Working with and Leading People - Essay Example

Working with and leading people Jamie Oliver was born in the year 1975 in the village of Clavering where he was raised by his parents who run a pub. It is in this restaurant that Jamie used to practice cooking in the kitchen. Jamie left school after he qualified in Art and Geology(Walker, 2005). The later proceeded to a catering college. He later qualified in home economics. In 2002, Jamie came to a decision to inspire other unqualified and unemployed young people to become chefs themselves and earn a living from their earned skills(Khan, 2010). He the established a new restaurant that he called Fifteen, this was because he chose fifteen recruits who would be trainees and later work in the restaurant. The recruitment, selection and retention procedures used in Jamie Olivers organisation. Jamie being the manager in the organisation as well as being the initiator of the project, he was deeply involved in the recruitment and selection process of the applicants. Bearing in mind that the applicants were not professions it was at times very difficult handling them through the selection and training process. Jamie Oliver was mostly concern with the individual’s ability to handle tight schedules, their work attitude; the applicants need to retain a job and the passion of the applicants(Roberts 2005). With the numerous contacts in the top London’s restaurants and previous job experience Jamie seemed to know exactly what he expected from the applicants. He, therefore, could not just follow the normal recruitment procedure where the applicant knowledge, skills and experience are the basis of selection(Mullins 2007). The selectors, therefore, had to apply a number of tests in order to effectively retain the most suited individuals for the job. Selection process In the first stage of the recruitment, Jamie selectors requested applicants to talk about food while they were filmed. This was meant to establish the applicants passion about food and if they were willing to talk about food publicly. This method of selection eliminates the individuals that were not passionate about food. After this stage of selection, a total of sixty applicants were shortlisted. To effectively behave the kind of personnel required for the chef job in the current job market, the individuals had to able to adequately describe the taste of various foods. The candidates were, therefore, given foods that Oliver was pretty certain they had not eaten before: butternut squash ravioli and a tempura fried oyster. The candidates then had to describe the texture and flavor of what they had eaten. The candidates were expected to describe the food by more than just saying that the food was either good of otherwise. The ability of the applicant to effectively describe the taste of the food meant that he or she would be able to express the self effectively. This stage of the recruitment led to shortlisting of thirty candidates who would proceed to the next level of selection. In the third stage of section, applicants were to observe the procedure of preparing a simple meal. The candidates then were asked to repeat the same procedure in preparing the same meal. At this stage, Jamie tested the level of observation an individual would attain. This was very essential due to the ever changing taste and preferences of clients to the restaurant. The candidates would also understand the purpose of each food ingredient at each stage of preparing a meal. Candidates were selected as much on their approach to the work as on the quality of the food prepared. Workforce Retention Major challenges facing the employers in the modern world is the finding and keeping the good employees. Organisations that carryout functional employee retention strategies are at an enhanced position able to safeguard organizational resources as compared to those that face high employee turnover rates. Jamie Oliver decided to get involved in the training process of the recruited trainees. The trainees were sent to college to learn basic skills, and then as they continued with the training, Oliver began to train and shape the candidates to meet the needs, style and standards of the restaurant. The training involved class attendance, demonstration and practical activities. The training is intended at furnishing the apprentices with the required kind of skills. This, on the other hand, was faced with major challenges as some of the trainees found the work and mental effort involved in this work became demotivated and stopped attending the college. The theory of Hierarchy of Needs says that organisations should first take care of an employees basic needs; this would be referring to issues such as job security, payment and then advance to bigger aspirations, like promotions. Grounded theory permits the persons conducting the interviews to track the interviews process generously by giving chance to participants to speak out their mind in response to questions asked (Corbin & Strauss, 2008). The returns earned by the application of grounded theory include; freedom of mind speaking by interviewee by speaking freely without constraints. This is contrary to the traditional models of data collection and analysis (Ghezelijeh&Emami, 2009). Recommendation Employees being the most fundamental components of any organisation their selection and retention are paramount. I would therefore advise Jamie Oliver to apply the grounded theory this kind of strategy would help retain the employees that got demotivated and left the training.After application, the candidates would then be shortlisted based on their skills. Later the candidates would be allowed to express themselves on their perception towards the job rather than being subjected to challenging interview and training process that lead to some becoming demotivated and hence quitting the training.With the knowledge that trainees will be willing to work to earn a living, it will at time become quite challenging to remain in the on training with no benefits forthcoming at the moment. I would therefore advise Oliver to provide terminal benefits such salaries to trainees to keep them motivated and having the need to strive ahead. Task 2 Any individual in leadership posts should be prudent to understand how they employees in the organisation are motivated (Leigh 2005) Managers and leaders can effectively motivate their employees through; recognition at workplaces, providing positive performance feedback on accomplished tasks, and also by challenging employees to learn new things that will increase their expertise. Some managers and leaders of various organisations tend to make serious mistakes by introducing de-motivating factors such as punishment or frequent criticisms as a means of controlling behaviour(Stafford,2001). Numerous theories try to explain motivation; leaders, therefore, have quite a scope for their style of leadership. The Famous psychologist Abraham Maslows motivational theory has helped managers and leaders to understand their employee motivation factor(Leigh 2005) s. The theory takes into account the Maslow’s hierarchy of needs. This theory breaks down basic human needs and wants into five classifications: Physiological needs, Safety needs, Social needs, Self-esteem stage, Self-actualization, As a responsible manager, it is ones duty to help employees to satisfy those needs. On satisfying the needs, the employee is motivated him into becoming a better member of staff. Physiological needs are the essential needs to an individual required for physical survive, these needs include food, water and sex. Safety needs come second after satisfaction of the psychological needs. This includes job security(Leigh 2005). Social needs are the concerns and desires of belonging and formation meaningful relationships with others. Olivers was of dealing with this was supportive and personal: he took a great deal of personal responsibility for them, paying travel expenses for college; gave them individual attention even to the point of visiting them at home to sort out their problems. This helped the individuals have a sense of belonging in the company. The trainees therefore were able to form meaningful relationship with the organisation.Self-esteem needs are based on personal confidence and sense of accomplishment of tasks(Leigh 2005). On the satisfaction of the four needs, through the difficult assignments that were presented to the trainees and with the help of Oliver in handling the assignment, the successful accomplishments brought a sense of self-esteem.One develops to self-actualization when the individuals are proud of their success those that completed the training and got the jobs attend a sense of self-actualization. By leaders taking a genuine interest in the employees interest, recognizing their basic needs and taking appropriate steps to satisfying them, the manager inspires and motivates employees(Leigh 2005). Oliver was aware of the importance of cooperation and teamwork in a commercial kitchen. He aimed to create a strong team spirit by taking the group camping. Team working builds on a meaningful relationship amongst the workmates. Oliver had credibility with the trainees was that he was skilled and experienced in the work. He could demonstrate food preparations techniques, create menus and coach the trainees in the kitchen. It is believed that when trainees are under pressure they can easily forget basic techniques, but in this case Oliver was there to help them solve arising challenges(Leigh 2005). Finally, the trainees good fully motivate of their achievements that raised them to the level of self-actualization. Oliver’s success can be attributed to the employee centered type of leadership he applied; Jamie made his employees the center of his organisation. He ensured that any issues that could lead to underperformance of the workers were fully settled for the benefit of the business. This created a conducive environment for the development of both the organisation and the employees. Conclusion Most of the students completed the course. Those who failed some of their exams could retake them and continue to train to be chefs. Some were very successful and made careers as chefs. The restaurant too was successful and became popular in London. Oliver created a permanent foundation to recruit and train disadvantaged young people to become chefs. By 2005, the restaurant was doing so well financially; it could contribute substantially to the Foundation. The project spread as franchise to other places and to other ventures such as an online shop, also contributing to the foundation. Fifteen has been described as becoming a serious global brand of social entrepreneurship (Mullins & Christy 201.3, p.495). References Leigh A and Maynard M a Leading Your Team: How to Involve and Inspire Teams Nicholas Publishing, (2002) Mullins J L a Management and Organisational Behaviour, 8th Edition (Financial Times/Prentice Hall, (2007) Roberts G a Recruitment and Selection (Developing Practice), 2nd Edition (CIPD, 2005) Ghezeljeh, T &Emami, A. (2009) Grounded theory: Methodology and philosophical perspective. Nurse Researcher, Stafford Hildred, Jamie Oliver: (2001)The Biography Gully Smith, Jamie Oliver: (2006)Turning Up the Heat Gully Smith, Jamie Oliver: (2006)The Kitchen Crusader www.thetimes100.co.uk Free materials and case studies. www.cipd.co.uk Chartered Institute of Personnel and Development. www.businessballs.com Businessballs - a free ethical learning and development resource. Free materials, articles and ideas for team roles and leadership www.belbin.com Belbin website with team role profiles www.acas.org.uk Advisory, Conciliation and Arbitration Service website with guidance on legal requirements for recruitment and selection Walker, Andrew (2005). "BBC NEWS – Magazine – Profile: Jamie Oliver". BBC. Khan, Uremia (2010). "Oliver Interview". The Daily Telegraph (UK) Kerstin Kuhn (2010). "Jamie Oliver regains top spot in the Caterersearch.com 100". Caterer Search Jump up ^ "Jamie Oliver awarded the top honor by Royal College of GPs". rcgp.org.uk. Read More