MSLD 634 Module 5-Is Marketing Evil?

When it comes to business, people often times immediately assume that the primary goal is to promote and sell products or services. Mostly true, but as a former business student, I’ve learned that businesses are so much more than selling. One of the most common reasons why organizations fail to lead effectively is because they view decision-making as a one directional, monolithic process (Anthony & Schwartz, 2017). While selling is indeed a primary operation, it is important to remember that people are what make business possible. And with people, there are always social aspects to consider and implement in decision-making: one of which is ethics.

Ethics and ethically decision-making is a bit of a "no-brainer": we have to understand and do things that’s considered right and agreeable by the people to effectively run our organization. This relationship is seen on Ferrell’s (2005) chart from Marketing Ethics (p.4):   

The important thing to consider from the table above is that this doesn’t show how to make a decision, but rather how decisions are made (Ferrell, 2005). Another thing we can draw from the table above is that how ethical decisions are depends on how the company internally approaches ethics. To ensure that ones don’t go off track, it is critical to establish strong and clear ethical guidelines throughout the company.

            While ethics is one critical thing to consider in marketing, it is also important to maintain positive relationships with consumers as well as understanding what people need, want, and like in general. One way businesses gain such information is through what Herb Weisbaum (n.d.) labels as “behavioral tracking”. Behavioral tracking is the way where organizations builds a detailed profile about people based on the information on what sites you visit and the things you buy and search. In most cases, this is done without ones knowledge or consent (Weisbaum, n.d.). To me, consent and being informed is very important, and I’d find it very unethical if ones have unauthorized access through my personal information. So here we might ask, if some business think this way, how can ones gain useful information for their business? If I played a role as a marketing manager, I’d try to gain information based on consumer feedback while maintaining a good company reputation by quickly responding to consumers.

While participation may be a bit of a struggle, I personally believe that feedback is a more reliable source of information as it comes directly from the consumer. In addition, feedback informs consumers about our request for information and gives them the option on whether or not to give consent to the company. To maintain a good reputation for the company, communication and timely responses are critical. If consumers were dissatisfied or received a faulty product or service, we need to accommodate them as soon as possible. If we see a trend that effects our consumers, take notice and take action. Just as Ferrell (2005) mentioned, companies can also get involved and give to the community to maintain a good company image (such as Home Depot providing support to Habitat for Humanity in response to Hurricane Kathrina). When this all comes down together, I personally believe that marketing isn’t necessarily evil as long as the company responds and meets consumer demands, needs, and preferences.  

References:

Anthony, S. & Schwartz, E. (2017). What the Best Transformational Leaders Do. Harvard Business Review. Retrieved from https://hbr.org/2017/05/what-the-best-transformational-leaders-do

Ferrell, L. (2005). Marketing Ethics. Retrieved from http://college.cengage.com/business/modules/marktngethics.pdf

Weisbaum, H. (n.d.). Who’s watching you online? FTC pushes ‘Do Not Track’ plan. MSN News. Retrieved from http://www.nbcnews.com/id/42239031/ns/business-consumer_news/t/whos-watching-you-online-ftc-pushes-do-not-track-plan/#.WjriM1VKuUl

MSLD 634 Module 4-Is Affirmative Action Ethical?

Affirmative action, or the practice of giving special consideration to minorities (LaFollette, 2007) may appear ethical for those in consideration, but we may ask ourselves: is it really ethical? Looking into our history, the general idea of affirmative action was ideal. American women once did not have equal rights with men and blacks once did not share equal rights to whites. Eventually, such discrimination were prohibited and affirmative actions (a plausible form of compensatory justice) were taken to ensure equal qualities of life to those involved (AAAED, 2015). Over the course of years however, racism and other forms of discrimination has declined: which changed the way we view affirmative actions.

The whole concept of affirmative action reminded me of a personal situation I’ve been involved with during a mid-season tryout for my high school varsity tennis team. During these tryouts, top rank players from the junior varsity team had a chance to play several matches against the varsity players. Depending on the result of these matches, players had the opportunity to move up and even join the varsity team. As the top-rank player in the junior varsity team, I participated in the tryouts and managed to win a match against a varsity player. Upon winning, my opponent and the entire varsity team got into a very emotional state and were deeply sadden by her loss. Despite my hard efforts, the coaches eventually made the ultimate decision to not swap ranks due to the “friendship” involved. When this decision was made, I was confused (and very upset) since I didn’t understand the difference between my opponent’s friendship to the varsity team and mine. What made my opponent stand out more than me? If I were my opponent, would I be getting the same treatment? While the probable reason may be for the two of us to avoid any negative impacts (the opponent dealing with embarrassment and the varsity team treating me badly due to winning), the real reason to this decision remains unclear.

Similar thoughts and questions arises in the case of student admissions: which I personally find to be a long time and fairly popular topic related to affirmative action. A recent article I came across is in relation to Harvard University and their lack of admission for Asian-Americans. Recent statistics show that more than half of the university’s freshmen class were women, more than one in five were Asian and nearly 15% were African-American (BBC, 2017). While it is unclear if race is involved in the admissions process, some claims that education standards in Asian countries may be the primary reason to lower admission rates. In a 2010 statistics from the Program for International Assessment (PISA), eight of the top ten countries that ranked in education were from the Asia-Pacific region (Desai, 2010). If Harvard’s decision-making were based on this, this would be a form of reverse-discrimination and hence unethical for the Asian-American population. While there are many other factors involved in the admissions’ process, I generally believe that affirmative action is unethical: as there will always be two different sides in a situation.

References:

American Association for Access Equity and Diversity. (2015). More History of Affirmative Action Policies From the 1960s. Retrieved from https://www.aaaed.org/aaaed/History_of_Affirmative_Action.asp

BBC. (2017). Harvard affirmative action ‘investigated by Justice Dept’. BBC News. Retrieved from http://www.bbc.com/news/world-us-canada-42070493

Desai, V. (2010). The U.S. must start learning from Asia. CNN. Retrieved from http://www.cnn.com/2010/OPINION/12/07/school.results.us.asia.desai/index.html

LaFollette, H. (2007). The Practice of Ethics. Blackwell Publishing.

MSLD 634 Module 3- The Harder They Fall

The leadership program so far has taught me many tips on what it takes to be a great leader, and I once again sharpened my understanding this week. For this week’s module, we read Roderick Kramer’s article The Harder They Fall: which primarily focused on power. Many people desire to move up and be successful, however often times they are not aware of the potential risks involved and as a result struggle to maintain efficient leadership. For this blog post, I will be briefly discussing some of Kramer’s points and suggestions, in addition to relating the topic to my current work experiences.

Despite being constantly reminded how the world is getting flatter, I personally believe that strictly following the traditional top-down styles of leadership is one common mistake in many organizations today. According to Obolensky (2014), different levels of an organization tend to have different kinds and amount of information. In his study, he finds that approximately 60% of the information required for decision-making are found at the bottom level of an organization versus 30% in the middle and 10 on the top level (p.37). As a result, he concludes that it’s important for ones to encourage communication (including external stakeholders) to make more effective decision-making (Obolensky, 2014).

Obolensky’s points adds up to Kramer’s points on the danger of over relying on power. By doing so, ones come to believe that normal limits don't apply to them and that they are entitled to any spoils they can seize. This behavior then causes them to become less aware of the things happening around them, which can eventually lead them to corruption (Kramer, 2003). To ensure that leaders can avoid the traps that power can bring, Kramer (2003) suggests leaders to implement several common psychological and behavioral habits. Some of the suggestions included that ones should simply live their lives, be “ordinary” like everyone else, shine a light on their weaknesses instead of trying to cover them up, and to always be reflective (Kramer, 2003). The suggestions Kramer made reminded me of Obolensky’s concepts of leading as a polygarchy (where everyone works and has a leadership role). By reducing the power barrier in the workplace, it encourages ones to communicate with one another. This can establish more of a learning environment in the organization: which can serve growth opportunities for the organization (Obolensky, 2014).

This week’s topic reminds me of a time when my workplace was in the early process of simplifying and centralizing campus operations. Some of the changes revolved around the low levels of the university: which caused a lot of issues with student advisement. Eventually, the university established a month-long training session: where we received new and refresh training to clarify and improve campus operations. During our sessions, many of the lower-leveled employees including myself were given the opportunity to speak out and even provide suggestions to individuals from various departments and levels of the organization. Despite higher levels having their own preferred way, our opportunity to speak provided them opportunities to consider additional information to a procedure or standard. Since this training, I personally believe that top leaders have improved their understanding of listening and hence been making improvements for the university.

References:

Kramer, R. M. (2003). THE HARDER THEY FALL. (cover story). Harvard Business Review, 81(10), 58-66.

Obolensky, N. (2014). Complex Adaptive Leadership: Embracing Paradox and Uncertainty (2nd ed.). UK: Gower Publishing.

MSLD 634 Module 2- Theories of Ethics

For this week’s module, LaFollette introduced us to two different categories of ethical theory that have different approaches on problem solving: consequentialism and deontology. Consequentialism, as LaFollette (2007) defines is the way where ones choose the available action(s) with the best overall consequences, whereas deontology states that ones should act in ways circumscribed by moral rules or rights (p. 22). The key difference is that consequentialism focuses more on results while deontology focuses on how to get to the results (Rudin, 2014).

Of the two categories, I consider myself more of a consequentialist since I personally believe that a thorough analysis (more details) is what makes decision-making more efficient. As LaFollette (2007) stated, consequentialists typically specify which consequences are morally relevant, how much “weight” or consideration we should give to those that count, and how precisely we should use them in moral reasoning (p. 23). An example I had was whether to determine if making regular phone calls (general information) to students was an ideal operation for my campus. If I chose to regularly call students, I know that students will be informed and will likely be happy to hear from us. However, considering the fact that most students are full-time employees, I worried that calling them about non-urgent information in the middle of work could be a distraction and may lead to negative consequences. With these and other thoughts in mind, I decided that calling regularly will likely not be the best choice for my campus, an instead decided to email the information to the students.

                As previously mentioned, deontology is the way where we act in ways circumscribed by moral rules or rights (LaFollette, 2007). A recent example of this is when I went over the Train Dilemma in last week’s blog post. One of the scenario asked whether I should push an elderly man to save five children on the tracks or not to push. At an instance, my immediate thought was to not push the elder because, I believe that all human life is sacred regardless of their gender, age, race, etc. While I make some decisions in this category, I personally worry if my moral beliefs do not align with what others think. In a hypothetical setting, if I chose not to sacrifice the elder despite sacrificing to save the young were considered a moral act for many, I’d likely face deep consequences for my action. With this in mind, I personally believe that deontology is a better approach when dealing with less complex situations (no large consequences).

References:

LaFollette, H. (2007). The practice of ethics. Malden, MA: Blackwell Publishing.

Rudin, S. (2014). Consequentialism, Deontology, Ethics, and Virtue. The Loop. Retrieved from http://www.theloopnewspaper.com/story/2014/03/29/local-news/consequentialism-deontology-ethics-and-virtue/416.html

MSLD 634 Module 1-The Train Dilemma: When no Choice is a Good One!

Whether it’s for personal or professional reasons, we make decisions every day. In most cases, we require little time to think over and determine the most effective choice(s). Decision-making however is not always easy: as not all choices can be good. For this week’s module, I had the opportunity to learn about the Train Dilemma. Developed by Phillippa Foot in 1967 and later adapted by Judith Thomson in 1985, the purpose of the experiment is to think through the consequences of an action and consider whether its moral value is determined solely by its outcome (D’Olimpio, 2016).

The Train Dilemma consist of a situation where a train is hurtling down a track where several children are standing. As a switchperson, we are involved in making a choice that involves unpleasant sacrifices. Below are three different situations of the Train Dilemma and how I will likely approach each situation:

Situation One:

A train is hurtling down the track where five children are standing. You are the switchperson. By throwing the switch, you can put the train on a side track where one child is standing. Will you throw the switch?

In any crisis, our goal as humans is to save as many lives as possible. We see examples of this almost daily with local news stations: warning and helping citizen prepare for an upcoming hurricane to sending alerts of an active shooting. While making efforts is important, every case is different and we are sometimes unable to save every one. In this case, we see a train coming at full speed and only have a few seconds until the train hits someone. With the previous moral belief and hope that all children will make effort to escape, I’d likely turn the switch to the single child on the side railing since I’d lose one rather than five children if they were unable to escape on time.

Situation Two:

A train is hurtling down the track where five children are standing. You are the switchperson and standing next to an elderly man. If you push him in front of the train, it will stop the train and all the children will be saved. Will you push him?

Unlike the last situation, we have an elderly man that’s currently at the scene, but not necessarily involved in the same danger the children are in (not on the tracks). If the scene has the exact set up as the last scenario, but with no one on the side rail, throwing the switch will be the most ideal choice. However based on the description of the scenario, this is likely not the case. Despite the fact that sacrificing an elder can save all the children, all human life is sacred regardless of their gender, age, race, etc. If I decided to sacrifice the elder despite this belief, people will likely view my actions as murder: which can pose lifetime complications than dealing with the fate of the children. As a result, I will not sacrifice the elder. Other reasons for this action include a belief that there may be a possibility of the elder failing to stop the train and the possibility of the elder making his own choice to sacrificing himself (the public will likely see this as an act of heroism rather than murder).

Situation Three:

A train is hurtling down the track where five children are standing. You are the switchperson. By throwing the switch, you can put the train on a side track where one child is standing. However, this child is your own child. Will you throw the switch to save the five children?

               Despite believing that it’s important to save as many lives possible, this situation becomes excruciatingly difficult when you have a family member involved. As a result, the actions we make in such situations will likely be personal.  If all the children involved were far from reach (distance and time-wise), I’d honestly save my own child. However, still believing the importance of saving people, I’d likely throw the switch to ensure the five children will not get hurt, and try to save or sacrifice myself to save my child.

Although I listed the choices for each scenario, I’d honestly say that I can’t guarantee making ethical and efficient decisions despite knowing what I believe is right and wrong. The Train Dilemma reminded me of a mall stabbing incident that occurred earlier this year. Everything happened so fast- the moment I saw a large crowd of people running towards our direction, I didn’t know what was happening. Without realizing what was going on, I ran with the crowd despite being with my friend: who happened to be visiting the mall for the very first time that day. If I had the time and was in a more relax state, helping and escaping with my friend will be the more ideal choice. However, since fear shuts down the thinking process, I ended up making the less ethical choice (Dayton, n.d.).

References:

Dayton, T. (n.d.). Scared Stiff: The Biology of Fear. Tian Dayton Phd. Retrieved from http://www.tiandayton.com/scared-stiff-the-biology-of-fear

D’Olimpio, L. (2016). The trolley dilemma: would you kill one person to save five?. The Conversation. Retrieved from https://theconversation.com/the-trolley-dilemma-would-you-kill-one-person-to-save-five-57111

MSLD 635 Module 8- Transformational Strategies

Throughout the leadership program, we’ve been constantly reminded how change is always constant. Because of this, organizations must stay proactive and adapt to any changes in order to survive (Obolensky, 2014). Leading and adapting to changes however is not always easy. One common reason why organizations fail to lead during change is because they approach change as a monolithic process (Anthony & Schwartz, 2017). As leaders, it is important to keep in mind that adapting to change consist of a multi-step process.

According to Brown (2011), company culture plays a large role: as it correlates to an array of things in an organization (p 406). Figure 15.4 shows and define what strong and weak cultures are:

To ensure organizations have strong company culture, there must be a strong commitment and share of company values. In addition, it is important for leaders to note that strong culture often times leads to higher resistance to change (Brown, 2011).

Another helpful tool to consider for organizational transformation is the Strategy-Culture Matrix:

Since company culture correlates to an array of areas within the organization, it is ideal to know the status of the company culture before implementing a strategy. Figure 15.5 shows the relationship between company culture and strategy: which can help leaders decide the most appropriate strategy for the company.

            For this week’s module we watched two videos that focused on transformational strategies. The first video consisted of a short interview with Gallery Furniture owner, Jim McIngvale. In the 31 years of his business, McIngvale dealt with two major issues. The first was a recession that lead to a decrease in new homes (which decreased customer traffic) and another was a $30 million fire that resulted in an 80% drop of the company (VitalSmarts, 2012). Due to these changes and continuing decline, McIngvale decided to take immediate actions.

Since McIngvale was aware of customers leaving the store without any purchase, he decided to train his employees on how to approach potential customers. Something that left me in awe was when McIngvale quoted that he had to “teach them (employees) to love what they hated” (VitalSmarts, 2013). This statement reminded of myself when advising students who disliked or wanted to avoid online classes. Since individuals who resist something mostly focus on the negatives, it is important to counter this by bringing out the positives (Brown, 2011). In McIngvale’s case, he showed his employees examples of successful people to bring out the message that they too can be successful if they implement the new strategy (VitalSmarts, 2013).

The second video for this week’s module was a TED talk by Stanley McChrystal titled, Listen, Learn….Then Lead. Throughout the talk, McChrystal shares what he learned about leadership in the military. He initially talked about how he was raised with the traditional styles of leadership, but in time, he realized how leadership styles have changed. In summary, he has learned the importance of relationships. One of my favorite quotation in the TED talk actually occurred in the end where McChrystal quotes, “If you're a leader, the people you've counted on will help you up. And if you're a leader, the people who count on you need you on your feet.” (McChrystal, 2011). Unlike the past, leadership has shifted from a traditional, “one-leads-all” to that of a polygarcy: where everyone has a leadership role (Obolensky, 2014). The key here is that everyone can learn from each other. While they’re not necessarily employees, an example that occurs in my organization is between me and students. As an advisor, it’s always important to remember that students actually have experiences in classes and other university resources. From this other perspective, I can gain new information: which can be used for future advisement.

References:

Anthony, S. & Schwartz, E. (2017). What the Best Transformational Leaders Do. Harvard Business Review. Retrieved from https://hbr.org/2017/05/what-the-best-transformational-leaders-do

Brown, D. R. (2011). An experiential approach to organization development (8th ed.). Upper Saddle River, NJ: Prentice Hall.

McChrystal, S. (2011). Stanley McChrystal: Listen, learn…then lead. TED. Retrieved from https://www.ted.com/talks/stanley_mcchrystal

Obolensky, N. (2014). Complex Adaptive Leadership: Embracing Paradox and Uncertainty (2nd ed.). UK: Gower Publishing.

VitalSmarts. (2012). Influencer: Gallery Furniture Video Case Study [Video file]. YouTube. Retrieved from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=E20RW75Fhu4

MSLD 635 Module 7-INSEAD Reflection

Most of today’s businesses have become complex to the point that the traditional “one leads all” method is often times the least-effective way of running an entire organization (Obolensky, 2014). Since there’s too much responsibility and information for a single leader to handle, we rely on a team of people who practice self-management. As Paul Tesluk explained in this week’s video, a self-managing team has formal responsibilities and authorities to make their own decisions on how they organize and plan to get their work done (INSEAD, 2008).

My current workplace heavily relies on self-managing teams and they have both their benefits and drawbacks. Aside from splitting the workload, one important aspect my organization obtain from self-managing teams is that each team have and obtain unique information per-campus. As an online university, my organization consist of over 100 campuses around the world to provide advisement to current and prospective students. Due to demographic, environmental, and other differences, some methods the university encourages us to practice may not work for all campuses. For instance, my campus mainly consist of Boeing employees. As many of them work at the typical 8-hour day and travel constantly, we worry that telephone calls about non-urgent information (such as on-campus offerings) would be a distraction to their work. Since many of them prefer emails to begin with, we therefore send emails that provide the information the campus wants us to distribute.

            While each self-managing team split the company’s workload and usually increase efficiency (due to unique set of information), there are also some negative aspects to consider. Due to a number of people working together, there is a higher risk of conflict. Conflicts in the organization can occur either within or with other teams: as someone or a group have a completely different view or idea of something (Kokemuller, n.d.). Having strong support of one’s own ideas and operations can also increase the risk of a group going off-track. This can create an assortment of problems that could eventually hurt the entire organization. To minimize these drawbacks, it is important for organizations to periodically check-in with teams to ensure that they’re doing their jobs correctly and efficiently. Coaching, training, and interviews are some examples that will help employees on track (Brown, 2011). For my case, the university offers mandatory as well as optional online conferences in addition to an annual summit meeting that provide reviews and brand new information. In some cases, these meeting allow us to provide and share feedbacks with one another: which can help us learn and enhance our everyday campus operations.


References:

Brown, D. R. (2011). An experiential approach to organization development (8th ed.). Upper Saddle River, NJ: Prentice Hall.

INSEAD. (2008). Self-managing teams: debunking the leadership paradox [Video file]. YouTube. Retrieved from https://www.youtube.com/watch?time_continue=69&v=GBnR00qgGgM

Obolensky, N. (2014). Complex Adaptive Leadership: Embracing Paradox and Uncertainty (2nd ed.). UK: Gower Publishing.

Kokemuller, N. (n.d.). The advantages & disadvantages of teams in the workplace. Chron. Retrieved from http://smallbusiness.chron.com/advantages-disadvantages-teams-workplace-21669.html

MSLD 635 Module 6- EcoSeagate

Prior to establishing EcoSeagate, the employees of Seagate Technology: a computer hard drive manufacturer experienced some problems within the company. Due to constant firing and other issues, employee reputation was poor: often times renaming the company “Slavegate”. CEO Bill Watkins was very well aware of the situation and established EcoSeagate immediately after becoming president in 2000. Watkins’ goal was to transfer the values and experiences of teamwork from the multi-day lab back to their work (Brown, 2011).

EcoSeagate is a five-day, experience where Seagate employees from around the world travels to New Zealand to participate in various outdoor activities including kayaking and racing. After watching the videos for this week’s module, I recall a similar experience I had and can relate some of the values obtainable from EcoSeagate. In 2004, I participated the annual Yoron Island Adventure School. The camp is an International Youth Association of Japan program in which fifth graders build relationships with others from different countries (Fisher, 2009). When I participated, the camp mostly consisted of DODDS and Japanese students.

Just like EcoSeagate, the Yoron Island camp lasted a couple days and we participated in various activities including holding dragon boat races, as well as building bamboo rafts. Since every activity involved teamwork, it was crucial for our team to communicate with one another. As I communicated with my team members, I was able to make new friends. This made me feel more comfortable and open: which made communication and trust stronger and easier. Since the program consisted a mix of kids from different schools and countries, we were also able to learn various things from one another. Similar things can be seen in the EcoSeagate video: where employees from various departments, locations, and cultures come together. Just as I did in my camp, employees can meet new people in addition to teaching one another. An example from the video included an individual replacing a bike tire for another team member. While it’s uncertain, we can see how the individual changing the tire likely had previous experience and knowledge than the one needing help (Chao, 2008). With new information, ones can not only obtained new information, but they can use that information to enhance their work.

After watching the EcoSeagate video and relating to my own experiences, I believe that my organization can gain some benefits for hosting a similar event. In my organization, there are over 100 different campuses scattered around the world. Each campus is unique and consist of different operations and student demographics. By occasionally bringing everyone together, we can enhance relationships and learn from one another. Recently, my university had a mandatory month-long training program where every campus and their employees reviewed and learned an array of campus standards, operations, and procedures. Throughout the training, we were encouraged to communicate with one another. Often times, we were able to obtain new information and ideas and used them at our own campus to improve everyday operations.

References:

Brown, D. R. (2011). An experiential approach to organization development (8th ed.). Upper Saddle River, NJ: Prentice Hall.

Chao, M. (2008). Eco Seagate 2008 [Video file]. YouTube. Retrieved from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zCOfOFMiLtE

Fisher, C. (2009). DODDS students relish Japanese adventure. Stars and Stripes. Retrieved from https://www.stripes.com/news/dodds-students-relish-japanese-adventure-1.89834

MSLD 635 Module 5- Video Debrief of Team MA

            Steve Jobs, the co-founder of Apple is often seen as one of the most iconic leaders of the century, as well as a pioneer who revolutionized the usage of personal computers. Like all leaders, they all start someplace small. For this week’s module, we watched a short documentary on Job’s earlier days when he founded NeXT Incorporated. The documentary mainly focused on the first couple days when the company was founded.

            One of the most noticeable thing throughout the documentary was that Steve Jobs had a clear vision on where he’d like NeXt to be rather than focusing too much on the details on how to get there. Placing myself in the scenario, I personally find Job’s ideas to be interesting, and I believe the key here is motivation. As a former business student, we’ve mainly been taught to find the single right plan to achieve our goals. To do this, we “branch out” and focus on the small details of the organization which includes anywhere from marketing to budgeting ideas. From an honest standpoint, these details are often times pretty boring and can sometimes lead to confusion, as well as people to go off track.

On the contrary, Steve Jobs focused on the possibilities for his company. For this case, Jobs brought awareness to employees that college and higher education students are starting to rely on computers for learning opportunities. To explain, Jobs talked about simulated learning environments: where it allows something that’s intangible (such as a linear accelerator for physics students) to be tangible, as well as providing a more cost-efficient option for both students and faculty (as an example, he mentioned a five-million-dollar DNA Laboratory). To motivate his employees even more, Jobs acknowledged his employees’ skills and passion on technology. He states a couple times throughout the documentary that he wants people to put their “hearts” to their products (Nathan, 1986).

Perhaps the most capturing moment of the documentary was when Jobs talked about putting some “heart” into their work. While I currently work at a non-profit organization, I can refer and related to Job’s approaches with NeXT Inc. Prior to working at my current position, I was a student from the same university that I currently work for. While my advisors provided me some assistance throughout my degree, they were almost always rushing: causing me to feel lost and hesitant to ask for further assistance. Now an advisor, I knew that I had the ability to make things happen. Since day one of my job, my goal was to ensure that students do not have the same experiences as I did a few years ago. To do this, I try to not only provide the resources to students, but I try to know each and every one of them. Despite my experiences with my past advisors, I overall (and still do!) had an amazing experience with the university. To enrich my advisement, I often times share experiences and tips. A few months into my job, I started to notice a difference at the campus. More people were contacting me for assistance, and some of us have established a closer relationship: where we engage in small side conversations.

References:

Nathan, J. (1986). Entrepreneur [Video file]. Retrieved from https://www.youtube.com/watch?time_continue=255&v=loQhufxiorM 

MSLD 635 Module 4- Build a Tower, Build a Team

Tom Wujec’s Build a Tower, Build a Team was an interesting TED talk that mainly focused on the results of the “marshmallow problem” from various group members. The goal of the team-building exercise was to build the tallest, freestanding tower that consist of 20 sticks of dry spaghetti, a yard of tape and strings, and topping the tower with a single large marshmallow. During the talk, Wujec mainly focused on the results of two groups: the MBA students and kindergartners. The results were interesting: where kindergartners yield taller towers than MBA students (Wujec, 2010).

Personally, the results were not really surprising: as I personally experienced similar results to the MBA students in a past group activity. Back when I was studying business, my class was divided into two groups to silently build a bridge that can hold and support the weight of a thick textbook. We only had 30 minutes to build the bridge and had a very limited supply of cardboard, tapes, glue, and other craft items. Since we were not allowed to talk, our group communicated using body language and mostly by drawing. Just as Wujec stated, business students are trained to find the single right plan (Wujec, 2010). While part of it was likely because of the silent rule, we spent more than half of the time planning rather than building, ran out of time, and failed to make an effective bridge (it’s funny since both groups failed!).

After watching Wujec’s talk, I agreed with his analysis of the experiment. Unlike the MBA students, Wujec found that Kindergartners performed better because of their ability to continuously make prototypes, and build on to successful ones. In addition, they did not bother to “jockey for power”: saving them time to establish the prototypes (Wujec, 2010). Personally, I believe that the children performed better than MBA students because of the variety of kids that were in the group. This was seen when Wujec compared the results of architects and engineers, CEOs, and CEOs working with an executive admin (Wujec, 2010). His results reminded me of how the Google Company promotes innovation within their company. To do so, the company established the Google Café: where employees from various departments were encouraged to communicate with one another. This not only help establish stronger company relationships, but it was also used as a learning opportunity to employees (He, 2013).

In my organization, we follow some similar strategies Wujec shared in his talk. At my level, I can only cover very general advisement to prospective and current students. When I come across any unusual or complex situation, I rely on the help of my coworkers: who have the knowledge and skills they specialize in from their department. As we collaborate, we sometimes come across flaws and other information. From this point, employees can then focus on them and can either add on or enhance our current campus operations.

References:

He, L. (2013). Google’s Secrets Of Innovation: Empowering Its Employees. Forbes. Retrieved from https://www.forbes.com/sites/laurahe/2013/03/29/googles-secrets-of-innovation-empowering-its-employees/#7913604657e7

Wujec, T. (2010). Tom Wujec: Build a tower, build a team [Video File]. TED. Retrieved from https://www.ted.com/talks/tom_wujec_build_a_tower/transcript

MSLD 635 Module 3- 50 Reasons Not to Change/The Tribes We Lead

Adapting to changes is critical to our everyday lives. Whether the change revolves around climate to a new government policy, we must adapt to change in order for us to “survive”. From the business standpoint, adapting to change often times brings positive benefits: leading to resolutions or improvements in the workplace (Brown, 2011). Despite its benefits however, every change comes with a set of obstacles.

Adapting to change can sometimes be a time consuming and difficult process. While there are many reasons to why people resist to change, most of them do so because of the loss of control, amount of uncertainty, and lack of confidence in adapting to change (Kanter, 2012). To avoid going through stress, people therefore often make excuses. After reviewing Daryl Watkins’ 50 Reasons Not to Change I was able to find a few that I’ve used before. An example of change I recall with my workplace was when they set new instructions and other standards on student degree mapping (course recommendations). Just a few weeks before the announcement, I established my own degree map template. The template took several days to make and included special computer coding that sped up the process in making the maps. The moment I heard the announcement, I felt very frustrated due to the amount of time and effort placed in making my own template. In addition, the university set new timelines on when maps must be completed.

Just as Seth Godin mentioned in his talk The Tribes We Lead, I was able to adapt these changes with the help of “tribes”. In summary, Godin believes that tribes, or small groups with shared ideas and values is what drives people to lead and make changes (Godin, 2009). In this case, my tribe consisted of my fellow co-workers. As everyone was adapting to the new policies, each of us started to see the benefits about the new policies. What really drove me into accepting the change however were the ideas and shortcuts we came across when making the degree maps. For instance, an advisor from my neighboring campus established and distributed an electronic spreadsheet that automatically wrote the full course title with just the course number. This saved us a lot of time: where before we had to type everything manually. In addition, I wouldn’t have been able to use this file with my previous template, as the file is not compatible with my template. Since saving time was convenient, this idea motivated me to stick with the new template my university required us to use.

Seth Godin’s video was very informative and reminded me of some tips to consider when advising students. While it’s a small fraction of students, a challenge I constantly face is to have students accept and take online classes. Like most universities, my school is becoming more specialized in online courses. In addition to most students ranging ages 40 and older, they are often times used to traditional on-campus courses. Overwhelmed in adapting to the online style of learning, I try to overcome this by listing the benefits of taking online courses. The key to overcome resistance to change is through motivation (Brown, 2011). Just as Godin mentioned, I often times like to share personal experiences as a student to inform students (Godin, 2009). To boost their confidence, I also provide walkthrough sessions in-person and by email for all students. By the end of the session, students are not only informed, but they often times feel more confident and are aware that they have advisors that could help them throughout their degree program.

References:

Brown, D. R. (2011). An experiential approach to organization development (8th ed.). Upper Saddle River, NJ: Prentice Hall.

Godin, S. (2009). Seth Godin: The tribes we lead [Video File]. TED. Retrieved from https://www.ted.com/talks/seth_godin_on_the_tribes_we_lead

Kanter, R. (2012). Ten Reasons People Resist Change. Harvard Business Review. Retrieved from https://hbr.org/2012/09/ten-reasons-people-resist-chang

MSLD 635 Module 2- How Companies Can Make Better Decisions

For this week’s module, Harvard Business Review’s How Companies Can Make Better Decisions, Faster reminded me how there’s more than just management that yields effective organizational decision-making. As a former business student, I was constantly reminded how strong management skills yields positive outcomes for organizations. While my previous program mentioned little of the social aspects (such as rewards systems and communication), it wasn’t until I started the leadership program where I realized that employee relationship and engagement can be just as important.

When Marcia Blenko of the Bain & Company's Global Organization Practice argued that decision effectiveness correlates positively with organizational performance and employee engagement, I believe that she was referring to strong management skills and relationships with employees. Organizations are like any complex machinery. Each part has their own specific function, and when a single department falls out of place, the whole organization will eventually be affected. To ensure that decisions are effective and include the four main elements: quality, speed, yield and effort, Blenko suggests leaders to stay proactive and follow five steps in making effective decisions.

Blenko’s first step is to have organizations check to see if their overall organization is doing well. In addition to identifying any possible challenges, this helps the organization pinpoint any areas that needs to be fixed. Once the research has been done, organizations then identify the critical decisions. The key here is to identify which decisions matters most and which ones will yield the most positive results. Once the decisions have been identified, the next step Blenko suggest is to take the critical decisions and use the tools available to set those decisions. In addition, it is also important to ensure that the decisions support and are embedded within the organization (Blenko, 2010).

While informing employees about the change is important, motivating them to accept the decision can be just as important. According to Parkash Singh, behavior is what people actually do. In other words, what’s going on inside one’s head affects how people act and perform (Singh, 2014). Since behaviors are often influenced by the way another person acts, it is important for leaders to approach employees in the way you want them to make them feel. If decisions will cause stress in the work environment for example, the best way to announce the change is to approach in a caring manner. By being honest and bringing positive messages to the workplace, they will likely understand the reason for the changes and understand your care. The key here is to make employees feel that they are part of the organization: making them feel empowered and more motivated to accept the change (Somogyi, Buchko, & Buchko, 2013).

References:

Blenko, M. (2010). How Companies Can Make Better Decisions, Faster [Video file]. YouTube. Retrieved from https://www.youtube.com/watch?time_continue=9&v=pbxpg6D4Hk8

Singh, P. (2014). Employees' use of empathy to improve their job behavior. The International Business & Economics Research Journal (Online). Retrieved from http://search.proquest.com.ezproxy.libproxy.db.erau.edu/docview/1525361493/abstract/2F2815C3B74C411EPQ/1?accountid=27203

Somogyi, R., Buchko, A., & Buchko, K. (2013). Managing with empathy: Can you feel what I feel? Journal of Organizational Psychology. Retrieved from http://search.proquest.com.ezproxy.libproxy.db.erau.edu/docview/1470425153/fulltextPDF/CE275E3C16174E05PQ/1?accountid=27203

MSLD 635 Module 1- 21st Century Enlightenment

History is one of many topics I’ve always been fascinated about, and watching Matthew Taylor’s 21st Century Enlightenment video was indeed a pleasurable one. In this video, Taylor discussed how today’s world is not the same as it was in the 18th century. When thinking about this, it’s truly amazing to see the endless amounts of changes that has occurred within the last few centuries.
The video brings up the importance and the need for ones to adapt and think proactively. This idea immediately reminded me of Daryl Conner’s metaphor on “the burning platform”. In the summer of 1988, an oil rig exploded off the coast of Scotland, which tragically killed over 160 workers. Andy Mochan, a survivor from the accident chose to jump fifteen stories into water to avoid the blaze, quoting “it was either jump of fry” (Conner, 2012). The key here is that if he stayed on the burning platform, he could have died. By accepting a change or a current event (for this case, a fire), ones can “pay less” damage and possibly experience different outcomes (Galoppin, 2011). As leaders, it is important to keep in mind that change is constant. To ensure quality outcomes in our decision-making, it is important to understand and adapt to what’s happening around us: otherwise we’ll fall behind and face a domino-effect of problems.

Understanding what’s happening around us not only includes events, but it also includes the views of other people (Obolensky, 2014). When Taylor argued that individuals needed “to resist our tendencies to make right or true that which is merely familiar and wrong or false that which is only strange", he simply meant that there are no right or wrongs: as each and every one of us have different thoughts and opinions (RSA, 2010). Information from others can be just as important as our own. In some instances, this can be used as a learning opportunity: allowing ones to extend and enhance their own decision-making. Considering information from others plays a crucial role as an academic advisor. While I may have the information and recommendations for my students, I am helping them with their plan: meaning that I must make decisions revolving around them. To do this, I must listen and gather as much information from them as possible. When doing so, I sometimes pick up new information that I never knew or even thought of. This not only informed me, but it will also help me with future advisement.

While it is encouraged for leaders to consider others’ point-of-views, it is always important to take time and look through them before relying on them. Taylor later argued in his video that leaders should avoid elements of pop culture. While a friend recommends you getting an iPhone for example, he might have recommended them because many people have them. Accepting this information without any research can be very risky: as there may be a lack of though put into making that decision.

References:

Conner, D. (2012). The Real Story of the Burning Platform. Retrieved from http://www.connerpartners.com/frameworks-and-processes/the-real-story-of-the-burning-platform

Galoppin, L. (2011). The Giant Misunderstanding on Burning Platforms. Retrieved from http://www.reply-mc.com/2011/01/17/the-giant-misunderstanding-on-burning-platforms/

Obolensky, N. (2014). Complex Adaptive Leadership: Embracing Paradox and Uncertainty (2nd ed.). UK: Gower Publishing.

RSA. (2010). RSA ANIMATE: 21st Century Enlightenment [Video file]. YouTube. Retrieved from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AC7ANGMy0yo

MSLD 632 Module 9- Role of Emotion in Decision Making

Baba Shiv's Brain Research at Standford: Decision Making was an excellent presentation that explained the correlation between emotions and decision-making. Mostly focusing on confidence, he concludes that any negative emotions (no confidence) made by the decision-maker will have an effect on those in part of the decision (Shiv, 2011). Decision-making is my primary focus as an academic advisor. While there are some cases where I make decisions, I mostly help students make their own final decision(s). 

In the most honest standpoint, Professor Shiv's presentation was not new information. A lot of my current advisement strategies come from my own experience as a former student. As a transfer student, I experienced a lot of technical issues and confusions to determine what classes I needed to take. Because of this, I often relied on the help of my advisors. While my advisor was an overall friendly individual, there was always a long line of students waiting: causing him to rush through his advisement. In addition, he usually lacked confidence of his advisement due to his constant business travels (always out of the office and had little experience with advisement). Constantly feeling unsure and rushing through his advisement, I always felt like a nuisance and remained what Shiv described a "high maintenance" individual.

Ever since I started working for my university, I always think about myself as a former student. I never want my students to feel and go through the same things I did and knew it was all up to me. A few months ago, I had a student from my university's online campus that was clearly in distress. After going back and forth, I learned that the student attempted to turn in his tuition payment to his advisor, but couldn't reach out to her due to her office being closed. Since the situation wasn't unusual, I had an immediate answer and felt very confident on how to resolve the issue. In addition to smiling and speaking in a happy tone, I also emphasized with the student: which I believe is critical in decision-making. Empathy is defined as the ability to share and relate the feelings of others. In this case, I knew exactly how the student felt on not receiving the help he wanted. By relating to the student, I often find myself expressing my true emotions during the resolution process (Somogyi, 2013). For this case, I explained to the student how important immediate assistance is to me. As a suggestion, I recommended him to change his advisement location to us to receive local-time advisement: in addition to be able to process his payment. The student agreed and was satisfied by the decision.

While many of the questions that come in my office are general, there are some cases where I come across some very unusual situations. A couple weeks ago, I had a potential student come into my office asking for some general information about what degree programs we offer. Everything was going in order until the person asked me about using a military benefit that I've never processed before. I started to feel very nervous and often stumbled on explaining how the benefit is used. Likely overhearing my struggles, my boss ended up interrupting us and answered the question. Since the student had other questions to ask, he ended up talking to my boss rather than me: which continued even after he was admitted to the university. The mistake I made was that I kept going. Rather than talking with uncertainty, I should have been honest and asked the individual if he doesn't mind me asking my boss for clarifications. 

References:

Shiv, B. (2011). Brain Research at Stanford: Decision Making [Video file]. Youtube. Retrieved from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WRKfl4owWKc

Somogyi, R., Buchko, A., & Buchko, K. (2013). Managing with empathy: Can you feel what I feel? Journal of Organizational Psychology. Retrieved from http://search.proquest.com.ezproxy.libproxy.db.erau.edu/docview/1470425153/fulltextPDF/CE275E3C16174E05PQ/1?accountid=27203

MSLD 632 Module 8- Reflections on the Cynefin Framework

As an academic advisor, problem solving is a daily task. While most questions I deal with are general and straightforward, there are cases where problem solving require more time and thinking. As leaders, it is important to keep in mind that situations come in different forms. Ones must be able to correctly identify the type of situation they’re in and figure out the most effective way to handle them. The Cynefin Framework is one of many tools leaders can use to do this. 

The Cynefin Framework is divided into four main quadrants: simple, complicated, complex, and chaotic. The center of the framework includes a fifth element known as disorder, where the situation is unclear on where it should be categorized (Snowden & Boone, 2007). While the framework help identify which of the five categories fit well with the situation we’re dealing with, there are some cases where situations can merge and involve more than one context.

The first example I can recall is during my first few weeks as an advisor. Prior to working at my current location, I was receiving training at a neighboring campus with another advisor. One of the few things we went over were how to make degree maps, or course recommendations to students. Initially, I fell into the simple context: where there’s minimal thinking and cause and effects are easily identified (Snowden & Boone, 2007). For this case, I thought that a map would be completed by simply listing the courses the student requires for their degree. After my advisor reviewed it, she told me that the importance was to consider the student themselves. This then shifted the situation from simple to complicated: since now I need to consider the student’s preferences and schedule.

Another example I recently recall is when I received an email from an instructor: who was concerned about one of my student. The instructor notified me about the student’s consecutive absences and declining grades. Initially, the situation was categorized as complicated. I knew that there was something going on with the student and he needed to be reached out and given a few options. While I assumed that the student was dealing with scheduling disputes (most common reason), the situation became complex and nearly chaotic when he did not respond immediately. It wasn’t until a few weeks later when he finally reached us: stating that his father passed away.

As an advisor, I often have the habit of viewing the situation as one big cluster. This often times make it confusing and difficult to understand the situation: often times leading me to make less effective decisions. Personally, I believe the key of using the Cynefin Framework is to simplify complexity. In addition of helping leaders identify what the situation is and how to handle them, the tool provides a starting point and allows one to take apart the situation so ones can absorb information easier. The idea Is a lot like Systems of Thinking: we take apart the main idea and examine its smaller parts (Nosich, 2012). By taking apart and understanding the smaller components, we’re not only understanding the situation easier and more efficiently, but this could lead to leaders to branch out and see and understand things they weren’t initially aware about (Nosich, 2012). 

References:

Nosich, G.D. (2012). Learning To Think Things Through: A Guide to Critical Thinking Across the Curriculum. Boston: Pearson Education.

Snowden, D. & Boone, M. (2007). A Leader’s Framework for Decision Making. Harvard Business Review. Retrieved from https://hbr.org/2007/11/a-leaders-framework-for-decision-making.

MSLD 632 Module 7- Collaborative Decision Making

Whether we’re making decisions on our own or in a group, collaboration can be very useful in making effective decisions. Collaboration are not only useful in terms of the speed and convenience of completing tasks, but they can also be used as a learning opportunity for everyone involved (Llopis, 2013). While we may be capable of problem solving by ourselves, it is important to keep in mind that we only see things in our own point-of-view. By understanding what others think, we may be able to obtain information that we may have never initially thought of.

I was able to get a better understanding of this when I unexpectedly got promoted to my first leadership position for a university summer camp program. I understood that my position was overall the same as my last one, but it was much more independent and a lot of the decisions had to be made by myself. One day, I had a situation where one of my camp participant got very ill. Both of my bosses were working out-of-town that day and it was mostly up to me to help the child. Not really knowing what to do, I asked two other camp coordinators (same position as me): who’s been working a few years more than I have for assistance. Despite being a coordinator for a few years, the two of them never really dealt with such situation: putting us all on the same boat.

Since the child was starting to have mild breathing complications, I knew that she had to get immediate medical attention. However, since the camp program had very strict rules and procedures, I felt a bit lost. Because of this, I received help from the two counselors: who were more familiar with their contacts. In the end, I was able to contact the child’s parents and my boss and was able to take her to a nearby hospital.

Since the situation was a bit of an emergency, everything was fast paced. If the situation was not an emergency, the first thing I would consider from this scenario is to take time and learn from my co-workers. At the time, I was new into my job and wasn’t familiar with all the procedures. Without their assistance, I probably wouldn’t have done my job properly. Another benefit to always consider is the emotional support received. For this scenario, I was beyond worried about dealing with the whole situation. But with my co-workers providing assisting and clarifying things, it helped me boost confidence to get the job done. Lastly, as weird as it sounds, I should always consider this example when group work is an option. Personally, I am not a fan of working with others and always have the mentality that working alone is best. While working alone may be convenient, it is important to remember that our minds are limited and working alone will prevent us from branching out.

References:

Llopis, G. (2013). 6 Ways Effective Listening Can Make You A Better Leader. Forbes. Retrieved from https://www.forbes.com/sites/glennllopis/2013/05/20/6-effective-ways-listening-can-make-you-a-better-leader/#4108c20d1756

MSLD 632 Module 6- The High Cost of Conflict

As a former student, I’ve had many instances where my advisors did not fully listen and jumped straight into conclusions. While many of them had minutes before lecturing a class, most of them picked up keywords in my explanation and assumed the situation. Personally, I thought that such behavior is unprofessional and a bit uncaring.

Due to my personal experiences, I always try to ensure that I actively listen to my students. Listening is a very important habit since they’re not only essential in gathering information, but it also revolves around creating and maintaining relationships (Llopis, 2013). Despite my effort to actively listen, I often times have difficulties to do so: especially when responding to phone calls. Due to a hearing disability, communicating through phones and any other electronic devices has always been one of my biggest weakness. To ensure that I don’t keep people on the line for so long (since I worry that they will get mad), I have a constant habit of picking up keywords and assume what the person has said. When I make such assumptions, the person usually repeat themselves (and sometimes progressively becomes irritated) or in rare cases hang up or request to contact the campus director. The usual results I get from this habit are students losing some trust and prospective students losing interest to attend our university.

The outcome is completely different when ones take time to listen. I had a student from our online campus last year who visited my office looking clearly distraught. Noticing this, I decided to approach her with some extra caution. In addition to listening, it is also important to display appropriate body language such as eye contact, tone, and facial expressions. By utilizing this correctly, it help establish a sense of care (Somogyi, Buchko, & Buchko, 2013). For this case, the student was upset and having difficulties due to her advisor rushing things. The situation was very similar from my own experiences, so I was able to establish a strong connection with her. Throughout our conversation, I maintained eye contact and nodded to show her that I understand. As the MindToolsVideos clip stated, it’s also important to provide feedback to acknowledge that you were listening (2015). For my case, I repeated a few things she stated, and said things such as “we’ll make sure that we get this all sorted out okay?” to express my care for the student. In the end, I was not only able to resolve her issue, but we also established a strong student relationship. She trusted us for assistance and we would engage in small conversations. The best thing about this student is that she successfully graduated last year and has even recommended our campus to her friends and coworkers.

References:
Llopis, G. (2013). 6 Ways Effective Listening Can Make You A Better Leader. Forbes. Retrieved from https://www.forbes.com/sites/glennllopis/2013/05/20/6-effective-ways-listening-can-make-you-a-better-leader/#4108c20d1756

“MindToolsVideos”. (2015). Improve Your Listening Skills with Active Listening [Video file]. Youtube. Retrieved from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=t2z9mdX1j4A

Somogyi, R., Buchko, A., & Buchko, K. (2013). Managing with empathy: Can you feel what I feel? Journal of Organizational Psychology. Retrieved from http://search.proquest.com.ezproxy.libproxy.db.erau.edu/docview/1470425153/fulltextPDF/CE275E3C16174E05PQ/1?accountid=27203

MSLD 632 Module 5- How Protected Are Your Protected Values

While there are some cases where we could disregard or sacrifice our values, there are also some that we always consider when making decisions. As Hoch (2001) states, protected values are considered absolute and inviolable (p. 251). Personal values can be defined differently from person to person, and are often times related to past experiences or beliefs.

Perhaps the most important protected value I possess is to do what I believe is right. As an academic advisor, I make decisions all the time. While there are curricular standards and procedures I must follow, I also have the opportunity to add some creativity and autonomy to my decision-making. A common example of when I consider this value is when I have prospective students with on-campus courses as their most or only preferred modality. While there are a rare few that prefer this modality and really care about their education, many of them only prefer on-campus courses for the sakes of their personal benefits (they get paid more for on-campus courses). Despite the importance of increasing student population, I usually tell these students straight out that we may not be the right campus for them: as my university is shifting more towards online courses. The good thing about this value is that I have informed the student to help minimize or completely avoided the chances of dealing with arguments and other complications in the future. The downside to this however is that there are procedures and standards that I must follow, and if I break or oppose to any of them, I could deal with further consequences.

Students themselves are another protected value that I deeply consider. Despite the procedures, standards, and university preferences, there are some cases where the university’s way of doing things don’t mix well with the student. The preference in phones are a great example. My university encourages staff members to call students to not only notify students in urgent situations, but to inform them with general information such as what courses and new degree programs we’re offering. As a full-time worker and current student myself, I already receive such information repetitively through our university website and email subscriptions. With more than 90% of my student population working at Boeing and their sub-companies, I also believe that calling them while working is very disruptive. This value has allowed me to think from others’ point-of-views: which could help make more effective decision-making. Similar to the previous example, following this value may put me at risk for the company.

The last value that I always consider and ensure is quality output. From past experiences, I’ve had advisors who has rushed their advisement: leading me to struggle (problems grow later when coming back to them) and believe that my success doesn’t matter. Now that I’m an advisor myself, I always ensure that I thoroughly examine and think things over despite the amount of time I have. With this value, I had made students very satisfied and well-informed about their situation. The only thing I need to be careful however is to don’t always disregard time: as some students may need the information for other purposes (such as needing the information for work purposes).

References:
Hoch, S. J., Kunreuther, H. C., & Gunther, R. E. (2001). Making Decisions. Hoboken, NJ: John Wiley & Sons, Inc.

MSLD 632 Module 4-Deception in Negotiations

As a nerd who collects Japanese action figures, I negotiate with a lot of people both in-person and online. The negotiation process is a lot like playing a game. Despite the many obstacles, we will go as far as we can to get what we want. Deceptions in particular are something ones should really be careful of: as this could lead ones to make poor decision-making and outcomes. To avoid getting into such a situation, I consider the following:

Research
Just like a scientific report, ones can’t explain anything without information. If there’s time before the negotiation, it is important to gather as much information as possible to prepare pointing out and ask questions to the opponent(s). For my case, I often look up information such as the price range, manufacturer, as well as images of the product to avoid the chances of getting a counterfeit item- a common issue in figure collecting.

In cases where negotiations happen on the spot, asking direct questions to the opponent(s) could help ones gather more information. However, it is important to keep in mind that word-of-mouth may not always be the most reliable source, and it is important to take time and think thoroughly and identify any suspicious cues.

Identifying Verbal and Nonverbal Cues

Aside from general research, verbal and nonverbal cues are other ways to avoid deception (Hoch, 2001). Suspicious cues are more present when someone tries to deceive me with a counterfeit figure. When these people try to offer me these items, they often try too hard to sound like an expert. When they say something like, “here we have a genuine Square Enix Metal Gear Solid figurine from Japan” for example, they often sound like they rehearsed the statement and therefore sounds unnatural.

If anything sounds suspicious, I then test the opponent by throwing some detailed questions and pointing out areas than seem weak (based on previous research). For this case, I often like to talk about the paint job of the figurine and say something like, “it’s interesting since I thought the colors of his eye are supposed to be blue-grey and not light blue”. After I say something, it’s important to pay attention to both verbal and nonverbal expressions. Often times when I point out such detail, they flinch a little or start saying a bunch of “ums” or “well”. When they try to talk back, they often times give me awkward smiles and even stumble: an indication that he or she may have been trying to deceive me. However, when we’re asking questions or pointing things out, it is also important for us to approach with caution to avoid our opponents feeling uneasy.

Taking Things Slowly

Negotiations should never be done in a rush. They are much more complex than regular conversations since there are a lot of information to consider when making the final decision. If I ever had cases where I still feel unsure despite the information I’ve researched and gathered from the opponent, I ask them kindly if there’s an option to come back later. If yes, it’s important to take the time, layout, and add in more information. If you’re unable to step out once, it’s better off to stop the negotiating all together.

Record Keeping

Despite considering the previous steps, there still may be cases where deception wins. To lower or completely avoid damages after making the decision, it is important to back up your decision-making with documentation. If an online advertisement of the product was online for example, take screenshots of the valuable information (better if this was done before starting the negotiation). Jotting notes and having a written contract with the individual(s) can also serve as a backup. 

References

Hoch, S. & Kunreuther, H. (2001). Wharton on Making Decisions. Hoboken, NJ: John Wiley & Sons Inc.

MSLD 632 Module 3 - Reflections on Decision Making

Decision-making can be very complex and overwhelming. Rather than examining a situation as a whole, Hoch (2001), suggests framing our thinking to simplify and narrow our focus for faster, more efficient decision-making (p.133). Despite the benefits, there are also some risks involved. Since we’re narrowing our focus, there’s a risk of frame blindness: where information that may be valuable has little to no awareness. Other risks include the illusion of completeness, over confidence, and frame conflict.

Decision-making is an important and daily task as an academic advisor. To make effective decisions, I believe that it’s a matter of organizing. The idea is a lot like a flowchart. For example, if a student needs help figuring out what classes to take for the upcoming term, we begin the framing process by looking at what classes are available. To narrow the focus more, I might ask additional questions such as what modality or what subject they might be interested in. The key for my decision making is to prepare a set of questions that flows smoothly and help pinpoint the solution. With strong organization, we’re at less risk of going off course.

As Hoch (2001) mentioned, framing puts us at risk of frame blindness: where we put potentially important “in the shadows” (p. 137). To particularly avoid the overconfidence and illusion of completeness traps, I usually have a habit of telling myself to not get comfortable and that there’s always something to do. As leaders, it is important to keep in mind that change is constant. An example is when I share my experiences about a class with my students. While my information may be useful for the most part, I always remind myself and the tell the student that the course contents may not be the same as when I took the same class a few years back. By placing ourselves in an alert state, we can avoid being too confident about our decision-making.

In addition to constantly looking around, it is also important to consider the framings of others when making decisions. Just like the general ideas of framing, our own thoughts and opinions go in one direction. This was a mistake I made during my early days into my current job. Through training, I was taught that communicating via phone calls were the most effective ways to reach out to students. However, for my campus, this was not: as many of them work full time, travel, and generally wouldn’t not want to be bothered. Since I ended up upsetting a few people, I then got in the habit of placing myself in other’s shoes to make more effective decision-making.
 
References:
Hoch, S. & Kunreuther, H. (2001). Wharton on Making Decisions. Hoboken, NJ: John Wiley & Sons Inc.

MSLD 632 Module 3-Framing Complex Decisions

                In a past MSLD course, I’ve learned a lot about understanding and dealing with complexity in the workplace. Unlike the past, today’s businesses are complex to the point that there’s too much information for a single leader to handle. As a result, most organizations follow that of a polyarchy: where everyone has some sort of leadership role and interact with one another to get the most their information (Obolensky, 2014). Whether we’re dealing with a generally complex situation, multiple stakeholders or environmental-related decision-making, the key is gathering as much information as possible.

                Information doesn’t necessarily mean written documents or data, but it could also include information from other people. According to Obolensky (2014), different levels of an organization tend to have different kinds and amount of information. In his study, he finds that approximately 60% of the information required for decision-making is found on the bottom level of an organization versus 30% in the middle and 10 on the top level (p.37). As a result, he concludes that it’s important for ones to encourage communication (including external stakeholders) to make more effective decision-making (Obolensky, 2014).

In my organization, listening is perhaps the most commonly used tool in dealing with all three types of decision-making processes. As an advisor, most of the listening components occur during advisement with my students. Rather than making the decisions myself, I take my time to listen to ensure my decision-making is compatible with the student. For example, many of my students are full-time students and workers. Since many of them also travel for their jobs, it’s very important for me to understand and implement their schedule when recommending courses. In some instances, listening can also be a learning opportunity: where I can use the new information for future decision-making. However, it is important to keep in mind that word-of-mouth may not always be the most reliable source of information and should be supported with other sources of information.

To obtain information in general, I often rely on the help of an assortment of Decision Support Systems (DSS). As Hoch (2001) states, DSS can be used to minimize the human element in decision-making in addition to using it as a power tool or to complement or hide weaknesses (p.100). Since some of my decision-making explanations are confusing to students, I rely on the help of information available throughout university websites and programs. For example, if I’m recommending a student to take electives for the upcoming term, they often ask me what classes they could take. Rather than verbally listing the courses (especially if there are over 10 plus choices!), I show and explain the courses to them. This is critical since simply throwing information is often times confusing and overwhelming for students.

As Hoch mentioned, evaluating behaviors can be a handy tool for decision-making. Aside from student advisement, I occasionally pay attention to what’s happening outside my campus. For example, the Boeing Company is perhaps the most commonly observed external stakeholder. With more than 90 percent of our students being Boeing employees, any changes that occur within the company could have little to huge effects for my campus. As of now, the company is focusing on employees with business and management backgrounds. With that in mind, I usually study information about our business and management degrees. When the company announces a new plane model, the focus will likely shift to engineers to help build these planes. The positives gained from these observation is an enhanced understanding.

References:

Hoch, S. & Kunreuther, H. (2001). Wharton on Making Decisions. Hoboken, NJ: John Wiley & Sons Inc.

Obolensky, N. (2014). Complex Adaptive Leadership: Embracing Paradox and Uncertainty (2nd ed.). UK: Gower Publishing.