Identification of the Client - Assignment Example

 Identification of the Client The ‘Family Firm institute, Inc’ is a business organization established in the year of 1986 for the key reason of initiating business ideas in the family related businesses (Your membership.com. 2011). The idea of launching the organization was to satisfy the needs of the families in diverse businesses. Families in the past face difficulty in coordinating family affairs and business. The business requires adequate concentration just like the family. Most of the businesspersons that coordinate with both family and business have faced intensive challenges. This illustrates that, for both the family and business to become successful, the businessperson needs to balance between the two entities. The introduction of the ‘Family Firm institute, Inc’ was mainly an idea to rescue the Los Angeles parents from both family and business frustrations. In the initial stage of the establishment of the organization, the ‘Family Firm institute, Inc’ faced challenges in attaining members (Your membership.com. 2011). Owners of the family members were not willing to join the organization because of the lack of enough information concerning the organization. Being a member of the organization, the ‘Family Firm institute, Inc’ has enabled me to acquire skills in maintenance of the family business and remains responsible to the family affairs. In most cases, the owners of the family business lack the knowledge of maintaining an intimate relationship with the family and perform business activities. For this reason, the businesspersons fail in one of the fields because of failure in management of the family business and the other family related issues. In the current world, the ‘Family Firm institute, Inc’ offers professional training to the family business owners (Your membership.com. 2011). This increases the prosperity and expansion of the small-scale business projects. Problems Family Firm Institute Inc. Faces The ‘Family Firm institute, Inc’ has been performing it intended duties and roles in the society which has ensured that the family business prosper. The organization has been successful in ensuring that the businesspersons gain professional skills in maintaining the family business. It is not an easy task to maintain the business and other family responsibilities. For this reason, the ‘Family Firm institute, Inc’ has been doing a recommendable job in ensuring that the business owners are capable of achieving the best management skills. However, there are several diverse challenges that the Family Firm institute Inc has been facing in the past few years. The problems have given a negative feedback to the performance of the organization hence affecting the number of new enrollment staffs (Robert, 2011). However, one of the key problems that the ‘Family Firm institute, Inc’ is facing is the lack of a common understanding among the members of the organization. In any given organization, there should be an equivalent understanding between the employees and employers in terms of background and gender. The correlation of employees with each other to deliver outstanding duties and roles at the expected time interval is very important. Conflict in the ‘Family Firm institute, Inc’ arises majorly because of diversity in the educational backgrounds of the people, political difference and preferences, ethical heritage, gender and personal experiences (Robert, 2011). The conflict that arises between the employees has made it almost impossible for the ‘Family Firm institute, Inc’ to achieve its expected goals. The management and the employees lack the appropriate reinforcement to works together as a team to accomplish the roles and duties of the organization. The challenges affect the progress of the organization thus reduce the competence of the employees. The perception of the managers has even made it hard for the problem to be solved in the organization. The key role of the ‘Family Firm institute, Inc’ is to instill professional skills in the business personnel who operate family related business (Your membership.com. 2011). The lack of cooperation between employers and the employees has affected the seminars intended to teach the businesspersons management skills. The difference in the background has made the male, and the female genders to lack an understanding in the work fields. The personal experience has also made the employees deny the orders given by the employers. This causes conflict in the organization hence making it difficult for the management to interrelate with the workers (Robert, 2011). The problem has existed in the pasts eight years since the management has failed to solve the problem among the employees. The lack of shuffling and change in the employees professional has made it difficult for the change to be implemented in the organization. The lack in cooperation has the force the organization to adjourn some of programs to be accomplished. This has made the ‘Family Firm institute, Inc’ to face losses and stiff competition from the other business counseling organization. The lack of proper training of the business ethical by the human resource manager has contributed to the problem. The problem of the difference in the background of the employees can be solved through training of employees. The proper management of the ‘Family Firm institute, Inc’ can be enhanced by the frequent training lessons for the employees. Since the difference in the background of the employees is a current problem affecting the ‘Family Firm institute, Inc’, the organization should establish a committee of experts who are responsible in training the employees. Informing both employees and the employers of the consequences and means to avoid the conflict arising from background difference is vital in solving the problem (Robert, 2011). In order to comprehend the steps that could be taken by the business leaders of the company towards better performance of the employees and the management, a need assessment analysis needs to be done. Needs Assessment Analysis The need assessment analysis applies is done in the second stage of the management of ‘Family Firm institute, Inc.’. According to Raudy&Kusy, Jr (1995), Needs Assessment Analysis involves the following steps or guidelines: (1) performing a gap analysis, (2) identification of priorities and significance, (3) identification of causes of performance problems, (4) comparison of the consequences of the program and (4) generation of recommendations for development and training in the organization. Step 1: Performing a Gap Analysis ‘Family Firm institute, Inc.’ experiences a myriad of challenges that require to be addressed sufficiently before it is too late. The problem can be split into categories for easier analyzing. The first category is the lack of understanding. This is due to various factors like background and gender. The second category is the correlation to deliver duties and roles at expected time intervals. The main cause of this is personal preferences, political differences, gender and ethnic heritage. Third is the lack of proper reinforcement to work together as a team to accomplish organizational goals. The current dismal situation poses a formidable threat to the success and prosperity of ‘Family Firm institute, Inc.’. The management and employees are in constant conflict due to the above differences. The desired situation is harmony between the management and employees. This will in turn bring team work and reduce the personal differences. ‘Family Firm institute, Inc.’ needs team work, timely role playing and sufficient motivation to meet is goals of being prosperous and profitable. This gap between the current and desired situation defines the objectives, purposes and needs of the firm (Raudy&Kusy, Jr 1995). Step 2: Identification of Priorities and Significance This step produces a list of needs for career development, training and development and organizational development. The goals and objectives are clear and identifying notable ones takes place, addressing the constraints take place at this level. Step 3: Recognize causes of performance difficulties and/or opportunities ‘Family Firm institute, Inc.’ faces the challenges due to the personal, political, ethnic and gender issues. These causes need to be prevented in the future. Elimination of these causes will make the organization run smoothly without any problems. The Needs Assessment analysis has to consider the needs at the organizational level and measure the outcome or Impact as well.(Allison R. & Kendra S., 2001). Step 4: Compare the consequences when implementing the program After going through steps 1 to 3, ‘Family Firm institute, Inc.’ then compares results expected if the program in the Needs Analysis is effective or not. The results will reveal the effectiveness of the program. Step 5: Generation and communication of the recommendations for training and development, organizational development and career development. Basing on the findings from step 4, ‘Family Firm institute, Inc.’ can decide to encourage team work through team building activities. Moreover, the organization may have a regular meeting between the staff and management. The careers prospects of the employees are extremely vital. It will make them either stay or leave the organization. ‘Family Firm institute, Inc.’ should consider having channels of upward mobility among the workers to motivate them to work diligently. In summary, Needs Assessment Analysis has many uses especially in the identification of problems in an organization. Having analyzed the needs of the company, the next step towards better performance and results in management of the affairs of the organization is to implement the following proposed solutions. Solutions for the Problems the Company Faces The three crucial problems in ‘Family Firm institute, Inc’ are lack of understanding, poor correlations to deliver duties and roles at expected time intervals, and the lack of proper reinforcement to labor as a team so as to accomplish organizational goals. The firm strives at solving these problems and have smooth running of the firm to ensure maximum profits. The lack of understanding between the management and employees is a problem that involves personal contact between managers and employees of the firm. The suitable solution to this problem is Continuous Process Improvement. The Continuous Improvement Process (C.I.P) is a quality oriented approach in the solving of problems. In the case of ‘Family Firm institute, Inc’, the management and employees can engage in a continuous process of figuring out the main problems and trying to find solutions. Continuous Improvement Process (C.I.P) involves making the situation better progressively. The purpose is not to begin a blame game but rather to get the solutions to the small teething problems in the organization. In the quest for improvement, the management and staff seeks to learn the causes of the problems and then apply in different scenarios. The three main objectives of Continuous Process Improvement are; to reduce variations between management and other workers. The Continuous Improvement Process can be initiated via steering committees, which become the channels that will enable the entire organization to practice the valuable interpersonal skills that are relevant for the members of the firm to minimize the existing conflicts through forums and discussions. The Procedure for Continuous Process improvement is easy to understand and follow. Continuous Improvement Process has five phases namely; analysis phase, design phase, Developmental phase, Implementation phase and execution phase (nwlink.com,2010). In ‘Family Firm institute, Inc’, these five phases apply in the following ways. The analysis phase identifies the areas of opportunity. In the ‘Family Firm institute, Inc’ there is no harmony between the management and employees. In the design phase, brainstorming among the workers and management through the steering committee helps to identify the baselines and required resources and/or commitments required for solving the lack of understanding. The next phase is the developmental phase where the management and employees formulate a procedure to solve the problem in detail. In ‘Family Firm institute, Inc’ the possible procedure would be to appreciate each other’s differences and learn to avoid confrontations or oppressing situations. Implementation phase involves the execution of the plan in order to get the change. The evaluation phase seeks to supervise and evaluate the impact of the entire process. The other two problems are lack of proper reinforcement to engage in team work and poor correlation in delivering duties at the expected time intervals, which, can be solved by the performance coaching approach. The performance coaching occurs in two main ways, first, unraveling unproductive behaviors and methodologies in the working environment before they get out of hand (nwlink.com 2012). The second way is by correcting the problem from the main cause of the problem through an implementation plan. In ‘Family Firm institute, Inc’ team building procedures are the best to solve the lack of motivation for team work. These activities will enable the workers in ‘Family Firm institute, Inc’ to socialize hence make it easy for them to interact in a healthy manner while at work. In implementation of processes and new ideas into a business or an organization usually has its risks and new problems that arise; therefore, risk assessment is necessary. Apart from that, the rewards of the implementation of the solutions need to be assessed too in order to see what actions produced the best results, and which ones were associated with greater risks. RISK AND REWARD ASSESSMENT Risk assessment is the evaluation of the quality or quantity of the jeopardy related to a situation. The risks have to be managed both at the planning level and even when they strike. The stages involved in crisis management in an appropriate sequence begins with prevention, then detection, followed by interpretation to resolution and finally prevention of a repeat of the same crisis. The crisis management team does not need professionals like lawyers, not unless the lawyer can identify the legal risks and the business risks, so that the managers know what decisions to implement effectively. (Dunn, 1996) In a bid to manage crisis, 'Family Firm Institute, Inc', should make the best decisions that will enable proper and sustainable risk management. The workers form a makeup team which helps to prevent people from benefiting during crisis. The ‘Family Firm Institute, Inc’ must plan for a seminar on crisis management. In the seminar, all employees and management should learn various ways to prevent and manage risks. Involving emotional intelligence helps a company manages risks (Jury behavior studies, 2006). An employee would judge ‘Family Firm Institute, Inc’ by the authenticity of the company. The employees care a lot about how the company handles complains in reference to the established procedures and policies that tend to discourage discriminations. Ignoring such habits, they become the inclination (Dunn, 2001). The employees of ‘Family Firm Institute, Inc.’ would want feel the code of ethics employed by their management. Employees always take every casual remark or allegation to be a notice by the management and this may bring out a risk in the smooth operation of the firm. They look forward to see the management do the correct thing consistently, fairly, thoroughly and promptly. The problem of misunderstanding between the management and the employees poses a substantial risk to the daily operations of ‘Family Firm Institute, Inc.’. In addition, the lack of motivation and teamwork in the organization jeopardizes the timely roles and duties that employees perform. The employees do not demand respect from the ‘Family Firm Institute, Inc.’ bosses, but at the end of the day, they look forward to see themselves treated with respect as an appreciation. Attacking the petitioner should not be used to build a case against an employee. Most employees feel that the supervisors who touch employees in a manner suggesting sexual harassment should be terminated. Majority also feel that the management do not receive adequate punishment for their atrocities. ‘Family Firm Institute, Inc.’ employees applaud open and dialogue. Women should feel free to report sexual harassment without further hesitation. They encourage Emotional intelligence at work. ‘Family Firm Institute, Inc’ ought to train the managers so as attain fewer lawsuits that result from errors in judgment. They should not also be overworked or undertrained. Usually, entrepreneurs labor hard to evade risks. They count on successful innovation than invention which tends to be their key concept. They spot potential customers, and then come up with a new market or enterprise to serve customers. A people determine the success of a company. They can either make or break the organization. Through the group collaboration, a personality can profile the organization, but only if the managers form a solid relationship with them, hence, success of the company. The managers should also delegate duties well to evade unproductive tasks. The employees also prefer motivation to dictation. Once the risks and the rewards have been identified, actions to mitigate the risks are fully implemented and the process of reassessment of the risks and rewards then follows. This is to see if the risks have properly been minimized and managed for better results. REASSESSMENT AND ADJUSTMENT Organizations such as ‘Family Firm institute, Inc’ always undergo changes in the process of doing business. These changes may be brought by changes in technology, changes in workers or even changes in management (Kent, PhD, 2006). ‘Family Firm institute, Inc’ needs adjustment in the management and work force. Companies change every time due to the dynamic nature of the business sector. ‘Family Firm institute, Inc’ has a challenge of dealing with the misunderstanding between the junior staff and the top management, and there is the need to change this business relationship. Using the Continuous Process Improvement, the firm can change towards a better business environment and hence success in the business. The firm needs to carry out a reassessment of the overall operations of the business in order to gain a competitive edge over the rivals. According to Clemmer (2006), there are five areas to concentrate in so as to embrace change. These areas are; vision, outlook, authenticity, growth, self-discipline and development. These five pillars will enable a firm to embrace positive change. ‘Family Firm institute, Inc’ needs a vision that will give the firm direction and enable it to harness the power associated with vision. With a vision, ‘Family Firm institute, Inc’ will have a reason to succeed and resistance to fail. The power associated with having a vision cannot be over emphasized since a vision creates the desired future before it comes. Having a clear vision will give ‘Family Firm institute, Inc’ the picture of what the future is above the various challenges it faces. The second pillar is outlook. ‘Family Firm institute, Inc’ needs to choose an outlook that will serve as the face of the firm. This outlook pillar has immense potential in changing the perspective of both the workers and customers. This will change the low motivation to team work into a strong team spirit and co-operation. This calls for the management and staff of ‘Family Firm institute, Inc’ to accept responsibility of the different emotions that they have. The emotions of the employees and management affect the overall success of the business. The anger that makes an employee has disputes with the management could be affect his motivation reduce their performance. ‘Family Firm institute, Inc’ should choose a positive outlook that will enable it to focus on results and success. Thirdly, ‘Family Firm institute, Inc’ should seek authenticity. Clemmer (2006) argues that to make something one must be something in the first place. The firm should strive and create an impact within the organization first before it can attract customers to boost their sales. Before this happens, ‘Family Firm institute, Inc’ should create an image and identity that will make it outstanding in the business sector. Fourth, ‘Family Firm institute, Inc’ should commit to discipline and avoid the constant misunderstanding between management and employees. Fifth, the firm should focus on growth and development into new heights in business. In his article, Kent, PhD (2006), remarks that progress in business interacts with two factors in the organization, the plan and the implementation. Execution of a brilliant plan is the winning path towards progress in the company. ‘Family Firm institute, Inc’ is a company that needs to be adjusted according to the best plans and excellent implementations in order to regain its competitiveness and success in the family business. References Clemmer, J. (2006). Growth With Change Managerwise. Retrieved April 13, 3012, from http://www.managerwise.com/article.phtml?id=261 Continuous Process Improvement. (2011). Big Dog and Little Dog ‘s Performance Juxtaposition. Retrieved April 13, 2012, from Continuous Process Improvement: http://nwlink.com/~donclark/perform/process.html Dunn, S. (1996). Can Emotional Intelligence Help Your Company with Risk Management? Retrieved April 13, 2012, from Managerwise: http://www.managerwise.com/article.phtml?id=405 H., R. (2006). Risk Management Articles Entrepreneurs Work Hard to Avoid Risk. Retrieved April 13, 2012, from Managerwise: http://www.managerwise.com/article.phtml?id=136 Kent, R. H. (n.d.). Ensuring Organizational Success and Progress. Retrieved April 13, 2012, from Kusy, R. J. (1995). Needs Assessment - the First Step. Retrieved April 13, 2012, from http://alumnus.caltech.edu/~rouda/T2_NA.html Marken, A. G. (2006). Communication Articles M & M Managers Stifle Risk -- Taking ... Trust ... Respect Success. Retrieved April 13, 2012, from Managerwise: http://www.managerwise.com/article.phtml?id=1 Performance Coaching. (2011). Big Dog and Little Dog ‘s Performance Juxtaposition. Retrieved April 13, 2012, from Performance Coaching: http://nwlink.com/~donclark/coaching/coach.html Robert, L. M. (2011). Human resource management: Essential perspectives. South Western: South- Western, Division O. Your membership.com. (2011). Family Firm institute, Inc. Retrieved April 4, 2011, from Your membership.com: http://www.ffi.org/default.asp?id=311&c035_ui=f&arid=16666&vid=2427&isid=1204 Read More