Management Scenario

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Title: Management Scenario

Introduction

Decision-making and problem-solving are some of the key responsibilities of a manager. Every other day, employers and managers are faced with the situations that require them to make informed decisions and solve problems that can impact the profitability, operational efficiency, and reputation of their organization. The decision to hire and fire an employee also falls in the same category and that must be based on ethical and legal considerations. Management aims to hire and retain the right talent for their organization to maintain its competitive position in the industry. Employees' behaviors can not only impact their performance at a job but the performance of their organization in the long-run. This paper is based on the problem faced by the president of an organization regarding one of his employees with respect to his past behavior.

Management Scenario Summary

In the case under discussion, John Smith, president of LM Minerals Limited (LM) received a call from an old friend and he is informed something about one of his most competent employees. Steve Robinson, who has been appointed as the vice-president of exploration at his company was fired from an organization where he kick-started his career. The reason for the firing was a serious drug-abuse problem that disturbed Smith since he was looking forward to promoting Robinson as president of exploration owing to his exceptional performance during his three years at LM. After the call, Smith started to focus on some of the behavioral issues with Robinson, such as his asocial behavior, and his lack of communication with others. Smith is concerned about keeping an employee having such a past since LM’s is known for the excellent corporate reputation for integrity.

Problem Solving

Applying the problem-solving framework, PADIL, studied in Chapter 3, effective problem-solving consist of 5 steps ADDIN ZOTERO_ITEM CSL_CITATION {"citationID":"V2Zt3hjd","properties":{"formattedCitation":"(Baldwin et al.)","plainCitation":"(Baldwin et al.)","noteIndex":0},"citationItems":[{"id":1056,"uris":["http://zotero.org/users/local/orkqtrjP/items/DYM6WKZ7"],"uri":["http://zotero.org/users/local/orkqtrjP/items/DYM6WKZ7"],"itemData":{"id":1056,"type":"book","title":"Managing organizational behavior: What great managers know and do","publisher":"McGraw-Hill Higher Education","ISBN":"0-07-746273-4","author":[{"family":"Baldwin","given":"Timothy"},{"family":"Bommer","given":"Bill"},{"family":"Rubin","given":"Robert"}],"issued":{"date-parts":[["2012"]]}}}],"schema":"https://github.com/citation-style-language/schema/raw/master/csl-citation.json"} (Baldwin et al.). These steps comprise of: define and structure the problem, identify the available alternatives, decide the right course of action, implement and learn from the results. After reading the scenario presented above, the problem which Smith is facing is what to do with Robinson because his issue of drug-abuse can have consequences for the company. Other reasons that pinpoint the problem is that Robinson had hidden these facts from him and he had deceived Smith and LM’s other executives about his reasons for leaving the mining company and joining Rock-Ore. It is evident that he concealed the facts to secure his job but this doubts his credibility as an employee at LM. In addition, his behavior can mess with LM’s excellent corporate reputation for integrity. So the problem that arises is that what should be done with Robison.

Best alternatives available to solve the problem

Mr. Smith has to make a decision, but his action must be based on sound logic, and consideration of ethical and legal responsibility he holds towards his employees. He must have sound reasons for his actions concerning the managerial position he holds. Following factors must be taken into consideration, Robinson’s analytical skills were excellent as assessed in the interview. In addition, Robinson was defined as a first-rate person and the one they would like to have returned as an employee to their firm by the vice-president of Exploration at Rock-Ore. Robinson had also been highly appreciated and well paid by Rock-Ore. During his interview at LM by the higher management, he said he had been very content with how he had been dealt at Rock-Ore. Moreover, he had graduated at the top of his MBA class and remained on the dean’s list in both years of the MBA program.

The first step that must be taken by Smith should be to apply the technique of brainstorming and brain-writing to develop and list the available alternatives. The alternatives selected must meet the following criteria:

it must involve the key stakeholders, should focus long term outcome for the organization and must be effective. The way in which matter is informed to the stakeholder must not disturb the reputation of Robinson as an employee. All the alternatives should be evaluated before choosing the optimal solution. The alternatives that are available to Smith include doing nothing, talking to Robinson, stop his promotion, firing Robinson for hiding the truth from the company management. One more alternative could be to forgive him based on his current performance and medical condition. Firing of employees based on the past history of drug abuse or a criminal record is considered as discrimination based on recovery ADDIN ZOTERO_ITEM CSL_CITATION {"citationID":"kCLkLKJZ","properties":{"formattedCitation":"({\\i{}Accommodating Workers with a History of Substance Abuse})","plainCitation":"(Accommodating Workers with a History of Substance Abuse)","noteIndex":0},"citationItems":[{"id":1058,"uris":["http://zotero.org/users/local/orkqtrjP/items/2L6U8LLM"],"uri":["http://zotero.org/users/local/orkqtrjP/items/2L6U8LLM"],"itemData":{"id":1058,"type":"webpage","title":"Accommodating Workers with a History of Substance Abuse","URL":"https://www.shrm.org/resourcesandtools/legal-and-compliance/state-and-local-updates/pages/accommodating-workers-with-a-history-of-substance-abuse.aspx","accessed":{"date-parts":[["2019",9,18]]}}}],"schema":"https://github.com/citation-style-language/schema/raw/master/csl-citation.json"} (Accommodating Workers with a History of Substance Abuse). In this way, employers do not support individuals who are seeking treatment and recovering from their bad habits according to the guide of alcohol and drug policies reform.

Employers often discriminate employees based on their past history related to drugs and alcohol abuse or some criminal activity that makes people in recovery hide their history from them. The current abuse of drugs can prevent an employee from displaying his full potential at the workplace. In the case of Robinson, he has been performing exceptionally well since he has joined the company that reflects his current health status. In addition, he cleared the usual medical examination and reference check, he was appointed as an employee after he met all the requirements of the job.

Based on his current performance at the company, he has demonstrated excellent management skills and has intuitive judgment needed for the job he performs. He also managed his operations and a team of young geologists and geophysicists well. His performance appraisals have also been very satisfactory, hence losing such as employee would be equivalent to losing one of the most important assets of the organization. He is a very good replacement for the president of the exploration, so his promotion should also not be stopped. Talking to Robinson is another alternative available amid the options available. Robinson must be inquired about his drug abuse history as an employee. He must and informing him that the company's management is aware of his drug abuse history what he was trying to hide from the company. Smith should consider what Robinson has to say about his employment history and gap in his resume. In addition, he must also be inquired about his current health condition, any recovery program, and drug-taking habits. The current condition of employees can determine their future performance as well as they can make the workplace volatile. Having such employees can also result in legal liability for the employer some times.

Companies have already made some policies regarding the substance use and abuse of employees. The company must make a reference to the policies if Robinson is subject to any kind of violation.

Solutions and recommendation

Before thinking of any solution to the issue, some of the factors must be taken into account such as solution cost, the result of the solution and, most importantly the criteria to take decision must be identified. Each of these options has its own consequences and outcomes for the company and the employee as well. However, one option must be selected based on the fact that results in less harm to the company and to the employee as well (Baldwin, Timothy, Bill Bommer, and Robert Rubin). Based on these available options, their potential consequences, and after narrowing alternatives, talking to Robinson is the most viable option. This must be considered by Smith before taking any decision to fire or deter his promotion. Talking to Robinson will unearth his reason for concealing the truth from the company. If he has kept the reality hidden from the management, this puts a question mark on his integrity.

The question here is not his past history of drug abuse but the fact that he was successful in hiding the truth. He has kept the company unaware of the reality and claimed that he left the company due to its culture. According to him, the reason for this move was the desire to shift from a bureaucratic to an entrepreneurial atmosphere. If Robinson is guilty of this statement, he must be given another chance after obtaining a legal contract with him that he will not be the reason for a question mark on the company's reputation and integrity. Moreover, one aspect that should not be ignored is that Rock-Ore might have done some investigation about him but kept his as part of his competence and excellent performance. Ethics also play a dynamic role in the deamination of right action, in three years of his performance, he has performed more than expectation. The company holds an ethical responsibility not to take any decision before inquiring the matter since he has been loyal to the company. His past performance must not hinder his ability to demonstrate his skills and abilities on a new platform.

Conclusion

To sum up, being the president of the company, Smith has to make the decision as soon as possible. However, the decision must be based on the facts and logic so as to avoid any damage to the company as well as the employee. He holds a high responsibility towards the organization and towards Robinson. The information shared on phone call is not enough to determine the credibility of Robinson, since he has never caused any problem to the company so far. Consideration must be made to ethics, his current performance, stakeholders advice, company policies, and his medical and reference checks at the time of hiring. The optimal solution recommended is to inquire from Robinson and get the assurance of his reliability as an employee rather than losing an asset mere based on past history.

Works Cited

ADDIN ZOTERO_BIBL {"uncited":[],"omitted":[],"custom":[]} CSL_BIBLIOGRAPHY Accommodating Workers with a History of Substance Abuse. https://www.shrm.org/resourcesandtools/legal-and-compliance/state-and-local-updates/pages/accommodating-workers-with-a-history-of-substance-abuse.aspx. Accessed 18 Sept. 2019.

Baldwin, Timothy, Bill Bommer, and Robert Rubin. Managing organizational behavior: What great managers know and do. McGraw-Hill Higher Education, 2012.