1. Go to the “Board Decisions” section of the National Labor Relations Board’s Website, located at http://www.nlrb.gov/cases-decisions/board-decisions, and use the Search option to find and then review one (1) case concerning unions and / or collective bargaining. Evaluate the overall importance of the National Labor Relations Board. Next, summarize the pertinent details of the case that you have selected, and give your opinion of the Board’s decision and the fairness of the outcome. Support your response with specific details from the selected case.

2. Go to the United States Department of Labor’s Website, and review one (1) article from the Occupational Safety & Health Administration’s (OSHA) “Latest News” section, located at https://www.osha.gov/. Evaluate the overall importance of OSHA. Next, give your opinion of whether OSHA offers enough protection or overregulates the safety of workers. Support your response with specific details from the selected news story.

“Performance Appraisal”
3. Use the internet to research performance, appraisal, fairness, and denial of employment opportunities based on gender and disability. Explore the major issues inherent within the performance appraisal process that may lead to any type of discrimination within an organization based on two (2) of the following: gender, disability, or denial of employment opportunity. Support your response with two (2) relevant recent cases, and explain the outcome of the case.

4. Use the internet to research privacy protection for email and Internet communication. Examine workplace privacy as it relates to emails and Internet communication. Suggest two (2) recommendations that an organization should make to its employees geared toward protecting the privacy of the organization when employees use emails and communicate via the Internet. Justify your response.

“Terminating and Downsizing”
5. Choose two (2) factors that may cause a possible breach of an implied contract from the following: (1) A specific promise was made. (2) The promise was made frequently and consistently. (3) The source of the promise was someone with sufficient authority to offer it. (4) The promise was communicated to the employee. Suggest two (2) strategy that an employer may use to avoid the possible breach. Justify your response.

6. Select two (2) of the following acts: National Labor Relations Act (NLRA), Worker Adjustment and Retraining Notification (WARN) Act, Reduction in Force (Age), Age Discrimination in Employment Act (ADEA) and Older Workers Benefit Protection Act (OWBPA). Determine two (2) major challenges that the selected act may cause within an organization, and then outline a plan to prevent the challenge from adversely affecting the organization or employees. Justify your response.

LEADERSHIP

7. Select which leadership theory most accurately describes your current or future approach to leadership. Based on the selected theory, give one (1) example from your personal or professional life when your leadership was effective and one (1) example when your leadership was not effective. Reflect on a lesson that you learned from the ineffective leadership experience which you could apply to similar situations in the future. How did or will body language impact your perception?
ORGANIZATIONAL CULTURE
The Functions of Culture
First, culture has a boundary-defining role: It creates distinctions between one organization and others. Second, it conveys a sense of identity for organization members. Third, culture facilitates commitment to something larger than individual self-interest. Fourth, it enhances the stability of the social system. Culture is the social glue that helps hold the organization together by providing standards for what employees should say and do. Finally, it is a sense-making and control mechanism that guides and shapes employees’ attitudes and behavior. This last function is of particular interest to us. Culture defines the rules of the game.
Today’s trend toward decentralized organizations makes culture more important than ever, but ironically it also makes establishing a strong culture more difficult. When formal authority and control systems are reduced, culture’s shared meaning can point everyone in the same direction. However, employees organized in teams may show greater allegiance to their team and its values than to the organization as a whole. In virtual organizations, the lack of frequent face-to-face contact makes establishing a common set of norms very difficult. Strong leadership that communicates frequently about common goals and priorities is especially important in innovative organizations. Individual–organization “fit”—that is, whether the applicant’s or employee’s attitudes and behavior are compatible with the culture—strongly influences who gets a job offer, a favorable performance review, or a promotion. It’s no coincidence that Disney theme park employees appear almost universally attractive, clean, and wholesome with bright smiles. The company selects employees who will maintain that image. On the job, a strong culture supported by formal rules and regulations ensures employees will act in a relatively uniform and predictable way.
Culture Creates Climate
If you’ve worked with someone whose positive attitude inspired you to do your best, or with a lackluster team that drained your motivation, you’ve experienced the effects of climate. Organizational climate refers to the shared perceptions organizational members have about their organization and work environment. This aspect of culture is like team spirit at the organizational level. When everyone has the same general feelings about what is important or how well things are working, the effect of these attitudes will be more than the sum of the individual parts. One meta-analysis found that across dozens of different samples, psychological climate was strongly related to individuals’ level of job satisfaction, involvement, commitment, and motivation. A positive overall workplace climate has been linked to higher customer satisfaction and financial performance as well.
8. Categorize your current or past organization into one (1) of the five (5) most prevalent ethical climates discussed above. Analyze whether it is a centralized or decentralized structure. Examine the impact that the selected ethical climate and structure has on the organization’s culture

Leader Profile
9. Conduct an interview with someone who you consider a leader (e.g., current or former boss, a pastor or spiritual advisor, a friend who can be considered a leader, etc.). You will then use the information that you gather during the interview to write about the leadership characteristics he / she possesses. Next, complete the following steps:
• Identify an individual that you believe to be leader.
a. Contact the individual to determine if he / she will be able to participate in this project.
b. Schedule an appointment to conduct an interview.
Note: As you think about the type of information, you will need to gather from your chosen leader during the interview, use your outline below to guide your interview process.
• Submit the following information in a Word document:
a. Provide a brief two [2] paragraph biography of the selected person, which includes a description of the individual, his / her job title, and name the organization where he / she works.
Outline
1. Involvement of the management
a. Involvement of senior managers
b. Involvement of line managers
c. Ensure they lead by example
2. Selecting the right management
a. Proper recruitment and selection of the managers
b. Proper training of the managers
c. Continuous improvement of the skills of the managers
3. Performance appraisal
a. Performance appraisal to all employees regardless of their performance
b. Fair application of performance appraisal process
c. Proper application of the results
4. Communication
a. Ensuring two-way communication
b. Listening more to the employees
c. Building trust among the employees and the seniors
d. Handle any negative emotions
e. Encouragement of the employees
f. Respect cultural differences
g. Provide positive feedback
h. Show trust on the employees
i. Ensuring that emotions are kept out of the job
j. Ensuring that work is fun
5. Delegation of duties
6. Financial motivation
a. Proper remuneration
b. Commissions
c. Performance-related pay e.g bonuses
d. Proper pension
7. Non-financial motivation
a. Education
b. Health care facilities
c. Free Travel and accommodation
d. Paid leaves
e. Paid hospitality allowances
8. Including the employees in the decision making process
a. Make the employees feel needed
b. Seeking their opinion in major decisions
c. Ensuring that their opinions are put into consideration
d. Implementing their decisions if they are viable