Solved by verified expert :Module 3 – Case
Peak Performance
Assignment Overview
Hallowell (2011) explains, “What I mean by
peak performance—and what most of us seek in our lives and what managers wish
to help their people achieve—is consistent excellence with improvement over
time at a specific task or set of tasks.” He further asserts, “Those three
factors—excellence, consistency, and ongoing improvement—define peak
performance for my purposes” (p. 32). Managers should always be on the lookout
for employees who just don’t “fit in” with the organization’s culture.
Hallowell (2011) explains, “you can tell a person is not in the right role if
he feels no enthusiasm for what he’s doing, if his mind never lights up, if he
never gets excited about his job, if he chronically complains” and further
states, “This doesn’t mean he’s a dull person or that the line of work he has
chosen is intrinsically dull, just that he’s not assigned to the right task”
(p. 47). Being assigned the right tasks and then being responsible for those
tasks relates to the “division of labor” concept coined by Adam Smith (1776).
Hallowell (2011) explains, “The goal is for employees to spend as much time as
possible at the intersection of three spheres: what they like to do, what they
are most skilled at doing, and what adds value to the project or organization”
(p. 49). For peak performance or enhancing productivity levels, many would
argue that specific tasks should be assigned to specific individuals with
specific skills. Strategic leaders are known for being able to quickly match
skills to tasks.
HR managers need to understand the
importance of employees having fun while at work. Many organizations are highly
task oriented and forget the importance of being relationship oriented.
Hallowell (2011) explains, “One way you can tell if your employees are in
alignment with the Cycle of Excellence is to see if they are having fun” (p.
47). For example, some modern managers see the value of having fun at work or
even taking time off from work to just relax and reflect. For example, Bill
Gates is famous “for taking seven days off, twice a year, in a secluded cabin
where he reads, drinks diet Orange Crush, and thinks” (p. 131).
Hallowell (2011) provides the following
recommendation for managers, “Consider having a goofy day of some sort now and
then. It must conform to the basic rules and values of your organization’s
culture, of course. But make it fun” (p. 129). By having a goofy day at work or
dressing up for certain holidays, employees are able to have some fun, which also
relieves stress. Hallowell (2011) explains, “Effective management limits bad
stress as much as possible, while promoting good stress in the form of
surmountable challenges” (p. 143). Effective managers also understand the
importance of recognizing employees for their daily contributions. Hallowell
(2011) states, “Recognition is so powerful because it answers a fundamental
human need, the need to feel valued for what we do. Managers are in a unique
position to offer—or withhold—such recognition, and with it, the feeling of
being valued” (p. 162). Hallowell (2011) provides a unique example from Harvard
University that reinforces the importance and significance of recognizing all
employees and not just the popular ones. Hallowell (2011) explains,
To celebrate those who worked in
nonacademic jobs, an outside group helped create an event called “Harvard
Heroes.” It was a phenomenal success until it was discontinued for budgetary
reasons in 2009. Once a year, exactly one week after Harvard University’s commencement
ceremonies, the university held a parallel ceremony to honor selected employees
who had gone above and beyond everyday achievement in their work (pp. 168-169).
The
“Harvard Heroes” example depicts the importance of recognizing the employees
who are at times, behind the scenes. According to Hallowell (2011), the five
steps to igniting peak performance in an organization is called the Cycle of
Excellence (pp. 6-7):
Step 1—Select: Putting people into the
right jobs so that their brains light up.
Step 2—Connect: Overcoming the potent
forces that disconnect people in the workplace both from each other and from
the mission of the organization, and restoring the force of positive
connection, which is the most powerful fuel for peak performance.
Step 3—Play: Play, or imaginative
engagement, catalyzes advanced work, and managers can help people tap into this
phenomenally productive yet undervalued activity of the mind.
Step 4—Grapple and grow: Managers can
create conditions where people want to work hard, and employees making progress
at a task that is challenging and important turns ordinary performers into
superstars and increases commitment.
Step 5—Shine: Doing well—shining—feels
good, so giving recognition and noticing when a person shines is critical, and
a culture that helps people shine inevitably becomes a culture of
self-perpetuating excellence.
The five steps of the Cycle of Excellence
provide a novel approach to maximizing peak performance.
Reference: Hallowell, E.M. (2011). Shine:
Using Brain Science to Get the Best From Your People. Boston, MA: Harvard
Business Review. (This book is not required).
Case Assignment
Drawing on the material in the background
readings and doing additional research, please prepare a 3-5 page paper (not
including the cover and reference pages) in which you:
•Analyze the five steps of the cycle of
excellence and discuss the added value of using the cycle of excellence.
•Which step is the most important and which
step is the least important?
•Critique Hallowell’s cycle of excellence
and then create your own cycle of excellence. Discuss how your cycle of
excellence is the optimum approach for managing human capital.
Assignment Expectations
Your paper will be evaluated on the
following points:
•Precision: Does the paper address the
question(s) or task(s)?
•Clarity: Is the writing clear and are the
concepts articulated properly? Are responses made through paraphrasing and
synthesis of concepts? (Or is there excessive use of quotations?) Are headings
included in all papers longer than 2 pages?
•Breadth: Is the full breadth of the
subject addressed?
•Depth: Does the paper address the topic in
sufficient depth?
•Grammar, spelling, and vocabulary: Is the
paper well-written? Are the grammar, spelling, and vocabulary suitable to
graduate-level work?
•Referencing (citations and references):
Does the paper use citations and quotation marks when appropriate?
•Critical thinking: Is the subject thought
about critically, i.e., accurately, logically, relevantly, and precisely?
Assignment Expectations (Structure)
1.Make sure that you use your own language
(rather than copying sentences from the article).
2.Your paper will be graded based on the
following criteria: Precision, Clarity, Breadth, Depth, Grammar/Vocabulary,
Referencing, and Application.
3.Use 12-point type size (Times New Roman),
double-spacing, and one-inch margins. Add a cover page and a references list.
4.Cite your sources: APA Style – Trident
requires all PhD work to be in APA form. We also encourage all other students
to comply with guidelines for proper citation of references. You may use the
tutorial found on the following link (press “view the tutorial”):
http://www.apastyle.org/learn/tutorials/basics-tutorial.aspx?apaSessionKey=4532A4A4911C1E8D5E885C141739A382
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Module 3 – SLP
Peak Performance
HR Functions
Human resource management has seven vital
functions that are connected to each other. The seven different functions are:
HR Functions
After doing some research on the different
HR functions, discuss the three most important functions based upon your
experiences, research. Please make sure to justify why you chose the three
functions that you did and how you three functions can help an organization
progress.
SLP Assignment Expectations
Your paper should be short (2-3 pages, not
including the cover sheet, references, and assessment sheet) and to the point.
You are expected to deal with these issues in an integrated fashion, rather
than treating them as a series of individual questions to be answered one by
one and left at that.
You will be particularly assessed on:
•Your completion of all the steps in the
exercise.
•Your ability to synthesize information and
present a concise and meaningful paper.
•The clarity and quality of your writing.
SLP Assignment Expectations (Structure)
1.Make sure that you use your own language
(rather than copying sentences from the article).
2.Your paper will be graded based on the
following criteria: Precision, Clarity, Breadth, Depth, Grammar/Vocabulary,
Referencing, and Application.
3.Use 12-point type size (Times New Roman),
double-spacing, and one-inch margins. Add a cover page and a references list.
Cite your sources: APA Style – Trident
requires all PhD work to be in APA form. We also encourage all other students
to comply with guidelines for proper citation of references. You may use the
tutorial found on the following link (press “view the tutorial”):
http://www.apastyle.org/learn/tutorials/basics-tutorial.aspx?apaSessionKey=4532A4A4911C1E8D5E885C141739A382
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