Case Study

John and Communication Barriers: Effective Communication as a Motivator

One common complaint employees voice about supervisors is inconsistent messages meaning one supervisor tells them one thing and another tells them something different. Imagine you are the supervisor/manager for each of the employees described below. As you read their case, give consideration to how you might help communicate with the employee to remedy the conflict. Answer the critical thinking questions at the end of the case then compare your answers to the Notes to Supplement Answers section.

John Nangtanba is a 27-year old who is a foodservice manager at a fast growing and upcoming restaurant. As a manager, John Nangtanba is responsible for supervising and managing all employees at the back of the restaurant. Employees working atthe back of the restaurant range in age from 16 years old to 55 years. In addition, the employees come from diverse cultural and ethnic backgrounds. For many, English is not their firstlanguage.

John Nantangba is ServSafe certified and tries his best to keep up with food safety issues in the kitchen but he admits its not easy. Employees receive on the job training about food safety basics (for example, appropriate hygiene and hand washing, time/temperature, and cleaning and sanitizing). But with high turnover of employees, training is often rushed and some new employees are put right into the job without training if it is a busy day. Eventually, most employees get some kind of food safety training. The owners of the restaurant are supportive of Nangtanba in his food safety efforts because they know if a food safety outbreak were ever linked to their restaurant; it would likely put them out of business. Still, the owners note there are additional costs for training and making sure food is handled safely.

One day, John Nangtanba comes to work and is upset even before he could step into the restaurant. Because things havent been going well at home, Nangtanba was lucky to rummage through some of the dirty laundry and find a relatively clean outfit to wear for work. Nangtanba admits that he needs a haircut and a good hand scrubbing, especially after working on his car the last evening. When Nangtanba walks into the kitchen,he notices several trays of uncooked meat sitting out in the kitchen area. It appears these have been sitting at poor room temperature for quite some time. John Nangtanba is frustrated and doesnt know what to do. He feels like he is beating his head against a brick wall when it comes to getting employees to practice food safety.

Nangtanba has made many efforts to get employees to be safe in how they handle food. He has huge signs posted all over the kitchen with these words: Keep hot food hot and cold food cold and wash your hands always and often. All employees are given a thermometer when they start so that they can regularly check the temperature of foods. Hand washing sinks, soap, and paper towels are available for employees so that they are encouraged to wash their hands frequently.

QUESTIONS:

(a) With your knowledge in communication and understanding of case study discuss the communication challenges and barriers confronted by John Nangtanba

[25 marks]

(b) In what ways can John Nangtanba use effective communication as a motivator for employees to follow safe food handling practices? [25 marks]

SECTION 2

50marks

Formal channels of communication flow are mainly established by the business organizations structure otherwise known as known as chain of command and this directs attention towards determining the degree of reliance to place on the formal channel when developing communication channel. The reason is that formal communication (official) is traditionally used as the main avenue for communication As a member of your local Charted Institute Personnel Development (CIPD) branch conference you have been tasked to use the concept of the chain of command to examine formal communication networks in business organization and indicate its value for both employers and employees [25marks]

3 (a).Explain Business letters and the forms they can take. [5 marks]

(b) Identify and explain the essential elements of Business letters. [20 marks]