Name – Akshay Mehta
BCID – A00966507

Assignment #2
Date of Submission – 29 May 2015
Time of Submission: 5:30 am

Questions:

1. What should Burt say to Maryann about the situation with Paul? With the other staff?

A. Every action leads to an equal and opposite reaction as goes by Newton Law becomes very much evident in Paul’s situation. Paul is the lathe operator who was very disappointed and angry at the way the downtime reporting was being handled by the plant superintendent’s new assistant Maryann. Earlier Harriet, who was the previous assistant used to enjoy analyzing these reports much with a high level of accuracy, and was responsible for handling them. Paul before coming to Burt, the plant superintendent, tried to tackle the situation at his own level by talking to the assistant about it, but got no positive answer on the matter. When he tried to cross question the accuracy of the data, Maryann retaliated with the justification that all the facts were correct and that she was in charge of the report and knew what she was doing. Further on she told him not to bother Burt about it, which according to Paul was an attempt to hide her mistakes since she must have thought she made a mistake and Paul would certainly take up the matter to her boss.

Evidently before Paul came to meet Burt about this incident, the other staff had already told him about her snobbish behavior. Everyone seems to have the opinion that she didn’t care about her job. Most of the people in the office didn’t want to deal with her. People even observed her change in behavior since she started working for Burt. About this particular situation Paul should call Maryann for a formal meeting to understand if Maryann is going through a difficult time or what are the obstacles being faced by her in completing this job. He should ask her to bring in the figures, which she has analyzed, and review them with her and Paul as well. It is very important that Burt involve both Paul and Maryann to make sure both of them are at the same page. He should also remind Maryann that everyone has the right to question reports which might not really fit in with the data they have provided and its her responsibility to re-analyze or to bring it to Burt’s attention rather than turning them away. He should very clearly mention her that it is her responsibility to make sure than all the data analysis are first shown to him before finalizing the reports since she is new at the post and it might happen that she’s not able to analyze as required. He should also ask Paul to help Maryann in understanding the metrics better and both should work as a team rather than snubbing each other. Also as discussed, Maryann is showing attitude problems for which Burt should caution her and encourage her to make good rapport with other staff members as well. It is very important for Burt to step in as her Boss and guide her to steer clear of her mistakes. At the moment Burt needs Maryann since he doesn’t have anyone else taking up the position and rather that coaching someone else, it is better if he can train Maryann and help her correct her mistakes and make good bonding with other staff members as well. If Maryann does pickup after Burt’s coaching or guidance not only will it boost MaryAnn’s morale but also it will help reestablish the efficiency, which Burt used to enjoy from his previous assistant and it will also ensure the clients, which are very important for the company and not left unattended. This will also help in lifting up the working relationship of other staff with Maryann and people wouldn’t hesitate in helping her if she ever needs their help, which as of the current situation people are unwilling to offer.

2. How could Burt have prevented this dilemma?

A. A super-efficient assistant assisted Burt and recently the position was empty since the person left for a better paying job somewhere else. This was a correct opportunity for Burt to recognize the abilities he requires in