Blog post 3-3

For this post I will compose a short essay showing how a company created by myself behaves ethically, and is socially responsible. I am gong to pretend that I am the CEO of local food market (grocery store). This store was Canadian born, and specializes on providing customer's with locally grown, and locally made food. We sell a variety of products, such as produce, bread, dairy, meat, etc. and all products are from local farms. I feel that it's important to help support locally, especially since nowadays there are so many large chain stores floating around. Our stores can be found in cities as well as towns, helping to support small businesses and suppliers everywhere.

As well as supporting locally, my company prides itself on behaving ethically. Deciding what is morally right or wrong is exactly what ethics are. But why are ethics so important to the success of a company? Ethics are the foundation for the building blocks of success. Companies that behave ethically are highly respected, and a company that is highly respected is always strong. As manager of my company, I would highly stress the importance of making ethical decisions, and having employees adhere to a formal code of ethics. A formal code of ethics is basic rules/guidelines based on beliefs of what is right or wrong, and managers use this code to make important decisions regarding the good of the company and its stakeholders. The following four points are codes that my company would follow:

• All employees will treat each customer with proper respect so that they leave happy
• All suppliers will be locally owned in order to support the town/city in which the store is in 
• All customer complaints will be responded to as quickly and efficiently as possible
• To ensure a healthy and safe work environment for all employees

By following a formal code of ethics, I can continue to make the proper decisions that are in the best interest of the company as a whole and all those who are involved. As well as following a formal code of ethics, my company will also familiarize itself in proper social responsibility. Just like ethics, social responsibility helps a company's true colors shine through. How a company behaves socially isn't only beneficial to the company, but to society as well. When companies act responsibly towards their stakeholders and the general public, the quality of life is essentially higher. My company would highly engage itself on being socially responsible, and would take a proactive approach. A proactive approach to social responsibility actively embraces the need to behave in socially responsible ways. (Essentials of Contemporary Management P. 76) This means that my company would go out of our way, and above and beyond to satisfy the needs of all the stakeholders involved. Being socially responsible is just as important as behaving ethically. 

After writing all this, I feel that my views on this subject were highly influenced by my generation. Growing up over the years and hearing about the ethical dilemmas that companies have dealt with have shown me how important the way a company behaves actually is. I feel that in order for a company to successfully grow and become more prosperous, it needs to take every little detail into mind, including company image caused from behavior. By doing these things, a company will remain respected among society, and respectful companies always look good to a consumer. 

Blog 2-2 Forces and Competition

I have to admit that before this assignment, I've never even looked at Mountain Equipment Co-op's website before. I will say though that I am very, VERY, impressed with how the company is run. There were several things that MEC does in its organizational environment that caught my eye.

For those of you that don't know, Mountain Equipment Co-op (MEC) is a store that specializes in outdoor activities. From camping equipment, to mountain climbing gear; canoes to hiking boots, MEC has it all.

Obviously, since MEC is all about the outdoors, they are constantly trying to improve the environment. By being involved in various charities, MEC is able to leave their mark in the environment, in a good way of course. The one charity that I really liked was the "1% for the Planet" charity. This charity makes sure that every time a person purchases something at MEC, 1% of the pre-tax total goes to Canadian environmental causes. Since 1987, MEC has donated an excess $17 million to Canadian conservation projects, thanks to this wonderful charity. Being in touch with the environment is huge nowadays, and the fact the MEC is going to such great efforts in order to save the planet shows what kind of company they are. (A great one!)

Another big aspect of MEC is the way they treat their customers and employees. After reviewing the website, it's obvious MEC cares greatly for their customers, and provides them with benefits to continue a life-long relationship. The customers at MEC are also part owners. The fact that MEC lets their customers get so involved with the company helps the customers feel more empowered and valuable to the organization. But besides MEC treating their customers like King's and Queen's, MEC strives to provide their employees with only the best working conditions, with reasonable pay, and legal working hours. By having both happy customers and employees, MEC has a strong foundation to continue growing as a profitable company.

MEC is always working towards their environmental and ethical goals; they believe that they should focus on the issues behind the company in order to be successful. For example, one of MEC'S ethical goals is the well-being of their suppliers. They follow an ethical sourcing program that ensures that its supplier workers are not in violation with any workers and human rights. By taking initiative to prevent future programs in the workplace, you can tell MEC is a company that values accountability.

After seeing all the great things that MEC has done, and will continue to do, I think that they as a company are doing an excellent job managing their opportunities and challenges. By being an organization that values employee and customer input, the organization will remain profitable, as all the needs of the organization are being fulfilled. Also, by continuing to reduce their environmental footprint, the company will always be respected by its consumers and other organizations'.
I know that after looking at the website, I'm definitely going to check out MEC more often! :)

Reflective Blog 1-3 Emotional Intelligence and Leadership

How an organization directly performs is all based on how emotional intelligence is used by a leader. But what exactly is emotional intelligence? Emotional Intelligence, or EI, is defined as: The ability to understand and manage one's own mods and emotions and the moods and emotions of other people. (Defined by the text: Essentials of Contemporary Management). In more simple terms, EI is how a leader and the people around them thinks and feels, and how they use these feelings (emotions) to highlight how an organization is performed. EI is how we as individuals handle ourselves, and if we are aware of our emotions and how we handle them. How successful an organization is depends on the proper use of EI by the leader involved. 

Most individuals think they have more EI than they actually do. So how exactly is EI measured, and how do you know how much you have? As noted in the video Social Intelligence and Leadership, posted on YouTube by Harvard Business with Dr. Daniel Goleman, the best way for a person to find out how much EI they have is to ask those whom they work with. Co-workers are a great EI reference because these people can tell someone what there strengths and weakness are, helping to make that person a more effective leader in the end. By talking with co-workers and getting their input on current situations, the entire organization benefits.

Most people confuse EI with personality, but personality is defined as: the sum of the total physical, mental, emotional, and social characteristic of an individual; the essential character of a person. (as per dictionary.com) EI is simply how ones' personality is perceived by others, and how one perceives other peoples personalities. Dr Goleman mentions in the video that EI is the emotional part of the brain that assess how we think and feel, and how we perform day-to-day tasks because of these emotions. It is stated that the level of a leaders emotional intelligence affects an organizations overall performance.  

Dr. Goleman goes more into detail about another topic that is extremely important in terms of leadership, Social Intelligence. Goleman defines Social Intelligence as: being able to tune in to other people, to read them, to know how they're thinking about things and using that to communicate effectively with them. Goleman also states that as far as leadership goes, Social Intelligence is the most important aspect for success. Social Intelligence and Emotional Intelligence both deal with peoples feelings and how they are going to react to different things. Both of these skills help create different leadership styles, for example a charismatic leader would largely benefit from using both EI and Social Intelligence because their perception of others and how they are feeling helps the leader become more responsive to their needs.

Emotional and Social Intelligence are definitely an important aspect of being an effective leader. By having these skills, and using them properly for the right reasons, an individual is able to flourish and thrive in the position of leadership.

Thanks for reading! :)

Reflective Blog 1-1 Evolving Management Positions

I've been in the workforce since I was only 14 years old. Most people don't end up getting a job until they're 16 or older, but I was lucky enough to start working at a very young age. My first job was at a portrait studio. My sister, who is 8 years older than I am, had a job as a Photographer there and had been working for a little over a year. In the year since she started working she became very close with her boss; her boss knew me personally, which was lucky for me when I wanted a job and she had one to offer. (Since she already knew me, it was easy for her to hire me.) It was around the Christmas season when I started working there, and I only started out doing basic jobs; ex: answering phones, filling paper trays, cleaning the studios etc. I was only working there for 3 months before I was promoted to Photographer. Working with my sister and a boss who I considered a friend was one of the best experiences I've ever had. My boss was a real down to earth people person; she always had something sweet to say and made you feel comfortable even in normally awkward situations. Needless to say, I got off very easy since my first boss was just wonderful; but it didn't stay that way for long...

I've had many other jobs since my first one, and have experienced a wide variety of managers. I've had managers who are nice, caring, and fun to be around, and I've also had managers that are incredibly rude, thoughtless, and only care about making money. I try to only remember the good ones that I've had because these were the people who actually made going to work fun and enjoyable. I've noticed that most of my terrible managers were present in the early years of working; (except of course my first boss). I think that this is because nowadays, more people are realizing that a good manager is one of the most important aspects of a company. Managers today seem to be more laid back and easier to talk to; I feel that being able to talk to your boss is EXTREMELY important in the success of both the company, and the employee's work performance. How is a person supposed to do their best if they don't have someone they can go to when they have a question, issue, or need a little guidance? Managers today seem to be much more involved in their employees personal lives as well, and this helps break the barrier of being a manager, and being a friend. The job I currently work at now is at kiosk at a mall, and there are only 3 of us there. I find that the smaller work group helps keep us more personally connected and also helps may manager get the one-on-one time with both of us. My current manager is probably the best I've ever had, and it's because she is the type of person who really cares about what I think, and listens to me when needed. She encourages us to make decisions on our own, and change things if we think it will better our sales. Empowerment and encouragement is huge in today's workforce. More and more employees are getting to make decisions on their own without managerial approval. As an employee who has this privilege, I feel like I am more than just an employee, and that my ideas and opinions actually matter as an individual. Empowerment makes all employees feel more useful, which gives them a sense of pride and accomplishment.

Looking back to when I first started working, I noticed that a lot of managers used to do things exactly by the book. Managers in the past seemed to be stricter and less tolerable to mistakes. These types of managers were unaware of the methods used today to lead people into success. There are 4 Functions of Management (as noted in my textbook: Essentials of Contemporary Management) and these functions are as listed : Planning, Organizing, Leading, and Controlling. "The job of management is to help an organization make the best of its resources to achieve its goals." (Essentials of Contemporary Management pg. 7) In order to successfully manage a group of people, a manger has to follow these four guidelines in moderation. Too much of one or too little of another could be the point of failure or success.

Managers today are more personal and in-touch with their employees. Companies and experts have realized that a successful manager is someone who can connect with their employees and make them feel like they are part of the actual company, not just another person to make money. This realization has helped managers change how they act, and in my opinion it's for the better.

If I were to prepare to be a future manager I would do a number of different things, but the first and foremost thing to do would be to finish my diploma at SAIT. I would also take the time to ask different managers that I look up to what makes them so successful, and if they could give me any tips for the future. Learning and researching famous leaders and mangers would be beneficial to my future plans, and of course learning and growing as an individual will help me blossom in who it is I'm supposed to be.

Thanks for reading! :)

Welcome!!

Hi everyone and welcome to my page; I am doing this Blog for my on line Management 255 course. I will be updating posts weekly with various information about manager related topics. Thanks for visiting and I hope you come back to learn some valuable information.

-Carly Barton