Having a boss who isn’t open to ideas from his or her
employees make giving feedback almost impossible. However, in order to be fully
content with your job, you need to feel free to give your feedback without fear
of repercussion. I would start a conversation with my boss over my concerns on
this issue by first describing the atmosphere of the workplace. I would explain
that if he or she could be a little more open to ideas and criticism then
fellow employees would feel more comfortable and maybe even work harder. People
are more likely to produce better work if they’re not worried about an
uncomfortable environment. Next, I would explain to my boss why employees offer
criticism. I would tell my boss that the criticism isn’t directed at him or her,
but that it shows that employees are interested and want to help improve the
company. It’s not a personal thing, but a company thing, and as employees, feedback
and criticism shows interest. From there, I would explain to him or her how
agreeing with everything he or she says just because we fear the consequences
of expressing other ideas, will only hinder the company. My boss would need to
understand that as employees, we are only trying to give input that we believe
will benefit the company and that with the ideas of all the employees and
bosses, the company has the potential to truly thrive. Agreeing with everything
someone says will never let a company to improve.
Saturday, November 29, 2014
Sunday, November 23, 2014
Solicited Proposals
If a company receives a solicited proposal from another
company, then that means that they asked for the proposal. Unsolicited
proposals are those that are not requested. Is it ethical for a company to use
recommendations from the proposal without hiring the submitting company? I
believe it is unethical. In essence, it is stealing another company’s ideas and
taking credit for it. Although I believe this to be very unethical, it is also
a very common thing in the business world today. A way to avoid this would be
to create a contract that is agreed to before submitting the proposal. The contract
should state that the submitting company’s proposal recommendations are to not
be used by the receiving company without some type of compensation whether it
be hiring or just a payout. This contract would prevent the receiving company
from stealing ideas without compensating the submitting company.
In the eyes of the receiving company, stealing
recommendations from a company submitting a proposal that you asked for, will
give you a bad reputation. If other companies are aware of your unethical tendencies,
then they will most likely avoid doing business with you in order to stay away
from unethical business practices.
In my opinion, if a company submits a proposal with
recommendations that you agree with, then the ethical thing to do would be to
hire that company to carry out those specific recommendations. They will be the
one with the most knowledge of the proposal, so they are the best company to
hire. If they are offering it at a price that is too high, then you should just
negotiate to an agreeable price.
Saturday, November 15, 2014
Recommendation to Unfamiliar Audiences
If I were writing a recommendation report for an audience
that doesn’t know me, I would use the indirect approach. I would focus more on
logic than on the recommendation itself. If I were part of an audience who was
unfamiliar with the speaker, then I would most likely be more influenced by
their appeals to logic rather than their emphasis on the recommendation itself.
As a speaker speaking to an unfamiliar audience, I would remain as neutral as
possible. I would avoid personal opinions and would try to base my points on
facts. This would hopefully keep the audience tuned in and unhostile. I wouldn’t
want to offend anyone in the audience by being so biased toward my
recommendation that they fail to understand the problem and solution that I am
speaking of. Logic will gain an unfamiliar audience’s attention more
efficiently than opinionated statements.
According to Business
Communications Essentials, there are two types of indirect approaches to
logically build the conclusion or recommendation. The first is the “2+2=4
approach” which persuades readers by demonstrating that everything ultimately
adds up to the conclusion. The second approach is the “yardstick approach”
which uses a number of criteria to decide which option to select (263). The
main goal of an indirect approach is to give the audience a valid reason as to
why they should agree with the recommendation. It relies on factual evidence
and logical reasoning rather than opinions. Staying away from stating opinions
helps the speaker remain unbiased and will gain the audience’s attention much
quicker than the direct approach.
Saturday, November 8, 2014
Qualifications Summary
Having extensive professional experience in your desired
career is not a requirement for including a qualifications summary in your
resume. According to Business Communications Essentials, the goal of including
a qualifications summary is to “let a reader know within a few seconds what you
can deliver” (366). The book also suggests using a qualifications summary if
you do not have extensive career experience. If work experience is lacking,
then using skills acquired through education is an alternative way to create a
qualifications summary.
During college, every student has that awkward point when he
or she is ready to apply for real jobs but he or she has no experience to prove
that it would benefit the employer to hire him or her. There is no way to avoid
this lack of experience phase because we are not just born with work
experience; everyone has to start somewhere. In lieu of incorporating skills
achieved through past work experience, I have included skills that I acquired
through education, sports, and extracurricular activities. Even though I wasn’t
able to incorporate skills form work experience, it is more beneficial to
include some skills than to include none at all. Qualification summaries not
only give insight to employers on your capabilities, but they also show a sign
of confidence in yourself. Confidence is necessary when it comes to corporate
jobs. If you cannot explain to a company how you could be of benefit, then why
should they choose you? Know your strengths and put them in your qualifications
summary regardless of whether or not you have work experience in your desired
career.
Sunday, November 2, 2014
Resumes and a Career Path
In my opinion, having a clear career path in mind makes
creating your resume an easier task than when you’re unsure of a career path.
It helps you determine which jobs to apply for and what skills or interests to
include on your resume. With that being said, not having a clear career path is
not something that negatively affects your resume. It does, however, affect the
way you create your resume.
When writing a resume, it is critical to understand who your
audience is and to adapt your information to their needs/wants. You need to be
sure to list skills relevant to the jobs they are hiring for, however you do
not want to limit yourself to one specific job by blatantly stating it.
According to Business Communications Essentials, “Some experts advise against
including a career objective because it can categorize you so narrowly that you
miss out on interesting opportunities…” (365). The book also states that it is
important to remember that although you want to appeal to the employer’s needs,
the most important thing is that your resume helps you to fulfill your own
desires.
If I were in a situation where I had no particular career
path in mind, my uncertainty would affect the format of my resume and the
information I include. I would choose to write my resume in the chronological
approach but would list my education first. With lack of personal experience,
this would be the best layout for me. I would also include a variation of
skills that I hold instead of only mentioning a specific area in which I excel.
I would avoid being too detailed, but would make sure I’m not so broad to the point
that it seems fake.
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