Thursday, November 18, 2010

Personal Profile System… DISC.. Conscientiousness It Is

The day of this Leadership/ Management Diagnostic Test I was not present in class but reading about the four types, dominance, influence, conscientiousness, and steadiness, what best describes me is conscientiousness. Concentration on key details is something that I always do. When doing a project or an assignment, it becomes easy for individuals to become distracted and I also try to remind others of the key details that we have to follow and so forth. Additionally systematic approaches are something that I think is necessary as well as weighing pros and cons. Also, I like to be in an environment that allows me to show my expertise and recognize special skills for accomplishments.

If I can be another type I would want to be the dominance type. I would like to cause action and take authority. I'm very sometimes-ish went it comes to taking authority. If I am in a group that I don't know I do not take authority until the end and sometimes authority is needed in the beginning of an assignment or project to ensure the right results. On the other hand, I know what I have to do to become more dominant and that is something that I am working on. With both dominance and conscientiousness I can shape others around me to accomplish results while ensuring quality and accuracy.

I think it is indeed helpful to determine individual's management type because it can be the reason why they exceed or fail in certain situations. If the assignment was to try and persuade others to join your accounting team you need someone to step up to lead with an influence personality type, generating enthusiasm, making a favorable impression, and creating a motivational environment rather than someone like the type of conscientiousness, analyzing performance critically, checking for accuracy, and being diplomatic with others. Furthermore, knowing an individual’s personality type can give a sense of direction as to what steamed their ideologies and what they can and cannot do efficiently compared to someone else. Not everyone can work well together so knowing personality types can also be a technique used to form groups to better bring about results.

Monday, November 15, 2010

MANAGEment Process in McDonalds... SPECIAL ORDER


           When ­­I first walked in McDonalds my first thought was, “This is going to be an experience I am never going to forget”. I have never ordered something that was so customized in McDonalds before due to me thinking that it was not possible to complete. When it was my time to order I gave a deep sigh and then started to say my order, one small hamburger with five pickles and one small well done fries with big mac sauce. After I said my order to Stacy, the cashier, she gave me a look and asked me to repeat my order. I repeated it again and Stacy said, “We cannot give you a burger with five pickles and you cannot get big mac sauce unless it is on a burger”. I replied, “Yes you can.” Stacy walked over to another cashier and asked them can this order be completed and the other cahier said that she did not know. The two cashiers started talking back and forth while I am waiting for someone to process my order. Three minutes passed by and I asked, “Can you get a manger please” and that was when Stacy went to the back and two minutes later she came back with a manager. After I said my order to the manager, he said, “Ok we can complete this order and this will be $3.45.” After I received my order and I looked at the receipt I noticed that Stacy did not place the “five pickles and big mac sauce or any indication of sauce” on the receipt. I had to go back on line and I could see that when Stacy noticed that I was back on line she rolled her eyes at me. When it was my turn and I asked for a receipt for my exact order, Stacy told me that I will have to pay again because she cannot go back into the system to print me out a receipt. I just asked back for the manager and she said that he was on break. So I insisted that someone else come to the register because I needed that receipt. While Stacy went to the back to get another manager I seen the previous manager walk by and I signaled for his attention. I asked, “Are you on break?” and he replied, “No, is there another problem?” I stated that their employees need not to lie about a manager not being there and that I told Stacy  that I needed a receipt with my exact order and she said that I will have to order pay again and that is something that I  am not doing. The manager said no problem and that he will take care of it.
             The management process of this special order received mixed ratings. On a one to five scale I give the cashier a two and the manager a four, which is an overall score of a three for organization. Stacy’s approach was not effective because she could have done the task with no problem but choose to be difficult. She could have tried again to get the order done in a timely manner but gave me attitude and delayed in processing the special order. The manager was effective since he got the job done in a timely manner. I understand that special orders are rare but employees should still be able to accommodate me. When ordering, it is often that you can deduct items, such as having a burger with no pickles, instead of asking for more than what McDonalds usually provide. Organizationally, I would tell the cashiers to try their best to accommodate orders and if they have any problems to ask the head cashier and if the problem is not resolved to then call for a manager.
            Communication was a big factor and on a scale from one to five I give it a two. Stacy tried to communicate with other employees but I think she did that in a way to intimidate me to make me look “silly” for ordering the special order instead of asking them to get answers or help in processing my order. To have me standing their while she talk back and forth was unnecessary and ineffective. Communication between Stacy and manger was effective since that was the only way I could have gotten my order. The manager was more than happy to help and she did it with a smile on his face.  The communication between Stacy and I was not effective because of the attitude and sarcasm that was presented.  She could have said, “I do not know if I can do this order, let me ask someone to assist me”, or something in that nature. There is nothing wrong with asking for help. With the help you can learn to communication with others better and if someone else asks for a similar order, you will be able to assist them.
             The training aspect of the experience was a two on the scale. I was shocked at the cashier’s steps to process my order since I already knew this order can be made. The attitude that I received was unnecessary and I think employees was trained to keep the customers happy and try their best to get the customers out in a timely manner. One weakness that really bothered me was when Stacy was having a conversation with the other cashier while I was standing there waiting to get a response. She could have just asked the other cashier if she can assist her in the order and if she could not help then to call a manager. I should not have to tell Stacy to get a manager. Additionally when I went back to get the proper receipt she lied about the manager being on break. That just showed that she did not want o help me and was saying that because she did not want to be bothered with me anymore.
            Leadership is a quality that should be portrayed in every place of employment. Desire to influence others, self confidence, organization, communication, and emotional intelligence are some leadership qualities that should be presented to a certain degree at McDonalds. The manager presented good leadership skills and put out an example of how to handle situations with special orders. Some individuals might assume that leadership qualities are not necessary because it is just McDonalds but any in every job at least one person have to be there to set a good example for others in the workplace. Reinforcement, direction, and communication are important even for the cashiers. The manager showed leadership by using those qualities while Stacy showed minimal to none.
The management process of this special order was on average of two point six on the scale. The elements of  organization, communication, training, and leadership is important and when looking closely you can see that even in a fast food restaurant these skills are presented. Special orders are something that is not usually presented and for me to be the one with the order made me more observant at all the aspects.

Sunday, November 14, 2010

Power of Vision....

One of my visions for the future is to become a Certified Public Accountant while being an accountant in a major firm. Becoming a CPA will put me ahead of others in my field. Being that I am a competitive person, I would want to work hard for any advantage to have over someone and to make hard decisions. Hard, concise, conceptual decision making is something many are individuals run from but I run towards them. The decisions come with many consequences and if something goes wrong I think I can handle what comes my way.  
Another vision is to work in a firm where I can travel to work with clients. I want to be able to work with different nationalities. It is always good to expand your mind to new people and things. Just staying in New York might be boring and a change of scenery sometimes is the way to go. Furthermore, new ideas would start to form and you can use that in decision making where innovation comes into play. I would explore different people and places while getting paid.
I like to cook and I always had visions in being a partner in a restaurant. I have visions of the menu, target group, and the designing of the restaurant. I would do it myself but knowing how busy an accountant schedule is and me traveling, I know I would not be able to put my 100 %, everyday attention into it so partnership to me is the best next thing.
Speaking of partnership, a next vision is to become a partnership in an online tax software or website like “Turbo Tax”. Now a days, individuals are looking for the cheapest way to do taxes and Turbo Tax brought in many customers last year. If this rates continues, more and more are going to be doing taxes online by themselves and the use of accountants are going to decrease during tax season. So becoming a part of an online tax agent will be either a safety net in case of a major decrease in my  clients or another way to increase my salary.