The Site, Environment, and Surroundings - Essay Example

Running Head: INTERNSHIP PAPER Lecturer: Part The Site, Environment, and Surroundings The office space is perfect for employees to undertake their daily activities comfortably. The management has set up a good work environment whereby all employees have an office and a computer. The offices are well lit, spacious with furniture and stationary neatly arranged. On the wall of the manager’s office is an organizational chart with colored passport size photos of employees in various departments. It is easy to know who works where by a glance at the chart. The work space, its furnishings and equipment portray a people oriented organization that has strived to be a global leader with regards to investment in human capital. It is a work environment where any career hotel manager would desire to work in. Employees in all departments undertake their tasks separately and share information through a file named ‘HR file’ in the office network that is administered by the HR department. According to Haves & Ninemeir (2012), workplace ergonomics influence worker motivation and productivity. A good work environment has helped to maintain skilled and experienced staff in the organization. Teamwork is also a significant strategy that promotes employee productivity. There is a high level of teamwork among the employees who often assist each other despite everyone having enough work to do. By the smile on the faces of everyone that is maintained all along as they work, a high level of employee satisfaction is evident. Luo & Milne (2014) highlight the importance of employee satisfaction to an organization’s productivity. Happy employees demonstrate a strong drive to achieve in their respective roles. As much as an organization may be interested in making great profits, it is necessary to be people oriented to ensure that they own the organizational goals and hence work towards their accomplishment. The management at Hilton Hotel Jeddah understands that product superiority and profits come as a result of a competent and committed workforce and hence the application of people oriented strategies in the management of human resources. The Hotel’s Organizational Chart Part 2: The Professional’s Perspective Mr. Jamar is the training manager and holds a bachelor’s degree in business administration. His decision to work in this field is because it fits his specialization. It is important to be engaged in a field where one is skilled for high productivity to be achieved. An education background in human resource management or psychology might be helpful in this field. It is also important to possess interpersonal skills to relate effectively with workmates and the management. The training field is also related with talent and performance management as well as learning and development. All these are concerned with employee capacity building. As a student, it is important to enroll for CIPD and PHR certification for greater competence and enhanced employability. It is possible to like or dislike certain aspects of one’s job. Tackling daily challenges can motivate employees who are focused on success. Lack of challenges on the other hand can demotivate people. Employees may also be demotivated by rigid work practices whereby they are required to make certain decisions whether they like it or not. It is therefore necessary for personnel managers to allow flexibility in the work processes to ensure that employees are comfortable with the decisions they make (Luo & Milne, 2014). Personal freedom is limited in the workplace and all employees stick to the rules, policy and regulations. This is another example of rigid work environment that hinders employee creativity. It is important to promote workplace learning to ensure constant improvement of skills for greater productivity. Work experience after attaining a degree is necessary for a graduate to get in touch with the reality of his/her profession before enrollment in to a graduate school. Employees do not have to work long hours for productivity to be achieved. Most importantly is to understand what is required of them and when self-sacrifice is needed. Apart from personal and career development, employees need to be allowed to engage in corporate social responsibility whereby they can engage in activities such as helping members of the community to acquire life skills and access job opportunities (Haves & Ninemeir, 2012). Part 3: Organizational and Individual Behavior The supervisor demonstrated affiliative and pacesetting styles of management. He often interacted with his subordinates and had break time tea together with them. He managed to develop strong bonds among the employees thereby establishing successful teams. This strategy helped to develop a tranquil work environment whereby workers were not intimidated by the presence of their boss. The supervisor was also a pacesetter who used to begin daily tasks on a high note, accomplishing tasks with speed and determination. This approach always generated dynamism, commitment and motivation. He would assign tasks to the team members but could often re-assign them if certain team members seemed unable to accomplish their tasks. All workers ensured that they demonstrated high level of performance to meet the standards set by the supervisor and to avoid re-assignment. While on the job, workers spent their time concentrating on the assigned tasks without unnecessary movements in and out of the workplace. It is only during tea and lunch break that they could crack jokes with each other. Lateness was highly discouraged and none was reported during the entire period of attachment. In my view, self-discipline was evident and any new employee would have to maintain the same standards. Employee motivation through reward and benefit schemes enhance accomplishment of tasks. Departmental supervisors set quarterly targets that each team strives to accomplish. An annual performance evaluation culminates in ranking of departments based on the number of points acquired on the performance evaluation scale. All departments that have accomplished their targets are awarded monetary rewards and trophies. Each team member is granted a bonus from the money awarded to the respective departments. Part 4: Transferring and Applying Learning Course work in college equipped me with important skills regarding hotel management, the various departments in hotels and how they are inter-linked. I was able to see the practical application of the theoretical skills offered in course work. However, many other skills acquired in the attachment were beyond what I learnt in class. These include application of the payroll system, developing the salary increment for all employees in the system and to manage employees’ medical insurance. I was engaged in review and appraisal of personnel changes and paperwork for merit and accuracy. All these activities are necessary in ensuring the effective management of an organization’s financial resources and to ensure that employee remuneration, reward and benefit schemes are accomplished without undue delay. I also learnt how to develop the annual table as well as the use of P-touch Editor App to create employee tag name. I used Data card ID Center lite production App to create job IDs for the employees. These are important applications that are necessary for effective personnel management. There was significant paperwork that I was exposed to including labor office letter, interview form, application form, medical test report, internal memorandum, clearance form, pledge forms, contract, change of status, accounting, vacations form, back to work form, training, gratitude letters, warning letters and employment certificate. I was involved in approval of all required human resources forms such as Personnel Authorization Forms (PAFs) and employment requisitions. I also acquired knowledge regarding the archive room and conservation of employee records. I acquired knowledge regarding the General Organization for Social Insurance (GOSI), which implements the provisions of the Social Insurance Law and follow-up of the process of achieving the compulsory insurance coverage, collecting contributions from employers and paying benefits for the eligible contributors or their family members. With this new experience, I have the capacity to supervise departmental and hotel staff with regards to issues relating to employee compensation to ensure minimum exposure by the hotel for related expenses. Other skills that will be applied in my future workplace include preparation of periodic reports relating to the human resources function (e.g. EEO, labor turnover, payroll analysis, operational budget) through the use of a moderately complex computer systems and written reports. Moreover, I will be able to manage the hotel’s employee relations programs including picnics, holiday functions, health fairs, employee communication sources, as well as coordinating and directing staff through detailed oral and written instruction to facilitate successful completion of all related events/programs. In my career as a human resource manager, I will develop job descriptions to ensure effective recruitment and selection of employees as well as assignment of tasks. Understanding job descriptions will also help me to identify the most suitable job for myself and also to guide upcoming professionals in my community when they need to apply for a job. The internship program provided new insight with regards to the gratifying field of human resource management. It motivated me to further my studies through masters in human resource management. Part 5: Goal Attainment One of my goals was to take human resources management as a minor subject. I worked hard to ensure that I understand what it entails and to acquire skills in a practical setting. The internship helped a lot in gaining new knowledge about personnel issues, most of which I had not learnt about before. I realized that human resource is a broader field than what it appears to a lay man. It was interesting to know that there are moderate computer systems that are applied in the management of personnel issues. My experience with such systems will be significant in my future career goals as it enhanced my competitiveness. The human resource department in hotels and other companies is critical to the accomplishment of organizations goals. Organizations that are able to manage their human resources effectively generate motivation and the desire to achieve among the employees thereby enhancing their productivity and the overall success. This is achieved through a robust human resource department. Employment opportunities in this field are also many since all companies need the services of human resource professionals. My goal to pursue human resource management as a minor changed as I developed greater interest in the field. I decided to take it as master degree to enhance my certification and employability. I developed a new approach to my academic and career goals to ensure that I am better equipped with skills while tackling the challenges that I might be faced with in my future career as a human resource professional. My goal to enroll for graduate studies straightaway after I get my bachelor’s degree changed as I opted to work for 3 to 4 years to acquire experience first and then join graduate school. My first master’s degree will be on human resource management. Later on, I will undertake a second masters in hotel management to accomplish my longtime career goal of becoming a successful hotel manager. I will enroll for part-time CIPD and PHR certification within the 3 to 4 years of work as I realized from Mr. Jamal that they are significant in the accomplishment of my career goals. References Haves, D. K. & Ninemeir, J. D. 2012. Human Resources Management in the Hospitality Industry, New York, NY: Wiley Luo, Y. & Milne, S. 2014. “Current Human Resource Management Practices in the New Zealand Hotel Sector”, Journal of Human Resources in Hospitality & Tourism, 13, 1, pp. 81-100 Read More