Questions for scen ario one Why do you think you feel uncomfortable about this new situation? Could you have avoided this situation in the first place? What is the best course of action you can take? Problem Solving During your first job performance appraisal, you were criticized for the way you manage phone systems. You have been asking the caller to state the purpose of the call before you say whether or not your manager is in the office. After you find out who the caller is and the purpose of the call, you say, "Mrs. Burke is not in her office," or "Mrs. Burke is in a meeting." It is true that Mrs. Burke is not in her office when you say this, but apparently the callers are not convinced. What can you do to improve rapport with the callers? You know that your manager, Mr. Perkins, is expecting an important long-distance call. He called Mike Brendl at 9:30 a.m., and he is expecting Mr. Brendl to return his call. At 4:30 p.m., Mr. Perkins was called to the president's office. A few minutes later, Mr. Brendl calls. You feel that you should not interrupt Mr. Perkins in the president's office. You do not know whether Mr. Perkins will return to his desk before 5 p.m. What should you do? Do you have any alternatives? Recently, Mrs. Garson has made three appointments with your employer, Mr. Stoney. Each time she has cancelled the appointment the day beforeonce because she was ill, another time because of bad weather, and the last time because she was too busy to keep the appointment. The last time she cancelled the appointment, Mr. Stoney said emphatically, "Please do not grant her another appointment!" This morning Mrs. Garson called requesting another appointment. You told her that Mr. Stoney could not work in another appointment this week and that he would be out of town the following week. Mrs. Garson is furious and insists on talking with Mr. Stoney. What should you do? What will you say to Mrs. Garson? Your manager, Mr. Harper, had a serious heart attack in his office late Tuesday afternoon. Today you are cancelling his appointments for the remainder of this week and next week. You are explaining that the appointments will be rescheduled with someone else. What can you ask in order to judge the urgency of each appointment? How much information can you give about Mr. Harper's illness? What can you say?