1. Share what you had expected to learn about the topic before the class.
I was expecting to learn about change in the nursing field and what we can do about it.
2. What you actually learned from the unit.
That there is a whole lot that encompasses change and there is not one single principle or way that you can adapt to change. Change is inevitable and we need to learn to deal with it.
3. How you will utilize the information learned in your nursing practice.
Look toward the future and expect change and try to foresee change and better prepare myself for what is to come.
4. Your personal feelings about the material covered.
It was good and very applicable to any walk of life, but most especially to the profession of nursing where change is so constant and to be expected.

Budgeting Interview

Budget Interview Questions
For my Interview I interviewed someone who is in charge of the budget of a trampoline gym. The only way that it is health related is the number of customers who get sent to the ED.
3 main budget concerns?
Loan payment, employees, creating a reserve.
What does your budget cover?
All of our fixed costs and variable costs. Loan payments, taxes, payroll, supplies/inventory, utilities, advertising, reserve/savings
What is your budget range?
Around $16,000 a month
Do you meet budget?
Most of the time
What is your profit margin?
18%
What is you biggest expenditure after employees?
Loan payments, then taxes
How often do you do a budget?
Yearly, check monthly to make sure in line, and check and revise quarterly if needed

This was a very interesting assignment and interview. It was a lot of fun to learn more about the whole budgeting process. There is quite a bit of stress that goes into it, and I can imagine with all the money and expenses that one is in charge of.

Career Development and Staffing

1. Share what you had expected to learn about the topic before the class.
I had expected to learn about how to advance my career and perhaps some of the ins and outs of staffing.
2. What you actually learned from the unit.
I learned that there are many different ways that organizations go about staffing. I also learned that staffing is not something that can easily be done in 10 or 15 minutes. It takes a lot of time and effort to make it run smoothly
3. How you will utilize the information learned in your nursing practice.
I won't take staffing for granted anymore that is for sure. I also think I will have a better knowledge regarding how some of the inter workings take place in a hospital setting.
4. You personal feelings about the material covered.
It was good and informative. Material that can be very worthwhile.

Budgeting

Budgeting Reflective Journal

This week was very interesting. It was a very big eye opener to know about the ins and outs of the costs that go into running a hospital. I was amazed at all of the costs involved. I almost felt like as accountant looking at all the numbers. I came to realize that running a hospital really comes down to money and the bottom line. It was also quite interesting to know that nursing and nurses are by far the biggest expense on a hospital budget. It really made me think about all of the equipment we use and how I am sure to think twice before I waste something next time.

Hiring and Firing Interview

Hiring and firing and discipline interview questions.

 

For my interview I had the opportunity to interview the manager of a local Subway Restaurant. Here are the answers to the interview questions.

 

What qualities do you look for in new employees?

                I look for confidence in themselves, hardworking, self-motivating, clean, availability.

What are the three most common interview questions?

                What three words would you use to describe yourself?

                Tell me about yourself, to get the potential employee talking?

                Why should we pick you for this position?

What are red flags for potential employees?

                No eye contact

                No feedback for strengths or weaknesses.

                Unkept or not well dressed, no piercings on the face

Describe your interview process?

                Welcome, asking about the employee, not work related. Ask questions such as what qualifies you for this position. What is your availability.  Ask about specific situations in the workplace and find out how they would approach potential confrontational situations

What is your plan of action for disciplinary action?

                Every employee gets one verbal warning and three written warnings. Area manager gets involved after the warnings and the area managing and I sit down and talk to employee. I will then sit down with the employee with the three written warnings and let the employee go.

What problems have you encountered that have led to disciplinary action?

                Closing the store early, leaving early

                Having family or friends in the employee area

                Stealing food

How do you deal with morale, gossip, etc. around disciplinary action?

                I hope to gain a relationship with employees to be approachable. I am direct and strait forward. I don’t use specific names when talking about discipline

Frequency for hiring, firing, discipline?

                Daily basis with discipline

                Monthly for hiring

                Monthly for firing

How do you protect yourself legally when firing someone?

                With the written warnings. I have the employees sign them

How do you make the decision to fire/let an employee go?

                When the job is not getting done or it has become detrimental to the company

How do you deal with threats?

                Most threats are not taken too seriously. I’ve never really had any serious threats posed to me.

 

This was a good experience and I enjoyed interviewing the individual. I did learn that it is not that easy being a manager. She told me that there are many times where she doesn’t feel liked at all. She also said that she has learned that you need to keep a professional relationship at all times, because the moment you become “friends” you get taken advantage of like you wouldn’t believe.

Power Reflective Journal

1. Share what you had expected to learn about the topic before the class.
I honestly had no clue what we were going to learn. Possibly Sean was going to bench press for the class and show us how much power he has ;)
2. What you actually learned from the unit.
I learned that men and women are completely different in a myriad of ways. I learned that though they have different leading styles, there are still no absolutes regarding who are better leaders.
3. How you will utilize the information learned in your nursing practice.
I have already used the information to better understand my better half. I will use it in my professional practice to hopefully resolve concerns and better understand my coworkers. It will also help me to become a better leader as I am able to see and understand why someone thinks and acts the way they do.
4. Your personal feelings about the material covered.
I really really liked the information. It is stuff that we see and work with almost every day, and yet we still seen to have struggles in communication and understanding. It was very eye opening and extremely informative. Just being aware of the material we covered in class can go a long way to help us all become better nurses.

Performance Appraisal Interview

I interviewed one of my good friends who works at a photo shop. Here is the result:

Interview Questions for performance appraisals

 

*        What is the process of evaluating employees?

We prefer to call it Coaching. My company does written reviews as well number reviews where we compare and contrast individuals scores against last years numbers and others in the company.

I also go through all photography sessions to see if the company process was followed and watch to see if the company sells presentation is followed. 

 

*        What system do you use to rate your employees?

We hold all employees to a company standard. They either are or are not following company guidelines and when they are not we can tell in their photography and in the amount of money that they bring into the studio. Ratings are offered on evaluations such as "on plan" and "not on plan".  Other evaluations state rating such as "WOW", "above average", "average", "below average", "needs coaching"

 

*        How often do you rate your employees?

I do weekly, monthly and semi-annual reviews on my employees. 

 

*        What are the challenges involved with evaluations?

I have a company standard to meet as do my employees, which sounds like it would be easy, however Utah County has never brought in the money that even the SLC County studios bring in and Utah in general has always been behind the company average. It is hard to Justify holding my employees to company standard when we are making the sales goals that the company has set in comparison from last year and beating last year, but are still not to the Sales Average that the company asks. 

*        Do you agree with low ratings to encourage improvement?

 I believe in being honest with my employees if they are producing poor work I look for ways to improve that work and their numbers. We evaluate their photography and if they are following their sales process to see where they are lacking and could use more coaching. In my coaching I allow my employees to do their own evaluations weekly and then we look over where they feel like they can improve. The employee is typically harder on them self than I am as their superior. 

 

*        Examples of dealing with problem employees? When an employee shows late to their shift, I remind them how important it is that they are on time. I have them list those reasons and then write them self a warning. If there is another occurrence of being late I then give the warning written formally, the next time a formal write-up. After 3 write ups the individual is terminated.

Most Coaching starts with a plan and a goal, if the plan is not being followed then the goal is not being met, first warning on paper results from here and then so on...

*        How do you encourage positive growth in your employees?

I like to boost the moral, small encouragements and verbal recognition. I compliment the good and try to quickly fix the bad habits. Positive reinforcements at all times possible. I believe very much in TEAM work, if everyone is working towards the same goal we are all in it together. I encourage a fun and competitive environment where the reward is small and is often bragging rights. I work with my employees to see where they feel like they can improve and I do everything in my power to help them reach their goals. I have an open talk policy where my employees can feel safe in their discussions with me.

I really enjoyed this interview and was able to find out a lot about the person I interviewed. She seems to be a great leader and would be someone that I would want to work under.

 

Ethics

1. Share what you had expected to learn about the topic before the class.
I expected that I would become an expert ethicist. Actually not really, I just was curious to know how ethics committees worked.
2. What you actually learned from the unit.
That ethics committees are not the end all, final word. The are there for expert opinion and to help others decide what decisions they would like to make.
3. How you will utilize the information learned in your nursing practice.
I will use it to make sound judgement and to not make knee jerk reactionary decisions. There are reasons ethics are so hotly debated, and that is because there is rarely a clear, black and white answer to the decision at hand.
4. Your personal feelings about the material covered.
I thought it was great and gave us the students some great insight into how ethics committees work and that we could take place as a member of one some day.