You are the Production Department manager at Kibby and Strand, and last month there were complaints from customers that the quality of the products shipped to them was lacking. Some shirts were labeled with incorrect sizes and girl’s shorts had weak stitching that did not meet specifications. The Operations Manager tasks you to prepare a plan for conducting a Root Cause Analysis (RCA) to identify the causes of these quality issues. In addition, he recently read the article 3 Ways to Manage Garment Quality Control and prepare a paper detailing how the quality inspections in the article can be implemented within Kibby and Strand.

The student is to create the RCA plan and paper based on knowledge learned in the scenario, and post it in the discussion. Note: it is not possible to actually conduct the RCA and document findings because the data is not provided in the scenario.

The RCA plan and paper should be prepared in a single Microsoft™ Word document, and then attached to the unit discussion thread. There is no minimum or maximum in terms of the word count; however, the response should explicitly address all required components of this discussion assignment. The document should be prepared consistent with the APA writing style (6^th edition) and reflect higher level cognitive processing (analysis, synthesis and or evaluation).  

Applicant Testing at the RCMP

Applicants to the Royal Canadian Mounted Police must pass a written examination, an interview, and a physical ability test before being accepted for basic training at the RCMP’s training center in Regina.  As a federally regulated agency, the RCPM falls under the jurisdiction of the Employment Equity Act. Designed to further the employment of women, visible minorities, and other designated groups.  The RCMP has had difficulty meeting recruiting targets of 20% women, 4.5% Aboriginal people, and 8.3% visible minorities that were set in compliance with the objectives of the Act.  A review of testing data showed that Aboriginal peoples and visible minorities scored slightly lower than other groups ion the written tests and that 40-50% of women applicants fail the physical ability test, a rate considerably higher than that for men.

In response to concerns over failing to meet its recruiting objectives, the RCMP undertook a revision of the examination, which assesses cognitive ability.  The new test retains, “academic’ items related to composition and computation, but it also has new items in the form of scenarios that are directed at problem solving.  The new questions are more job directed and operational in nature.  The test items were rewritten to minimize the impact of different regional language styles to ensure that the questions are fair and equitable for all applicants.

With respect to the physical ability test, women had particular difficulty with the upper body strength requirements.  To deal with this problem, the RCMP instituted a six-week training pretraining in fitness program to help women prepare for the fitness test.  It also revised the evaluation procedure.  The following document provides information on the new physical ability requirement and provides information on how to prepare for the test.

Questions:

1. Did the RCMP do the right thing in revising its written examination and fitness test? Did the RCMP reduce the rigour of its entrance requirements?
2. It appears that the RCMP is trying to incorporate a “practical intelligence” component into its examinations. Is this appropriate? What type of “job knowledge” should be assessed of applicants?
3. If physical ability is a job requirement for police officers, is it appropriate to have different standards for male and female applicants to the RCMP? Argue your point.
4. Is the existing test fair and equitable for all candidates? Will the new procedures discriminate against white males?

where do you get most of your news, and how do you analyze what you hear, view, or reason media outlets. In what ways can you az a citizen, get involved in governmental process? How do you apply critical thinking when you are involved in these activities?

Working Together with Robots at Dynamic Group

Do you think that robots will ultimately replace humans in many jobs?
Why or why not?
What skills will employees need to be trained in, to work alongside robots?

Think about industry‐disrupting companies such as Uber (disrupting the taxi industry) and Airbnb (disrupting the hotel industry). Research them if you don’t know much about them. What are the legal and ethical issues facing them? In what ways are they being responsible, irresponsible? How would you evaluate their corporate social responsibility?

Gary is walking down the sidewalk in Glendale when he suddenly trips and falls, twisting his right ankle in the process. He gets up and sees that a tree root has cracked and pushed up the sidewalk about ¾ of an inch, which he believes caused him to trip. He goes home, takes aspirin and wraps his ankles in ice and a bandage. A few days later, he feels fine.

a. If Gary wanted to sue over this, who would he sue? Under what theory of liability?

b. What would be the defendant’s best argument?

c. Would it be worthwhile for Gary to file a lawsuit? Why?

d. What evidence would help Gary win his case? How would he go about finding it?

e. What kind of evidence could the defendant use (assuming it existed) to defend itself against Gary’s claim?

NOTE: This question is from LAW 001 Business Law I

Assignment #1 40 Marks Length 2-3 pages Objectives:

• To demonstrate an understanding of the external issues relative to your company
• To make recommendations to mitigate negative circumstances related to the external environment.
• To make recommendations to capitalize on opportunities as related to the external environment.

  Instructions  1. Identify the external issues your organization is facing and how each of the variables identified are impacting your particular business environment.

• Political changes.
• Social changes.
• Economic changes.
• Legislative changes.
• Technological changes within your country.

2. Design and discuss three strategies that you as the Human Resources manager can take to either capitalize on an opportunity presented through the external variables and/or minimize the negative impact of external variables on the organization.  Provide rationale for each strategy.  

Paulson is in charge of a project at the local community center. The center needs to remodel one of the rooms in time for the start of a new program. Delays in the project mean that the center must rent other space at a nearby church at additional cost (and Paulson gets a roasting).
Time and cost data for your project are contained in Table below. Paulson’s interest is in minimizing the cost of the project to the community center.

TABLE
DATA FOR THE COMMUNITY CENTER PROJECT
Activity
Normal Time (days)
Normal Cost($)
Crash Time (days)
Crash Cost ($)
Immediate Predecessor(s)
START
0
0
0
0
-
A
10
50
8
150
START
B
4
40
2
200
START
C
7
70
6
160
B
D
2
20
1
50
A, C
E
3
30
3
30
A, C
F
8
80
5
290
B
G
5
50
4
180
D
H
6
60
3
180
E, F
FINISH
0
0
0
0
G, H

a. Using the normal times for each activity, what is the earliest date Paulson can complete the project?

b. Suppose the variable overhead costs are $50 per day for your project. Also, suppose that the center must pay $40 per day for a temporary room on day 15 or beyond. Find the minimum-cost project schedule (best chance that Paulson is not hauled by Church authorities). What is the minimum cost? (3+7 = 10 Marks)

OM in the News: Looking Back–and Forward–on Productivity

SEPTEMBER 29, 2014

tags: Frederick Taylor, Productivity, time and motion studies

by Barry Render

Frederick Taylor revolutionized manufacturing at the turn of the 20th century with a simple insight. Most manufacturing work was a sequence of physical motions. You would load coal onto a shovel, carry it to a furnace, throw it into the furnace, walk back to the coal pile and repeat. In a time and motion study, he quantified each step and how long it took. Then he analyzed how to improve the whole process. He noted, for example, that a typical worker could lift 21 pounds for maximum efficiency. Workers varied in size and strength, but on average this weight balanced the number of shovel lifts per minute against the volume per lift. In those early days, workers used the same shovel for all materials, regardless of the density of the stuff being lifted, so less weight was being lifted for the less dense materials. Taylor’s elegant and simple solution — bigger scoops for shovels used to haul the less dense materials — illustrates how careful analysis of a specific work process can increase productivity.

Today, his time and motion studies seem antiquated. Phone calls and memos have replaced shovels and picks for many workers. “Yet despite its association with early factories, a modern version of the spirit of Taylorism is sorely needed,” writes Harvard’s Prof. Sendhil Mullainathan in the New York Times (Sept. 28, 2014). “It’s time to identify and optimize the specific psychologies that constitute the mental alchemy of productivity,” he says.

In one Stanford experiment, some workers were randomly assigned to work at home, others worked in group call centers. The work habits of both groups were carefully monitored electronically, and the workers knew it. Those working at home were 13% more productive than those in call centers. With modern technology, we now have so many ways to quantify, track and motivate productivity, and are just beginning to scratch the surface of doing so.

Discussion questions:

1. Why is productivity such an important issue in OM?

2. Describe how time studies are conducted

3. How would explain the results of the Stanford experiment mentioned in the final paragraph of the article?

Choose a company and analyze its CSR report. In doing so, think about what seem to be its reasons for being socially responsible. Is it pragmatic, ethical, strategic, or some combination? Can you identify its key stakeholders?

Ohio, along with many other states as well as other countries, has issued Stay-at-Home orders. Colleges have closed campus and many may have moved back to home communities. Answer the following questions:

1) Should first responders (i.e.: Police Officers and/or Fire Fighters) get “hazard pay” during the Pandemic. If so, how much and how do you propose to finance the extra cost? If not, why not? If your community does not have a police or fire department, what impact do you think the Pandemic will have on current government operations and services of your community?

2) What impact is the COVID-19 Pandemic likely to have on the financial results of the community for 2020 and 2021?

NOTE: This assignment is about contract between COMPANY and CLIENTS - NOT employees!! The terms and conditions listed towards the bottom in bold are just EXAMPLES, not to be used!

BMGT 380 Learning Activity Week 4

Background: Contracts are essential for business, and will be an integral part of GC operations, so the owners now want to focus on contract law. Each of the owners has experience with contracts in their own businesses, and appreciate the probable risks and liabilities associated with contracts. They also know that to avoid possible disputes with employees and clients, contracts should be comprehensive, clear, and specific. The GC owners know that there are various types of contract agreements relevant to their business. GC will have individual contracts with employees, independent contractors, and other agents who will represent the company. Also, GC will engage in sales contracts with other businesses, consumers, and clients.  

To reduce disputes and risks and liabilities associated with contracts, the owners want all contracts to be written, with specific, complete, and clear terms. Contracts must define the rights and responsibilities of the parties. Also, since employees and/or independent contractors will be performing cleaning services on clients’ properties, these contracts should require bonding for all employees.

You, Winnie, and Ralph presented draft contracts for GC employees, including different contracts for cleaners, office managers, marketing specialists, sales representatives, and IT employees.

The GC owners reviewed the drafts and have some questions about the contracts.

Background Facts You Need to Know: At Winnie’s and Ralph’s request, it is your responsibility to research and provide answers to the GC owners’ questions. As an example, Winnie, Ralph, the GC owners, and you have determined that GC's contract with its cleaner- employees will include the following terms and conditions:

• specific duties to be performed by cleaner-employee
• salary for cleaner-employee
• work hours
• terms of payment for overtime or holiday work, if any
• sick leave
• vacation leave
• training requirements for cleaner-employee
• length of contract
• bonding for cleaner-employee
• periodic performance evaluation and how it will be conducted
• termination of the contract, i.e., a notice of termination, etc.

Instructions

This is an application-oriented Learning Activity. You will not find verbatim answers anywhere. Engage in critical thinking and review all this week's assigned readings in Overview. You may also need to review previously assigned materials in weeks 2 and 3.

Report You Need to Prepare: To begin developing a contract between GC and its cleaning clients, prepare a report that addresses the following (note that this is for a contract with GC's clients and not GC's employees).

REPORT

TO:              Winnie James, Ralph Anders

FROM:        

DATE:        April 7^th, 2020

RE:     Terms of Green Clean Contracts with Clients

1. Identify five (5) contract terms and conditions - other than price - that should be included in the GC contract with its cleaning clients.

Contract Terms and Conditions

1.

2.

3.

4.

5.

2. Analyze and briefly discuss why each term is important to include in a GC-client cleaning contract.

Develop Your Skill exercise What is your leadership Potential?

Question 2

PT 1: A manager is trying to decide whether to build a small, medium, or large facility. Demand can be low, average, or high, with the estimated probabilities being 0.25, 0.40, and 0.35, respectively.

A small facility is expected to earn an after-tax net present value of just $18,000 if demand is low. If demand is average, the small facility is expected to earn $75,000; it can be increased to medium size to earn a net present value of $60,000. If demand is high, the small facility is expected to earn $75,000 and can be expanded to medium size to earn $60,000 or to large size to earn $125,000.

A medium-sized facility is expected to lose an estimated $25,000 if demand is low and earn $140,000 if demand is average. If demand is high, the medium-sized facility is expected to earn a net present value of $150,000; it can be expanded to a large size for a net payoff of $145,000.

If a large facility is built and demand is high, earnings are expected to be $220,000. If demand is average for the large facility, the present value is expected to be $125,000; if demand is low, the facility is expected to lost $60,000.

Which alternative is best, according to each of the following decision criterion?

a) Maximin

b) Maximax

c) Minimax regret

PT 2: Draw a decision tree for the three options described in Part 1. What should management do to achieve the highest expected payoff?

Please show work step-by-step. Thank you.

Why do U.S. corporations build manufacturing plants abroad when they can build them at home? Use a practical example to illustrate your point.