Mgmt 339 - Crosss Cultural Management Recommendations

Cleo Smith

MGMT 339

Research Paper

"Cross cultural management recommendations for TLC Management co."

Introduction:

I will be writing about the current interview process and qualifications for diverse

employees, career development and advancement opportunities for all employees, and

employee/employer relations and problems when dealing with a different cultural person. I will

attempt to develop a better interview process and higher standards for hiring new diverse

employees, develop a better process for current employees to advance through training, and

develop a plan where an employee can contact human resources with any problems he or she

might have, and trust that the human resource department will take steps to insure their privacy

in any matter.

Company Profile:

A company that I have chosen for the cross-cultural management project is TLC

Management Company in Chicago, Illinois. This company is a residential property management

company that owns and manages its own portfolio of buildings. They have over 2,300 combined

apartments throughout the city, and employ around 150 employees.

Part I - The current interview process and qualifications:

"TLC has a local bond, presence and commitment to adhere to the highest standards. You

can also count on great customer service. TLC demands the highest standards of performance

and integrity from our employees and those with whom we do business with. We continually

strive to ensure that we meet or exceed expectations." (chicagorentals.com)

One of the most important guidelines for employees and the employer is to follow the

Federal Fair Housing laws that are applicable to all prospective or current tenants. An employee

that leases or manages any apartment building must practice fair housing regulations. "The

Federal Fair Housing Act of 1968 and Fair Housing Amendments Act of 1988 prohibit

discrimination against prospects or residents in housing transactions because of the following:

race, color, religion, national origin, sex, handicap, and familial status" (www.hud.gov).

Fair Housing Laws can vary from state to state, as do county and city Fair Housing

Ordinances. The Illinois Human Rights Act, Cook County Human Rights Ordinance, and the

Chicago Fair Housing Ordinance has been updated to also include the following: "ancestry, age,

military discharge status, sexual orientation, parental status, housing status, retaliation, aiding

and abetting willful interference, and source of income." (kentlaw.edu)

All employees must follow these guidelines and must not discriminate against any of

them. When I worked for TLC management, I noticed that they had a high turnaround rate for

employees. Many times, a new employee that started working had no knowledge on what to do

and how to do it. The human resource department should develop a better interview process and

higher hiring standards. One way this can be done is to make a list and ask questions like: who

specifies the content of each job? Who decides how many jobs are necessary? How are the

interrelationships among jobs determined and communicated? What are the minimum

qualifications for each job? How should performance on each job be measured? How much is

each job worth? Asking these types of questions would help the HR department hire more skilled

and qualified employees that will truly keep the company ahead of its competitors.

The interview process should be formatted in a way that an employer can see the

positives and negatives of each prospect. The employer must also be careful when it comes to

discriminating against potential future employees. Discrimination can be avoided by exercising

common sense and seeking advice or assistance from a fair housing expert or attorney before

acting. "One must make sure to establish and follow routine, non-discriminatory written policies

and procedures for processing, evaluating and accepting all applications"

(www.chicagorentals.com). It is critical that enforcement of all policies and procedures be

consistent.

"It is illegal for a company to retaliate against an employee for filing a complaint, but it

frequently occurs anyway. In the 1990s the number of minorities who filed charges of retaliation

with the EEOC doubled." (Carr-Ruffino, p. 136) The EEO (equal employment opportunity

implies (1) evaluation of candidates for jobs in terms of characteristics that really do make a

difference between success and failure, and (2) fair and equal treatment of employees on the job.

Part II - Career development and advancement for current employees:

An employee must take pride in the quality of customer service that one provides.

Reputations