Reflections on Unit 2

Unit 2 consisted of the following topics:

• Work/Life Balance
• Orientation/Training
• Working with a Diverse Staff
• Job Analysis/Handbook
• Performance Appraisals
• Discipline
• Assorted Problems

One of the things that we were asked to do at the beginning of this unit was to think more from the perspective of an employer, than from that of an employee. My current workplace provided me with many good examples, which I shared both in the discussion board and in my weekly reports. Thus, I found the transition from thinking from an employee's point of view to an employer's greatly facilitated by my personal work experience.

Work/Life Balance

The first part of Unit Two dealt with Work/Life Balance. This is a topic that has been near and dear to my heart this semester, since taking on a full courseload while also working full-time. In fact, I was somewhat amused (in a grim sort of way) to learn about the concept of karoshi, as I found that that term to be a rather perfect description of my work habits and lifestyle at the time. (Since that part of the unit, I have been trying to make some healthier life choices so that I am not literally working myself to death.)

I found the comments that some of my classmates made regarding employees who have to leave early or take time off to take care of a child insightful, as I had never considered that such actions might cause resentment or feelings of favoritism among other employees, particularly those without children. Even though I don't have any children, I feel sympathetic to what working parents go through to balance their work and family lives, and thus it never occurred to me to feel resentful if they had to attend to their families during the day. In fact, as a childless person, I would think better of my workplace if there were policies in place to support parents and families. But I can see how that might annoy others, who may feel that the family unit is being elevated above all other social statuses, and taking care to not inadvertently show favoritism to one group over another will be something that I will keep in mind, as an employer.

Orientation/Job Training

This part of the unit brought my attention to a part of my work experience that I had previously never given much thought to. In the past, I viewed orientation more as something to endure than as something to learn from. As I mentioned in my weekly report, most of my past orientations are pretty much a blur, since I tended to put them out of mind afterwards, unless something unexpected happened (such as what had happened at a job that I had at a start-up company, where I was basically shown the desk and then left on my own for the first day).

However, this topic raised my awareness of the importance of orientation, and the hopefully good impression of and introduction to the organization that the new employee will take away from the experience. The readings, especially the links to the orientation programs used by the FDA and Yale, were very helpful, and made me think more carefully about how to structure a good orientation program. They also made me think harder about my past orientation programs, and whether they were well-structured or not. With the exception of the (lack of) one mentioned above, I have to admit that they were, as was my job training at the time, which as I mentioned in my report, was conducted by my immediate supervisor in a one-on-one setting over the course of several weeks. As I also mentioned in my blog report, a combined macro- and a micro-orientation for a large institution, coupled with personalized, individual training by an employee's supervisor and/or a buddy system would be my preferred structure for an orientation and job training program. These have worked well for me in the past, and depending on the organization that I eventually work in, I hope to use them as well in my future position.

Working with a Diverse Staff

Working with a diverse staff is another topic that is very important to me, as I feel that understanding how to work with people from all types of backgrounds is essential to the proper functioning of a 21st-century workplace. I thought that the class discussion did a good job of grappling with some thorny issues related to religious diversity, and I liked that the lecture included different personality types as a form of diversity, as this is not always considered in conversations about diversity, yet can certainly be a significant factor among different co-workers. I am still wrestling over what my personal definition of diversity should include, as I tend to think in terms of the traditionally protected classes - race, gender, religion, national origin, age, disability, etc. - and the readings in both the textbook and the lecture made me think more about characteristics outside of these classes, and how it is necessary to consider these qualities when thinking about workplace diversity, while also not losing sight of issues affecting underrepresented populations.

Job Analysis/Handbook

This was another area that I had not previously given much thought to, prior to this unit. This may partly be due to the fact that the handbook that I have at my office is positively antiquated, and never used or referred to, as I mentioned in my blog report for that week. I feel that if a workplace is to have a handbook, that it needs to be updated frequently, so that it will reflect current workplace policies and will be of use to employees and managers. Having an online document will facilitate this process, and will save organizations the trouble of having to send out a new paper document every time a change is made. (Having an online document will also save organizations the trouble of having to provide paper copies, period.)

The general University of Texas at Austin Handbook of Operating Procedures is a good example of an online handbook, and as I mentioned in my blog report, I feel that it is a good idea for organizations to have both a general purpose handbook and department-specific ones, to get both a macro- and micro-view of the organization's workplace policies.

Job analysis is another vital topic that I needed to consider further. I have only previously undergone job analysis once, when the UT Libraries was considering a workforce reduction several years ago, and we all had to identify our job duties and the number of hours that we spent on each duty. (This was recorded on an Excel spreadsheet that we submitted to our departmental heads.) Even though at the time, it was slightly nerve-wracking to go through the process, I think it is a good idea to regularly conduct job analyses, and not only when there are going to be layoffs, so as to reduce anxiety over them. Perhaps job analyses can even be combined with performance evaluations, so that employees will become used to them, and important information regarding an employee's job can be used to help evaluate an employee's performance.

Performance Appraisals

I learned quite a bit from the topic on performance appraisals. Most of the appraisals that I have been through have been the traditional top-down review conducted by my supervisor, with little room for either my feedback or that of others that I work with. Thus, I found the concept of a self-review and 360-degree feedback to be eye-opening and refreshing. (As I just found out recently, the evaluation process for professional librarians at UT consists of a self-evaluation that is reviewed with the librarian's manager.)

As mentioned in my blog report, I also like the idea of providing ongoing informal feedback in addition to a formal review. I think it is helpful to do so, in particular if the performance appraisal is only a supervisor review, so that employees will not be unduly surprised by what will go into their review. (Personally, I have to admit that I'm a little bit apprehensive about my own review this year, due to my injury and my reduced hours, and some feedback from my supervisor would go a ways towards reducing my uncertainty. Of course, I can always go and speak with her about my concerns, which I plan on doing before the review period.)

Discipline

The topic on discipline was very helpful, as I have not previously had any reason to look into the disciplinary procedures at my workplace (nor do I plan to have any reason other than for class assignments!). I had heard that the UT Libraries is planning to institute something similar to progressive discipline in the summer, although the details of this change are not yet clear. Therefore, I found it very useful to learn about the procedure, both in preparation for the new system when it is implemented, and for future reference as a supervisor or manager.

Mary's motto to "document, document, document" is especially applicable in this area, since the process takes place over a period of time and a lack of documentation can prevent a manager from taking action from fear of a lawsuit. However, a good warning that was addressed in both the lecture and the discussion board is to not over-document everything and make an employee feel as if he or she is being micro-managed, and to be consistent with documentation so as to not show favoritism. Another good piece of advice was to address problems early on, and to not let them fester over time until managers have no alternative but to take harsher action. Finally, the lecture reminded us that discipline is meant to help an employee improve his or her performance or behavior, not to punish them, and that it is meant to be undertaken *with* an employee, and not be done *to* them. (This last part is a good reminder to me, as I sometimes tend to veer towards the "punish" territory when I have to discipline someone or point out something that they did wrong.)

Assorted Problems

This last topic (which is still in process, as I write this post), covered a variety of interesting issues, some commonly addressed, some not so much, such as the Patriot Act, which perhaps impacts libraries more than some other workplaces. In retrospect, I wish that I had posted a question about the Patriot Act, instead of about job searching while on the job, as I had been deciding between the two topics. I found my classmates' replies to my question about job searching at work interesting, as the conventional wisdom that I have heard regarding this topic is that it is usually considered verboten at most workplaces, although I am unclear as to what exactly might happen to an employee who is caught job searching by his or her supervisor (which is partly why I asked the question). Many of the situations mentioned in the lecture depend upon the specific workplace's policies and the enforcement of their policies, but the general rule that seems to be emerging from our discussion this week is that all things are good in moderation. Thus, using computers, office supplies and equipment, etc. for personal reasons are ok, as long as it doesn't become excessive or disruptive. (Obviously, problems such as sexual harassment and/or coming in to work drunk are not ok in any amount, and should be dealt with as soon as possible, according to the appropriate procedures.)

Conclusion

Overall, I have enjoyed this foray through these topics, and I appreciate the insights that I have gained into making my workplace more productive after I find (and keep) quality employees. It will be interesting to see how both involuntary and voluntary termination fit into the equation, as some of the topics, such as Discipline and Assorted Problems, have briefly touched upon these topics.