StudentShare
Contact Us
Sign In / Sign Up for FREE
Search
Go to advanced search...
Free

Motivating and Maintaining Morale during Downsizing at Rutledge Company - Essay Example

Cite this document
Summary
As the paper "Motivating and Maintaining Morale during Downsizing at Rutledge Company" outlines, in most instances of downsizing, the biggest challenge posed by management is laying off employees in a humane way while trying to maintain morale or improve it in case it went down. …
Download full paper File format: .doc, available for editing
GRAB THE BEST PAPER91.8% of users find it useful
Motivating and Maintaining Morale during Downsizing at Rutledge Company
Read Text Preview

Extract of sample "Motivating and Maintaining Morale during Downsizing at Rutledge Company"

? Cases Case Motivating and Maintaining Morale during Downsizing at Rutledge Company In most instances of downsizing, the biggestchallenge posed by management is laying off employees in a humane way while trying to maintain morale or improve it in case it went down. Downsizing involves the reduction of the workforce in an organization associated with corporate reorganization. For this reason, it implies that a number of employees eventually have their contracts terminated, and it consequently affects their productivity before termination of their employment. Thus, this expose analyses the best practices using the case study about downsizing in Rutledge Company. First, communication is the most important aspect in a firm, and it will be essential in solving problems such as these affecting Rutledge Company. Thus, communicating to employees on how the organization will manage change and informing them on measures that the management will use in determining who to train is crucial in creating an honest environment instrumental for motivating employees. Secondly, assisting the departing employees to find employment in other places will help boost their morale and ensure that the company does not encounter losses in terms of productivity during the downsizing period. Other actions that can increase morale and motivation are providing counseling, establishing fairness by treating all employees equally, and subsequence announcement of downsizing as planned (Mishra & Spreitzer, 1998). The objective of the company should be the elimination of most of the employees who failed to use the technology required for the job. However, the company should make definite decisions that motivate the remaining employees in order to avoid losing some of their talents. First, evaluating this category of employees and identifying their preferences and potential becomes crucial in determining the employees to retain. Therefore, Rutledge Company and its employees should collaborate in developing the best program suited to train the employees who are not using the required technology. In effect, these employees will experience a bond with Rutledge and will start using the latest technology since they participated in developing the plan and they have the feeling of ownership of the plan they helped develop. The best criteria that Rutledge should use during downsizing must encompass employee productivity and competence. In this regard, productivity should be the basis for determining the performance of employees during downsizing, and there should be a performance appraisal in place meant to determine the performance of each employee with the new technology. The performance appraisal, determined by the developers of the technology, will ensure fairness in the retention process. In addition, the fairness will make sure that all employees remained motivated to perform their responsibilities before they knew of their fate at work. It is common knowledge that changing technology in a firm requires properly training the employees. In effect, training will similarly apply to Rutledge Company and its employees. Conversely, retraining employees might improve their morale and motivate them at work. Providing in-service training to the employees will help them learn together with their managers on working while using the new technology. In effect, learning with their managers and supervisors will help create a “fellow feeling” to the company, which ultimately motivates the employees and improves their productivity at work since there will be an attachment created in the company. In addition, further training is crucial since it enhances communication within an organization. As previously indicated, communication is crucial since there will be the creation of an environment of trust and openness, which motivates Rutledge’s employees. Case 2: The Ethical Selection Dilemma at Integrity Motors Entrepreneurs and managers realize the importance of hiring the right personnel to run their businesses successfully. In order to achieve this objective, managers carry out a rigorous exercise meant to hire the right personnel for their work. However, it is possible for future employees to misrepresent a few of their credentials, or even information that might have an effect on their productivity, in order to gain positions. In effect, such challenges leave managers and entrepreneurs with legal and ethical dilemmas, which require solutions to ensure operations in a firm continued without any hindrance. Using the case of Integrity Motors, this article discusses the ethical and legal issues in hiring Gladys Morrison. The legal issue in the case of Integrity Motors lies in the fact that the company cannot discriminate against Gladys Morrison due to her pregnancy. In this regard, the Pregnancy Discrimination Act of 1978 prohibits discrimination of women due to issues related to pregnancy, or pregnancy itself (Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, n.d.). On the other hand, the ethical issue in this case regards the results of the process of interview. In this case, it will be ethically wrong to go against the results of the interviewing panel by failing to pick the best candidate in the interview panel, which makes the interview process meaningless. Besides, another ethical, and legal issue to some extent, in this case involves the fact that Integrity Motors cannot confront Gladys with this issue since it will be an act of intruding on her right to privacy. Acting on an ethical perspective, Gladys Morrison should not have applied for the job when she saw the advertisement. In this regard, it is evident that the job required an individual who was willing to work long hours each day at a high level of productivity. However, it is evident that Gladys Morrison may not be able to work for long hours each day since she may experience fatigue and fail to meet the expected objectives in terms of productivity. On the other hand, it would have been ethical for Gladys Morrison to apply for the job and consider indicating her condition in the application letter, or even during the interview. In effect, the interview panel would not have been in this dilemma. Considering the objectives that Timmy Blackburn had for the firm, it will not be prudent to hire Gladys Morrison while considering her condition. In this regard, Timmy requires someone who will work for long hours each day, which is something that hiring Gladys may not achieve considering her condition. In addition, while Gladys’ creative and commitment to the dealership may not be in doubt, her dependability is in question since she will only work for a few months and go on leave. In effect, Integrity Motors will not have consistency in the leadership of the sales team, which is the most important department in the firm. Thus, Timmy should consider another applicant since the pregnancy would restrict Gladys’ ability to perform. The hiring of Gladys Morrison will require instituting measures to accommodate her at work. One most obvious measure will be ensuring flexibility in terms of time that Gladys can work and allow her to work from home on other occasions. Another way to accommodate Gladys is to try to give her fewer roles and duties that require less energy to perform as her pregnancy progresses. In effect, this will require a lot of delegation of responsibilities and duties in the sales department. Finally, the environment of working should be conducive to make sure that Gladys worked in healthy conditions without causing injuries to herself or the growing fetus. References Mishra, A. K., & Spreitzer, G. M. (1998). Explaining how survivors respond to downsizing: The roles of trust, empowerment, justice, and work redesign. The Academy of Management Review, 23(3), 567-588. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission. (n.d.).Usa.gov. Retrieved from http://www.eeoc.gov/laws/statutes/index.cfm Read More
Cite this document
  • APA
  • MLA
  • CHICAGO
(“Motivating and Maintaining Morale during Downsizing at Rutledge Essay”, n.d.)
Motivating and Maintaining Morale during Downsizing at Rutledge Essay. Retrieved from https://studentshare.org/management/1449005-motivating-and-maintaining-morale-during-downsizing-at-rutledge-company-the-ethical-selection-dilemma-at-integrity-motors
(Motivating and Maintaining Morale During Downsizing at Rutledge Essay)
Motivating and Maintaining Morale During Downsizing at Rutledge Essay. https://studentshare.org/management/1449005-motivating-and-maintaining-morale-during-downsizing-at-rutledge-company-the-ethical-selection-dilemma-at-integrity-motors.
“Motivating and Maintaining Morale During Downsizing at Rutledge Essay”, n.d. https://studentshare.org/management/1449005-motivating-and-maintaining-morale-during-downsizing-at-rutledge-company-the-ethical-selection-dilemma-at-integrity-motors.
  • Cited: 7 times

CHECK THESE SAMPLES OF Motivating and Maintaining Morale during Downsizing at Rutledge Company

Impact of Motivation on Commitment and Work Performance of Employees

Empowering employees promotes motivation which in turn increases their engagement and commitment to their jobs; these factors raise their performance levels and ultimately increase the company's competitive advantage.... Re-organization of the company's operations to eliminate wastage of resources and personnel, and replacement of earlier methods of working with information technology are also improvements that empower the workforce....
10 Pages (2500 words) Research Paper

Management Research Paper

20 Pages (5000 words) Essay

Polyprod Change Management

This paper ''Polyprod Change Management'' tells us that polypod is a multinational company that designs; develops, manufactures and markets various high-tech products for both commercial and home use.... n spite of all the success experienced by the company, there are many organizational problems hampering the growth of the firm.... n the wake of these issues, the company hired an external consultant to streamline and improve the impeding management, organizational and leadership issues....
16 Pages (4000 words) Assignment

The Change Management Process

This paper "The Change Management Process" discusses the change management activities; their roles end importance in organizations at the time of downsizing and delayering.... There are a lot of posts which become redundant and a lot of units and departments in the organization go useless....
8 Pages (2000 words) Case Study

Motivation and Its Impact on Employees Commitment and Work Performance

Re-organization of the company's operations to eliminate wastage of resources and personnel and replacement of earlier methods of working with information technology are also improvements that empower the workforce.... The purpose of this paper 'Motivation and Its Impact on Employees' Commitment and Work Performance' is to examine the significance of empowering employees to increase their motivation levels, and explain how motivation can affect employees' commitment and performance at work....
10 Pages (2500 words) Research Paper

Change Management Efforts in Different Organizations

The right selection of change initiatives is considered fundamental and crucial for the company's success.... The paper 'Change Management Efforts in Different Organizations' is a great example of a management term paper.... Organizations and institutions work in extremely dynamic marketplaces, which call for the ability to make use of the right change opportunities....
19 Pages (4750 words) Term Paper

Layoffs - Motivations, Effects and the Alternatives

Discharging employees is considered an important strategy for company renewal and growth.... Discharging employees is considered an important strategy for company renewal and growth.... Corporate downsizing is a common event in the United States and other developed economies....
16 Pages (4000 words) Term Paper

Analysis of Managers Decisions in the Thai Day Sap

The paper "Analysis of Manager's Decisions in the Thai Day Sap" is a wonderful example of a case study on management.... In the modern world, competition is so severe to the level that companies need to make decisions quickly and decisively.... Any decision that is adopted by a manager needs to be strategic....
22 Pages (5500 words) Case Study
sponsored ads
We use cookies to create the best experience for you. Keep on browsing if you are OK with that, or find out how to manage cookies.
Contact Us