Blogging has been an excellent tool to bring out my creative, passionate side. Although harder to keep up with than I had first anticipated, I enjoyed every moment of writing about the good, the bad, and the ugly of HR. Writing on a regular basis has broadened by thinking and increased my writing capabilities. While writing other assignment for classes, I find myself easily expressing thoughts on paper. Blogging, much like a journal, provides a place for reflection on matters that are important to me; matters that I would otherwise not talk about.

The benefits of blogging for business, personal, and corporate growth are endless. I am happy to have been introduced to blogging and will continue to update this blog on a regular basis.

Most age-based discrimination we hear of relates to elderly people in the workforce; but, the younger generation trying to enter the workforce is also being discriminated against. In a corporate environment, age is associated with success and experience. A fresh young graduate looks just like a fresh young graduate. Many employers over look young-looking employees because they assume they lack experience. Likewise, very young employees(15 – 19) are often taken advantage of and paid minimally because they lack bargaining power. This is a concerning problem.

Too much focus is being placed on one side of age discrimination. Let us not forget that.

Seagull Managment. As funny and as cute as it sounds, seagull management can be detrimental to an organization.

“‘Seagull management’ is a humorous term that is used to describe a  style of management whereby the person ‘flies in, poops on you and then flies away again’.

When they are there, they typically give criticism and direction in equal quantities, often without any real understanding of what the job entails. Then before you can object or ask what they really want, they have a ‘important meeting’ to go to.”

This kind of management is all to familiar with most employees these days. I often wonder how these people even make it into the workplace to begin with! Someone needs to deal with the infestation of seagulls in organizations today!

“Seagull Management” Changing Minds.org. 22 Sept 2009. http://changingminds.org/disciplines/leadership/articles/seagull_management.htm

 The manager at Company X was a strong influence on the team, leading, directing, and motivating them to achieve company standards.  She was clearly in an authoritative position and she presented herself on a platform above the rest. She did an excellent job at preventing communication between lower level employees and upper level management. Despite this, the staff interacted well and was able to work as a team virtually conflict free. A strong culture was present and all staff fit nicely into it. Poor pay was an underlying issue to many of the employees yet strong staff relationships aimed this animosity towards the corporate structure rather than the management team.

A sudden change occurred when the manager accepted a new job opportunity and the assistant fell ill for several months, leaving no management to direct staff.  Despite upper management having several weeks notice, they failed to find a replacement manager for two months. During these two months, the remaining staff was responsible for all management activities although they had no prior experience. Employees were forced to work long hours and take on additional responsibilities with no pay increase and little acknowledgement. The staff had confronted the district sales manager, during one of two over-controlling visits she had made to the store, regarding wages and possible growth opportunities. Several empty promises later the staff was in the same position as before, feeling angry, unappreciated, and used.

A new manager was eventually hired. The staff felt resentment towards her as she immediately took away all the freedom and authority that the staff had worked so hard for so little to get. Within one month the four remaining employees quit, leaving just the manager.

This incident opened my eyes to the effect a person’s place of employment can take them. I was one of the employees who quit and I will never forget the impact and lasting memory Company X left on me.

Despite my views…

Social networking seems to be all the rage these days, but its use as a marketing tool to try and reach a targeted audience is useless. Twitter, Facebook, and MySpace will eventually be old news, just as ICQ and MSN messenger are- its just a matter of time. While social networking sites such as Twitter are hugely popular as a means of communicating to people anywhere, their use should remain at just that - as a social network device.  It is impossible for a clear, well-developed message to be persuasive  in 140 characters or less. Twitter’s main use is as an update tool where people share with the world what they are doing and how they are feeling. Very few people are even doing that anymore! It would be a waste of time spending any energy investing in Twitter as a communication tool. 

I made my way to a train station at 5am to catch a train from Milan to Venice. I was by myself clutching my only lifeline – a cellphone. My mother had called me several times to make sure I had caught my train. The journey began problem free and my anxiety, and my mothers, began to subside. I was excited and proud that I had made it that far problem free. Of course, this did not last. I probably wouldnt be telling this story otherwise! The train began to slow down in the middle of the tracks coming to a stop at a deserted station that made me very uneasy. The rest of the passengers started muttering to one another, looking around in confusion A lengthy announcement came on the intercom and everyone got up, grabbed their belongings and  stepped off the train. Did I forget to mention that I dont speak a word of Italian and all signs, announcements, and patrons were strictly Italian. A couple of trains approached and  the crowd scattered and fled in every direction.  I called my mother in a panic and explained what was going on. My anxiety shot back up. I was alone and no one could help me.

This experience is very similar to  how a new employee feels during the first couple of weeks at a new job. Most people have a had a job where they feel completely lost and have no clue what to do, where to go and who to talk to. This is likely caused by a lack of communication.  This is very common characteristic of a Bad organization. New employees are likely to fail without proper communication and guidance at the beginning of a new position. Its important not to over-look the basics of a first day orientation including training, review of policy and procedures and a tour of the establishment.  Ensuring the employee has been introduced to the entire staff will also help encourage communication within  the organization.  

So simple, so effective…. Lets not forget it!

Imagine yourself as the HR manager. The logical decision is to pick heaven; however,  hell is knocking at the back door and it’s looking good. A reasonable person would be tempted to pick hell, just as the HR manager did. If you picked hell, its likely your actual job would be far different than the job promised to you. During the recruiting process many”ugly”organizations will over-exaggerate compensation and growth opportunities, enticing the prospective employee to switch organizations. Engaging in this sort of behavior is both unethical and illegal. 

… Be careful of the next job offer that’s too good to be true. It likely is …

If you enter your neighborhood Walmart, you’re likely to find a frenzy of customers and an array of products that can’t be beat. You’d be hard-pressed to even find a person who has not shopped at Walmart in the last year. How is it that a corporation so popular is also responsible for union-busting and is notoriously known for low wages and inequity. As soon as union talk makes its way through a Walmart, that Walmart closes. What kind of message does that send? Enforce your right to join a union and we’ll close your store!How can an Ugly organization such as Walmart maintain its image and customer base despite its known illegal activities and poor treatment of workers?

I am Elizabeth Manthorpe, a 4th year HR student with a passion for HR and its effects on organizations. I live in Victoria, B.C. and have had my fair share of bad jobs with even worse HR departments (if any at all!) Although I am only 24, I have seen and experienced first hand the effects a poor HR department can have on an organization as a whole. I believe a dedicated Human Resource team is the backbone of all strong organizations. Unfortunately there are too many organizations who do not see eye to eye with me on this. I will use this blog to discuss the lack of HR in many organizations, particularily with legal and ethical issues, and to discuss the ways HR can transform an organization and its staff. Let’s talk… The good, the bad, and the ugly of HR!