Assignment 1: Critical Thinking: 1

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Assignment 1: Critical Thinking:

1. Robert Bies, professor of management at Georgetown University, believes that an important ethical guideline in dealing with bad news within organizations is not to shock the recipient: “Bad news should never come as a surprise. Failure to warn senior leadership of impending bad news, such as poor sales or a loss of a major client, is a cardinal sin. So is failure to warn subordinates about mistakes in their performance and provide an opportunity for them to make corrections and improve.”49 Discuss the motivation of people who keep quiet and struggle with dispensing bad news.

 

2. Respected industry analyst Gartner Research issued a report naming social networking as one of the top ten disruptive (i.e., innovative) influences shaping information technology in the next five years.50 Should organizations fear websites where consumers post negative messages about products and services? What actions can companies take in response to this disruptive influence?

 

3. Consider times when you have been aware that others were using the indirect strategy in writing or speaking to you. How did you react?

 

4. Living in Pittsburgh, Lauren Bossers worked virtually by e-mail and phone for a supply chain management software company in Dallas. She was laid off by phone. Bossers’ manager had given her one day’s notice; however, the news was still “shocking,” and she responded with just yes or no to the HR officer who called: “I wasn’t rude, but I didn’t think it was my job to make them feel better,” Bossers said. Software developer Jeff Langr was fired during a teleconference on Skype.51 What might be some advantages and disadvantages to being let go remotely, if any? Why might it be a good idea to rein in one’s frustration and anger?

 

5. Ethical Issue: You work for a large corporation with headquarters in a small town. Recently, you received shoddy repair work and a huge bill from a local garage. Your car’s transmission has the same problems that it did before you took it in for repair. You know that a complaint letter written on your corporation’s stationery would be much more authoritative than one written on plain stationery. Should you use corporation stationery?