Understanding the main points. 1. Complete the following sentences, using your own words.
1. Complete the following sentences, using your own words.
1. Because the work of a manager is “fragmented” …………………………
…………………………………………………………………………… .
2. As executives take up more senior positions within a company they often find
that ………………………………………………………………………….
……………………………………………………………………………. .
3. A time log is useful to a manager because …………………………………
……………………………………………………………………………. .
2. Note down the ways in which managers can make sure that they have enough
time to carry out their most important functions.
1. ……………………………………………………………………………….
2. ……………………………………………………………………………….
3. ……………………………………………………………………………….
4. ……………………………………………………………………………….
3. Note down the three stages of the system used by some executives in order to
manage their time effectively.
1. ………………………………………………………………………………
2. ………………………………………………………………………………
3. ………………………………………………………………………………
Vocabulary focus
1. Find words or phrases in the text which mean the same as the following:
1. ordinary, unimportant (paragraph 1)
2. deal with (paragraph 2)
3. pays a casual visit (paragraph 2)
4. claims, requirements (paragraph 3)
5. valuable (paragraph 4)
6. get rid of, omit (paragraph 5)
7. depend (paragraph 6)
8. refusing (paragraph 8)
9. able to choose the best (paragraph 8)
10. keep for a special purpose (paragraph 10)
11. needing attention before other things (paragraph 10)
LANGUAGE STUDY
1. Compound nouns and phrases with time.
What do the following mean?
Each member of your group should choose one of the compound nouns or phrases
and explain what it means.
1. time-card
2. time-lag
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3. time-and-motion study
4. time-zone
5. time-switch (referring to a machine)
6. time-limit
7. time-sharing (referring to a computer)
8. timekeeper
9. to be on time
10. to be in time
Now, if you are still unsure of the meanings of any of the above, check them on your dictionary.
Make sentences of your own using five of the above.
1. …………………………………………………………………………………..
2. …………………………………………………………………………………..
3. …………………………………………………………………………………..
4. …………………………………………………………………………………..
5. …………………………………………………………………………………..
2. Rewrite the following sentences, replacing the words in italics with words and
phrases from the box below. Make any other necessary changes.
| for the time being | in no time at all | in good time |
| ahead of its time | at one time | from time to time |
| work against time | before one’s time |
1. The salesman decided to get to the meeting fairly early o that he could prepare
to his presentation.
2. I can get these brochures and price lists off to you almost immediately.
3. I must stay with my company for the moment because jobs are hard to find.
4. We have little time left to complete the project.
5. I am going to retire earlier than expected.
6. The technology used in the Lotus car is very advanced indeed.
7. Formerly I worked on the shop floor of the factory. Now, I’m Managing
Director. Times have changed!
8. We check the machines at intervals.
3.Complete the following sentences with the correct word or phrase (a, b, c or d).
1. It is only a ……………….. before the firm closes down.
a) matter of time
b) course of time
c) length of time
d) stage of time
2. There is usually a ……………….. between when you sell goods and when you get paid by your customer.
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a) time-log
b) time-delay
c) time-hold
d) time-lag
3. Meetings are necessary, but they can be very ……………….. .
a) time-consuming
b) time-saving
c) time-losing
d) time-costing
4. The fact that many small shops are closing down is a …………………. of the times.
a) mark
b) image
c) sight
d) sign
5. It is important that we get the ……………….. of our sales campaign right. We must not have it too early or too late.
a) moment
b) point
c) timing
d) time
6. Some workers like to ……………….. doing a job.
a) wait their time
b) spare their time
c) spend their time
d) take their time
7. When I visited our subsidiary in West Germany, I had ………… - everyone was most hospitable.
a) wonderful experiences
b) the best of times
c) good times
d) the time of my life
8. I bumped into a former colleague recently. We had a drink together …………
a) for the sake of good times
b) for old times’ sake
c) in memory of good old times
d) for the good old days
4. Inversion.
No sooner has he hung up than Bill drops by his office… (paragraph 2)
When the following words and phrases begin a sentence, the subject and verb are inverted.
| under no circumstances | no sooner | at no time | ||||
| not until | hardly | scarcely | rarely | seldom | ||
| never (before) | only | little | ||||
Study the following pairs of sentences.
1. a) You should not smoke in this area under any circumstances.
b) Under no circumstances should you smoke in this area.
2. a) The company has never had such a successful year.
b) Never has the company had such a successful year.
Note that the second sentence of each pair is more emphatic than the first and that the subject and auxiliary verb are inverted. Inversion is used mainly in formal English.
A. Make all the changes and additions necessary to produce correct sentences from the following sets of words and phrases.
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e.g. No sooner/I start/write/report/someone/telephoned/me.
No sooner had I started to write the report when someone telephoned me.
1 Hardly/I finish/phone/my boss/drop into/my office.
………………………………………………………………………………….
2 Under no circumstances/manager/rely on/ memory/log/time.
…………………………………………………………………………………..
3 Not until/two years ago/company/begin/make/profits.
…………………………………………………………………………………..
4 Only/after three hours’ negotiations/we succeed/reach agreement/the final
contract.
…………………………………………………………………………………..
5 Rarely/our company/fail/meet/delivery dates.
…………………………………………………………………………………..
B.Put the following words in the correct order, so as to make correct sentences. Begin each sentence with the word underlined.
e.g. have efficient I met a more rarely manager.
Rarely have I met a more efficient manager.
1. been seldom after so I meeting have tired a
…………………………………………………………………………………..
2. I my office sooner no in arrive rang did telephone the than
…………………………………………………………………………………..
3. distributed no I be must circumstances under
…………………………………………………………………………………..
4. on did a only of lot the market put research after they the product
…………………………………………………………………………………..
5. any to relax does she rarely have time
…………………………………………………………………………………..
6. 1986 not factory our able to until were we buy own
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…………………………………………………………………………………..
7. little redundant that soon he be made he realise does will
……………………………………………………………………………………
8. by boss dropped my hardly report started had the I when
……………………………………………………………………………………
5. Discuss the following questions in groups of four:
1. How well do you organize your time?
2. What are your secrets of time management?
| UNIT 8 MOTIVATION |
DISCUSSION
Answer the following questions, then, in groups of two or three, compare your answers.
1. What sort of things motivate people to do their job well?
2. If you won a great deal of money, for example in a lottery, would you continue
working? If not, do you think you would lose anything by giving up work?
READING
The work of managers is to ensure that staff work efficiently in an organization. To achieve this, it is clear that managers must know what motivates people. By understanding the factors influencing motivation, they can create the conditions in which employees will perform to their maximum potential.
One of the best known theories of motivation was put forward by an American psychologist, Abraham Maslow, in a book entitled Motivation and Personality (1954). In his theory, he presents a hierarchy of needs. He identified certain basic human needs and classified them in an ascending order of importance. Basic needs were at the bottom of the hierarchy higher needs at the top. His classification is shown below:
NEEDS
Physiological needs
These were things required to sustain life like food, water, air, sleep etc. Until these needs are satisfied, Maslow believed, other needs will not motivate people.
Security needs
They are the needs to be free from danger, physical pain and loss of a job. They include the need for clothing and shelter.
Social needs
A human being needs to belong to a group, to be liked and loved, to feel accepted by others and to develop affiliations.
Esteem needs
After people have satisfied their social needs, they want to have self-respect and to be esteemed by others. They have a need for power, status, respect and self-confidence.
Self-actualisation needs
These are the highest needs, according to Maslow. They are the desire to develop, to maximize potential and to achieve one’s goals.
Maslow said that people satisfied their needs in a systematic way. When a need had been met, it stopped being a motivating factor. For example, if a person was starving, he would not be too concerned about security and social needs. But once he had enough food, he would start thinking about those other needs.
Research into Maslow’s theory has not been very conclusive. Studies have tended to show that needs vary greatly among individuals. At the higher levels in a company, self-actualising needs may be very strong whereas at lower levels, social and security needs may be dominant.
Another theory of motivation, which has been very popular with managers, is Frederick Herzberg’s “two-factor” theory. Herzberg conducted a number of studies in the region of Pittsburg, USA, in the late 1950s. He concluded that at work there are certain factors which cause job satisfaction while others lead to dissatisfaction.
The group of factors bringing about satisfaction were called “motivators”. They include things like a challenging job, responsibility, advancement, recognition etc. These factors give rise to positive satisfaction. Hersberg called the other group of factors “hygiene” or “maintenance” factors. These include company policy and administration, salary and fringe benefits, job security, status and personal life. These factors are considered to be only “dissatisfiers”, not motivators. If they do not exist, they cause dissatisfaction. If they do exist in quality and quantity, they do not, however, give increased satisfaction.
Herzberg’s two-factor theory is shown in the following diagram. It is worth noting that the hygiene factors refer to the context of the job – the conditions of work – while the motivators refer to job content.
HERZBERG’S MOTIVATION-HYGIENE THEORY
| MOTIVATORS | achievement challenging work the work itself career prospects responsibility recognition |
| HYGIENE FACTORS | company policy and administration salary and fringe benefits quality of supervision relationship with colleagues job security status personal life work conditions |
Hygiene factors are essential if workers are to be motivated. As one writer has aptly put it, they deal with the question “Why work harder?”
If Herzberg’s theory is true, it means that managers must pay great attention to job content. They must find ways of making jobs more challenging and interesting. As a result, managers in the USA and elsewhere have recently been showing great interest in job enrichment programmes. The idea of such programmes is to make jobs more challenging and to give the worker a sense of achievement.
Sweden has been leading the way in this respect. At one car plant, for example, Volvo workers assemble the whole of a car rather than do a few simple operations. In a glass factory, production workers have complete control over the work process in the grinding and polishing department. Other workers have helped to build and design paper mills. Job enrichment is undoubtedly catching on fast in Sweden.
Understanding the main points
1. Decide whether the following statements are true or false.
1. According to Maslow people are not concerned about achieving
their personal goals in life unless they have satisfied their
physiological needs. T/F
2. Senior managers who want to become company directors have
self-actualisation needs which they wish to satisfy. T/F
3. Herzberg, like Maslow, believes that people satisfy their needs
systematically. T/F
4. Herzberg believed that workers would not necessarily work
harder if they earned more money. T/F
5. Job security is one of the most important factors which
motivates employees. T/F
6. The purpose of job enrichment programmes is to increase
worker motivation. T/F
Vocabulary focus
1. Find words or phrases in the text which mean the same as the following:
1. the most somebody or something is capable of (paragraph 1)
……………………………………………………………………………………..
2. system of lower and higher ranks (paragraph 2)
…………………………………………………………………………………….
3. respected, admired (paragraph 2, Esteem needs)
…………………………………………………………………………………….
4. a person’s position in relation to others (paragraph 2, Esteem needs)
……………………………………………………………………………………..
5. final; putting an end to uncertainty (paragraph 4)
……………………………………………………………………………………..
6. feeling (paragraph 9)
……………………………………………………………………………………..
7. becoming popular or fashionable (paragraph 10)
……………………………………………………………………………………...
LANGUAGE STUDY
1. Opposites. Complete the following sentences with words opposite in meaning to
the words in italics.
e.g. interesting He does not like his job because it is uninteresting.
1. satisfied Workers become ……………….. if their jobs offer no
challenge.
2. conclusive Since the report was so ……………….., no recommendations
were made.
3. responsible ……………….. behaviour by staff can be costly to an
organization.
4. popular Management become ……………….. if they fail to pay
bonuses.
5. respect No manager likes a subordinate to be ……………….. .
6. secure A worker who feels ……………….. in his job will probably
not be committed to the firm he works for.
7. social People who work ……………….. hours, for example at
night-time, generally receive extra pay.
8. efficient Nowadays, it is not easy to get rid of an employee who is …….. .
2. Idiomatic uses of catch.
A. Match the following with the correct definitions.
1. catch sight of (v.) a) attract attention
2. catch on (v.) b) pleasant and easily remembered
3. catch out (v.) c) draw level with
4. catch up with (v.) d) start to burn
5. catch one’s eye (v.) e) notice suddenly
6. catch (n.) f) a hidden or unexpected difficulty
7. catch-phrase (n.) g) become popular or fashionable
8. catchy (adj.) h) trap someone in an error; show someone
9. catch fire (v.) to be at fault; find someone unprepared
10. become caught up in (v.) i) become involved in
j) a phrase which becomes popular for a
while
B. Complete the following sentences with suitable words and phrases with
catchfrom the list above.
1. Everyone liked the ……………….. tune of that TV commercial.
2. Do you think such an extraordinary style of dress will ………………..?
I can’t believe it will.
3. At the car exhibition, that ultra-modern car – like something from outer-
space – really ……………….. everyone’s ……………….. .
4. In the field of high-technology electrical goods, the Koreans are rapidly
……………….. with the Japanese.
5. This business is being sold far too cheaply. I smell a rat somewhere. There
must be a ……………….. .
6. “Put a tiger in your tank” was popular ……………….. a few years ago.
7. We were ……………….. a few weeks ago when our main competitor
suddenly lowered the prices of their products by 10%.
8. Management buy-outs are becoming more and more common these days.
Obviously, the habit is ……………….. .
9. While I was going round the factory, I ……………….. a worker who was
smoking in a non-smoking area.
10. During one of our tests the prototype of our new hair-drier overheated,
causing it to ……………….. .
3. Talk about the organisation you would like to work for, in relation to Herzberg’s
motivator factors.
4. Write a memo to the head of your organisation or one you would like to work for,
suggesting ways to encourage initiative among employees.
| UNIT 9 PERFORMANCE APPRAISAL |
DISCUSSION
Jane Mitchell is Sales Manager of Scorpio, a sports goods firm. Bob is a member of the sales team. One of the area sales managers is about to retire, and Bob is in line for the job. He is the right age, has over ten years’ sales experience, and gets on well with his colleagues.
Each year, Jane Mitchell evaluates the performance of her sales staff. When she does these performance appraisals, she studies the work record of the person during the previous twelve months. Jane is especially interested in “critical incidents”. These are occasions when the salesperson seems to have performed exceptionally well or badly.
Look at these “critical incidents” concerning Bob. Then decide if he is suitable for the job of Area Sales Manager. Give reasons for your decision.
| Date | Incident |
| February | Incorrect Filling of Call-Sheet Bob had not filled in his call-sheets correctly. He noted down calls to three customers on different days. In fact, he visited all the customers on one day. I asked Bob why he had done this. He explained that his daughter had asked him to attend the first, public exhibition of her paintings. He had needed to have a free afternoon to do this. Bob promised me that he would never again fill in his sheet incorrectly. |
| April | Sales Promotion Bob persuaded a local tennis club to let us sponsor their competition. Thanks to him, the company received a lot of publicity in local newspapers. There was a front-page photograph in one newspaper of Bob handing out the prizes. According to Bob, the club now recommends to all its members that they use clothing and equipment made by our firm. |
| June | Time-keeping On several occasions, Bob has failed to call on his first customer until eleven o’clock in the morning. It is, however, our Department’s policy that first calls should be made before 9.30 a.m.. I asked Bob what the problem was. He said that he had worked late the previous evening. Therefore, he had been too tired to make an early start the next day. |
| September | Special Display Bob persuaded a sports shop to set up a special display of our clothing and equipment. He was able to do this because he had become friendly with the shop’s manager. It seems that Bob played squash with the manager twice a week at a local club. As a result of the display, sales of our goods to the shop are almost double what they were previously. |
| November | Sales Reports Bob’s sales report was sent in late – for the third month running. Enclosed with the report was a letter of apology. “Sorry this report is so late,” Bob wrote. “But please note, sales for the quarter are up 28%!!! Am I forgiven?” |
READING
Most organizations have some form of performance appraisal of their employees. The appraisals are usually carried out once a year. The manager makes an evaluation of the performance of the subordinate. This involves filling out a form or writing a report on the person concerned. After this, there is a meeting at which the two parties discuss the appraisal. A performance appraisal is, then, a judgement on how well a person is doing his/her work.
Why do organizations carry out appraisals? Recently, in the United States, some organizations were asked why they used staff appraisals. Some of the findings of this survey are given below, in Figure 1.
Figure 1.
| USES OF APPRAISAL | |||
| Uses | Small organisations (%) | Large organisations (%) | All (%) |
| Compensation (salary) | 80.6 | 62.2 | 71.3 |
| Performance improvement | 49.7 | 60.6 | 55.2 |
| Feedback | 20.6 | 38.8 | 29.3 |
| Promotion | 29.1 | 21.1 | 25.1 |
| Documentation | 11.4 | 10.0 | 10.7 |
Appraisals help organizations to reward staff properly. They are useful when decisions have to be made about salary increases and bonuses. In addition, they are needed when managers are considering transferring or promoting staff. In these situations, they provide up-to-date information about an individual’s performance, skills and career objectives.
An important purpose of appraisals is to give the subordinate feedback on how he/she is performing. The manager can talk to the subordinate about the strengths and weaknesses of his/her performance. He/She can also discuss how the subordinate can learn to work more effectively.
At appraisal interviews, subordinates can not only talk about their future, but also seek guidance from the manager. The interview may help them to think more realistically about their goals. Besides doing this, it gives the subordinate the opportunity to ask the manager for further training.
There are many methods of evaluating a person’s performance at work. Some of the better-known methods are described below:
A traditional method has been to give a “rating”. The subordinate’s evaluation is based on traits – qualities – that he/she shows in his/her work. Subordinates are judged on such things as knowledge of the job, reliability, initiative and sense of responsibility. The manager rates the subordinate by marking a letter or figure on a scale. For example, the rating could be A – E, where A indicates outstanding and E unsatisfactory. This type of rating sometimes includes performance factors such as quality of work, productivity and attendance. Figure 2 gives an example of such a rating form.
Figure 2
| Name ………………………………… Position ……………………………… Department ………………………….. | |||||
| Circle appropriate rating | |||||
| Factors | Rating | ||||
| Outstanding | Very good | Good | Satisfactory | Unsatisfactory | |
| 1. Knowledge of the job | A | B | C | D | E |
| 2. Reliability | A | B | C | D | E |
| 3. Cooperation | A | B | C | D | E |
| 4. Initiative | A | B | C | D | E |
| 5. Quality of work | A | B | C | D | E |
| 6. Sense of responsibility | A | B | C | D | E |
| 7. Productivity | A | B | C | D | E |
| 8. Punctuality | A | B | C | D | E |
| Reviewed by: …………………………. Employee’s signature and comments ……………………………………………… ……………………………………………………………………………………… Date …………………………………… | |||||
However, the most popular form of appraisal, in Britain and the United States, is Management by Objectives. This appraisal is based on a person’s performance, and how well he/she is achieving his/her goals. The manager and the subordinate agree on a certain number of objectives, which should be achieved in a given period of time. The focus is on results, not personality traits. An example of an MBO evaluation report for sales representatives is given in Figure 3.
Figure 3
| Objectives set | Period objective | Accomplishments | Variance |
| 1. Number of sales calls | 100 | 104 | +4% |
| 2. Number of new customers contacted | 20 | 18 | -10% |
| 3. Number of wholesalers stocking new product 117 | 30 | 30 | 0% |
| 4. Sales of product 12 | 10,000 | 9,750 | -25% |
| 5. Sales of product 17 | 17,000 | 18,700 | +10% |
| 6. Customer complaints/ service calls | 35 | 11 | -68.6% |
| 7. Number of sales reports in home office within 1 day of end of month | 12 | 10 | -17% |
Another appraisal method is worth mentioning too. This is the Critical Incident Method. With this system, the manager keeps a record of good and unsatisfactory examples (incidents) of a person’s work. These are kept in a file and reviewed with the manager when the interview takes place. An advantage of the system is that the manager has to think about the subordinate’s performance throughout the year. Furthermore, specific examples of the person’s work can be looked at and discussed at the appraisal interview. Below are some examples of critical incidents for a factory manager, recorded by his/her superior, in this case the Production Director.
Figure 4
| Examples of critical incidents: Factory Manager | |
| Duties | Critical incidents |
| Schedule production for the factory | The manager ensured that 90% of orders were delivered on time. He introduced a new production method for product APT which has reduced costs. |
| Quality control | Rejected goods reduced to 5 per 1,000 units. |
| Stock control | Stock costs rose by 7.5%. Components H2 and H4 over-ordered. |
| Maintaining safety standards | Accident rate increased by 10%. |
In spite of the need for performance appraisals, people do not like them. Many managers see appraisals as their most unpleasant duty and those who are appraised rarely have a good word to say for the system used by their organization. One problem is that the manager is expected to criticize the subordinate and to give guidance at the same time. However, it is not easy for a manager to combine those roles. Many people are naturally suspicious of appraisals. They think managers are trying to find out their weaknesses, so they are on the defensive. Moreover, managers are often unwilling to say that a subordinate’s performance has been “outstanding” or “bad”. So, the individual is described as being “just above average”. This means that high fliers in the organization do not get a good enough evaluation while the work of poor performers may be over-valued. Finally, many managers do not like to criticize, in writing, a subordinate with whom they are working closely, day-by-day.
Appraisal can be a valuable process. At the interview, the manager should act as a guide to the subordinate, not as a judge. The purpose of the interview should be to discuss how the individual can “grow” in the organization, and make an effective contribution. The situation allows both parties to review the work of the individual, fix realistic targets, and plan that person’s career development.
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