be as effective as possible?
While counseling an employee, a supervisor made the following statements. What is wrong with each statement? What would be a better alternative for each?a. “Your laziness is becoming a real problem.”b. “Knock off the shouting! The way your performance has been lately, you have no right to be
An employee explains to her supervisor that her performance has been slipping because she has been distracted and frightened by threats from her former husband.a. Should the supervisor counsel the employee about her job performance? Explain.b. Should the supervisor counsel the employee about the
What is the difference between directive and nondirective counseling? Give an example of each in the form of a brief dialogue.Supervisor: I see that you have been having trouble meeting your sales quota this quarter. Is it because your new territory is too large?Supervisor: I notice that you’ve
Dennis McCutcheon supervises the employees who work in the building supplies department of a large discount hardware store. One of his employees, Kelly Sims, has been late to work every Tuesday and Thursday for the last three weeks. Sometimes she disappears for more than an hour at lunch. Although
How could a supervisor use this information to motivate employees?
Roberto Gonzalez wants to make his solutions more creative. When he has a problem to solve, he sits down at his desk and tries to generate as many alternative solutions as he can. Unfortunately, he usually gets frustrated before he comes up with an alternative that satisfies him, so he just picks
What are the symptoms of groupthink? What can a supervisor do to overcome groupthink in a team meeting?
What are some advantages of making decisions as a group? What are some of the disadvantages?
Rita McCormick is the supervisor of the state office that processes sales tax payments. She has noticed that workers are falling behind and wants to get authorization either to hire two more employees or to schedule overtime until the work gets caught up. McCormick estimates that there is an 80
Philip is a supervisor who likes to work independently. Whenever he faces a new situation, he prefers to analyze it and make his decision without consulting other sources. How might this method of decision-making impact the results of his decision? What might be a better way for Philip to proceed?
This chapter presents several guidelines for decision making: Consider the consequences, respond quickly in a crisis, inform the manager, be decisive but not inflexible, and avoid decision‑making traps. How would such guidelines influence the way a nursing supervisor handles the following two
In each of the following situations, what is interfering with the supervisor’s ability to make the best decision? Suggest how the supervisors can improve their decision-making.The supervisor is suggesting what he or she would like to see. What is the basis for selecting blue? What data is
Franklin Jones, a supervisor in the buying department for a department store, says, ‘I think these men’s jackets are going to be hot this fall. Let’s place a big order.” What kind of compromises to rational decision-making is he using in making his decision? Using the decision-making model,
As a supervisor, you have done everything you can to prepare for a meeting, including writing up and distributing an agenda. At the meeting, you have problems with two of the participants. Ken dominates the conversation, drifting off to subjects that are not on the agenda. Sheryl refuses to talk at
Bonnie First supervises respiratory therapists at a large community hospital. One day her manager said, “Your department used too much overtime again last week. I want you to propose a solution to this problem, and I think you need to involve the employees in finding the solution. Get back to me
Which response or responses did most class members choose as least important to motivates Workers?
What is wrong with each of the following attempts at motivation?a. A sales supervisor for an insurance company believes that employees appreciate an opportunity to broaden their experience, so she rewards the top performer each year with an all-expenses-paid leadership seminar. The seminar lasts a
A supervisor at an online jewelry retailer reads a report stating that 15 percent of all orders are subsequently returned, but this figure is considered better than the industry average. How can she use the Pygmalion effect to motivate employees to reduce the number of returns even further?
Antonio Delgado supervises the police officers of the Fourth Precinct. Name some ways in which he can make their work more interesting?
Which type or types of pay plan (piecework, production bonus, commission, payment for suggestions, group incentive) would work best in each of the following situations? Why?a. A company wants to motivate employees in the manufacturing department to fulfill increased orders for wooden toys as the
Reflecting back to the chapter’s opening case study, consider how important it is to have the right information at the right time to do your job effectively. Supervising a team requires coordinating complex and changeable work between departments. Hadronics had high-quality manufacturing process
As mail room supervisor, you need to report to your manager that a sack of mail has been misplaced (you are not sure how it happened). Would you want to send this message through written or oral communication? Would you want to deliver it face-to-face? Describe the form of communication you would
The following examples describe some ways to send messages. Indicate whether each is verbal or nonverbal. For each verbal message, indicate whether it is oral or written.a. A long silence accompanied by an icy stareb. A letter delivered by a fax machinec. Voice maild. Laughter
In a staff meeting held to introduce new software that will provide office employees with information about the company’s financial status, sales figures, and marketing plans, you notice that one of your employees is alternately staring out the window and doodling in his notebook. You are certain
Sheila James owns a catering business employing four workers. She just got a contract to cater a wedding reception for a Chinese couple who speak very little English. What steps can James take to make sure her communication with the couple is successful? As a supervisor, what steps might she take
1. On what basis did the judges rate the quality of houses? How many of the criteria in Table 2.1 did they use?2. How did your group decide on a way to make its house? How well did your group work together to produce the house?3. Given your group’s experience and the information about how the
How can supervisors foster creativity in their department or work group?
1. How does performance-based pay motivate Nucor employees? Would this pay system be effective if Nucor did not also empower employees to make decisions? Why or why not?2. Supervisors do not set up the pay system for a large company like Nucor. How can Nucor’s supervisors contribute to employee
1. Reflecting back to the chapter’s opening case, consider the challenges faced by a business you have worked for or visited frequently.2. Identify a weakness in the company’s processes or service.3. If you were a supervisor at the company, what game elements would you suggest to reduce or
In which of the following situations do you think money will be an effective motivator? Explain.a. The economy is slow, and even though the salespeople think they are doing their best, sales are down. Sales supervisor Rita Blount tells the sales force that anyone whose weekly sales are up by 10
Pete Polito supervises a cross-functional team whose task is to evaluate whether the in-line skates his company manufactures are safe and up-to-date in design and style. Using Theory Y, what steps might Polito take to lead his team to its goal?
Andre Jones supervises computer programmers. He expects each programmer to turn in a progress report by quitting time each Friday.a. Name at least one way Jones can use reinforcement to motivate employees to turn in their reports on time.b. Name at least one way Jones can use punishment to motivate
John Lightfoot believes he has a 75 percent chance of earning a bonus of $100. John believes there is a 50 percent chance that his company will pay him the bonus even if he rightfully deserves it. Mary Yu believes she has a 75 percent chance of qualifying for a raise of $1,000 a year. Mary believes
What are the hygiene factors and motivating factors described by Herzberg? Consider your current job or one you held most recently. Which factors are-(were) present at that job? How would you say they affect(ed) your level of satisfaction? Your level of motivation?
What are the three categories of needs that McClelland identified in his theory? Which category of needs do you think is strongest for you?
What are some family-friendly policies that companies now have in place so that employees can balance home and work? What other family-friendly policies might help employees to meet the demands in their lives and thus motivate them at work?
Name and rank the five basic needs, from lowest to highest, that Maslow described in his hierarchy of needs. If a supervisor applies this hierarchy to his or her employees, what are some specific ways that employees’ needs could be met?
1. What strategies for communicating effectively does Jeannie use? What other strategies would help her communicate more effectively?2. Discuss whether you think Jeannie is communicating adequately in all directions and whether she is effectively using both formal and informal communication. How
Should a supervisor participate in informal communication? If so, when? If not, why not?
Which of the following organizational communications are formal? Informal?a. A memo providing information about the company picnic. b. A meeting at which employees discuss the department’s goals for the month.c. A rumor about a new vacation policy.d. A discussion between a supervisor and an
Lee Hamel is a busy supervisor. He rarely hears from his employees except when there is a production snag or scheduling problem. Hamel that as long as things run smoothly, his employees are happy. Why might his attitude be counterproductive in the long run? What steps could he take to improve
Face-to-face communication conveys the most information because the people communicating can learn from each other’s body language and tone of voice as well as from the words themselves. However, why shouldn’t a supervisor always choose face-to-face communication over other ways?
Nina Goldberg has been asked by her manager to give a presentation to employees about changes the company is going to make in health care benefits. Using the seven steps described in this chapter (in the Verbal Messages section), how should Goldberg prepare her presentation?
Every Monday morning, Ron Yamamoto, a supervisor, must attend a divisional meeting to discuss progress and make plans. Yamamoto finds that most people at the meetings are long-winded and that the meetings as a whole are boring. However, he needs to know what is going on in the division. How can he
Can a person be hearing but not listening well? Can a person be listening but not hearing well? Explain.
Phyllis Priestley, a supervisor, wants to tell her boss what she plans to accomplish at a leadership seminar she will be attending next week. She decides to do so in the form of a memo. Briefly describe how this communication will follow.
1. What forms does quality take in a fast-food restaurant? That is what aspects of the food, service, atmosphere, and so on do you consider to be acceptable in terms of quality, and what would exceed your expectations?2. Productivity efforts in a fast-food restaurant often involve behind-the-scenes
Working as a group, summarize three ways in which a Shearer’s supervisor could support the company’s efforts to reach “perfection” in quality and productivity.
Why do employees sometimes resist productivity improvements? How can supervisors prepare for and respond to employee attitudes?
How does high turnover hurt productivity? What can a supervisor do to minimize turnover?
A maintenance supervisor learned that installing a type of high-efficiency light bulb in the building can save the organization $1,000 a year. Replacing the light bulbs with the new ones would cost about $2,500.a. What is the payback period for this replacement?b. What is the average rate of
Rachel Roth supervises a shift of workers who manufacture ski clothing. Because of its seasonal nature, the workflow tends to be uneven, and Rachel feels that this hurts productivity. What steps might Rachel take to try to regulate the workflow in her department?
How would you expect employees to respond to each of these efforts to cut costs?a. A plan to increase output by scheduling fewer rest breaks.b. A plan to increase output by hiring someone to bring supplies to workers, rather than having them get their own supplies.
Where can supervisors get information to help them determine costs?
At the claims-processing office for All-Folks Insurance, 25 employees process 2,500 claims a day. The claims-processing office for Purple Cross Insurance uses a state-of-the-art computer system, and its 15 employees process 3,000 claims a day.a. Which office is more productive?b. At which office
Anna Holt, a supervisor in a boot manufacturing plant, just received a memo from her manager informing her that productivity on her shift must increase by 10 percent during the next fiscal quarter. However, when she recently approached her manager about upgrading two of the machines, she was turned
Frank Ouellette works at a government agency in which neither managers nor employees seem to worry about how long it takes to complete an assignment. Should Frank’s co-workers be concerned about productivity? Why or why not?
Imagine that you are the supervisor responsible for a pharmacy. You have received a few complaints about mistakes in customer’s prescriptions. To improve the quality of service delivered by the pharmacists, you can concentrate on (a) doing a better job of catching errors in the future or (b)
Michelle LeVerrier supervises a group of tellers at a bank. The bank manager has asked her to lead an employee involvement team designed to improve the processes of serving individual customers at the teller windows. The four steps in the process are to (a) identify quality problems in the specific
Define the zero-defects approach to quality control? Do you think zero defects is attainable? Why or why not?
What is the difference between product quality control and process control? Give an example of each. (If possible, use examples from a job you have held.)
Brand X Corporation seeks to be the lowest-cost maker of lawn chairs and toboggans. To keep costs down, management tells the production department, “Keep that assembly line moving. We have an inspector on staff to catch the mistakes later.” What are the consequences Brand X Corporation is
1. Lynn and Janet are in different departments, and neither person reports to the other or is technically higher-up on the organization’s scale. Even though this is true, the meeting the women have seems led by one person—Janet. Look at the section “Characteristics of the Leader” in Chapter
1. A supervisor can play many roles while he or she oversees employees. In order to ensure that work goes according to plan, a supervisor must assert control over situations that arise. Consider the three in terms of Patrick’s situation. Which control do you believe would have made his project
1. It’s often said that the ability to see the big picture, or the way in which a solution might affect the rest of the company, is another ingredient of creative problem-solving. Do you think Christensen’s subordinate was able to see the big picture in the challenge she gave him? Why or why
1. Volkswagen’s annual report explains that, “The Volkswagen Group consists of two divisions: the Automotive Division and the Financial Services Division. The Automotive Division comprises the Passenger Cars, Commercial Vehicles and Power Engineering Business Areas.” Does this description
1. Reflecting back to the chapter’s opening case, what sort of changes will both supervisors and front-line employees face in the coming months? What challenges will they face? How will work be delegated in these new work groups?2. In your group, list the challenges you see facing Zappos’ lead
What steps do you think a supervisor who is reluctant to delegate could take to overcome this discomfort?
Harry Jamison, CPA, is planning to set up a business to prepare tax returns. Harry is the only person in the business, at least for now. Can he delegate any work? Should he? Explain.
A production supervisor at a company that makes eco-friendly cleaning supplies learns about the factors that should influence the span of control. The supervisor believes that his own span of control is too large for him to supervise effectively. Is there anything a person in his position can do?
Describe each of the following principles of organizing:a. Parity principleb. Unity of commandc. Chain of command
What are the steps in the process of organizing? How would they apply to the manager of an Olive Garden restaurant who needs to schedule employees? Explain in general how this supervisor could follow each step.
Does someone with authority always have power? Does a person who accepts responsibility necessarily have authority? Explain.
In recent years, many organizations have become more decentralized. Typically this change involves eliminating middle management jobs and sharing more control with those at lower levels of the organization. How do you think this affects the role of supervisors in those organizations?
Which of the following supervisors have primarily line authority? Which have staff authority?a. The production supervisor at a publishing company, who is responsible for getting books typeset and printed.b. The housekeeping supervisor at a hospital.c. The word-processing supervisor at a law firm.d.
What special attributes must supervisors have to be successful in some of the new types of organizational structures?
What might be the best structure for each of the following organizations?a. A three-person company that sells complete, prepackaged gourmet dinners to specialty grocery stores.b. A small organization that supplies antique cars to movie studios.c. A manufacturer of windows, with offices in Toronto,
Emily Sanford has just been promoted to supervisor of the salespeople in the gift department at a department store. Which of the following organizing activities is she likely to carry out?a. Scheduling her employees’ work hours.b. Forming a team of her employees to work on a promotional event
1. Without MBO, would it have been harder for Ingalls to detect and correct the problem the supervisor was having with cash application errors. Why or why not?2. The examples of objectives for credit analysts and collectors include objectives for personal development through training. Why do you
Why do controls need to be timely and economical?
Mildred Pirelli supervises salespeople in a department store. One day she walked around her department to observe the salespeople in action. She saw a salesperson approve a charge card purchase without following the company’s policy of verifying the signature on the charge card.a. How should
If failure to meet a performance standard indicates some type of underlying problem, how might the supervisor attempt to solve the problem?
Bonnie Goode supervises the online support staff in the customer service department of a software company. The employees are expected to handle 50 phone requests for help per day (250 in a five-day work week). Every Monday, Goode receives a report of each employee’s weekly performance relative to
How is the control process related to the management function of planning?
What are the steps in the process of controlling?
Your best friend just got promoted to a position as a supervisor and feels uncomfortable about “checking up on people.” How can you explain to your friend why controlling plays an important role in helping the organization meet its goals?
What are some advantages of involving employees in the process of developing objectives? How can supervisors do this?
What is wrong with each of the following objectives? Rewrite each objective so that it has the characteristics of an effective objectives.a. Improve the procedure for responding to customer complaints.b. Meet or exceed last year’s sales quotas.c. Minimize the number of parts that are defective.d.
Assume you are the supervisor of the machine shop whose budget appears in text Table 6.2.a. Modify the budgeted amounts to create a budget for a new project of the same size and type. b. What additional assumptions did you make to create the budget?
Jill Donahue is the supervisor of the telephone operators who handle emergency calls from citizens and dispatch police, firefighters, and ambulances. One of her objectives for the coming year is to reduce the average time it takes for calls to be answered from 1 minute to 30 seconds. How can Jill
Define policies, procedures, and goals. How does each relate to an organization’s objectives?
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