CHAPTER 11
SOLUTIONS
Professionalism a Work: Business Etiquette, Ethics, Teamwork, and
Meetings
Critical Thinking Discussion Guide
11. Employers try to screen for and encourage soft skills such as excellent
communication, promptness, a positive attitude, good teamwork skills, and civility.
On this difficult mission, they try novel approaches. A recruiter would intentionally
drop a piece of trash by his office door just before an interview. He then would hire
anyone who picked it up. One gas station manager rewarded his workers by
relieving them of bathroom cleaning duty if they started their shifts on time. Discuss
these techniques. Do you believe they are effective? (L.O. 1, 4)
Providing incentives to motivate workers is a time-honored practice. The gas station
manager most likely obtained compliance by sparing his subordinates a task they hated,
12. Think of typical workplace situations and how you might communicate in each.
When would you seek an in-person conversation, pick up the phone, call a virtual
meeting, or send an e-mail, IM, or text? (L.O. 1–5)
Workplace conversations may involve giving and taking instructions, providing feedback,
exchanging ideas, brainstorming, participating in performance appraisals, or engaging in
13. Try to recall situations in which you were criticized or dished out criticism yourself.
Was the criticism constructive? Why or why not? How did you feel either as a giver
or receiver of criticism? (L.O. 2)
14. Describe the advantages of face-to-face communication as opposed to interactions
facilitated by technology such as telephones, e-mail, instant messaging, texting, the
Web, social networking sites, and so on. When is face-to-face communication more
effective? (L.O. 2, 3)
Face-to-face communication is far from being outdated or made obsolete by the availability
15. Career expert Andrea Kay stresses that knowing oneself and showing empathy are
important components of the soft skills that make people employable: “Many, many
jobs are lost and careers derailed because of the way people act with each other,
respond to stress, or deal with a conflict. . . . If you don’t understand how you come
across, or get swept away in your emotions, or don’t recognize how others feel, how
can you approach a difficult conversation with sensitivity to the other person?”
Have you ever been surprised at how you came across to others or misread another
person’s feelings? (L.O. 1, 4, 5)
It is very likely and, indeed, human that students have experienced moments when they
had no idea they had ruffled someone’s feathers, come across in a way that didn’t mesh
11.1 Workplace Conflict: Six-Step Procedure to the Rescue! (L.O. 1, 4, 5)
Students should apply the following six-step procedure: (1) Listen to each person’s
position. (2) Understand the other‘s point of view. Ask questions and paraphrase what
Scenario a required an HR professional’s intervention. The human resources
Scenario b also merited an HR intervention. Human resources specialists created a
point system and checklists that highlighted each person’s contributions. HR also
11.2 Soft Skills: What Employers Want (L.O. 1)
Students should find a range of soft skills mentioned, including oral and written
communication skills and team skills. However, they will also find a combination of soft
11.3 Soft Skills: Identifying Personal Strengths (L.O. 1)
Encourage students to frame statements that will be useful when they prepare a résumé
11.4 Voice Quality: How Do I Sound? (L.O. 2)
11.5 Communication Channels: Which Media in Each Situation? (L.O. 2)
a. Phoning is out of the question because it’s only 5 a.m. Pacific time (PST) and your
questions—while time sensitive—are not urgent. If the queries are not too involved and
lengthy, you could send an e-mail detailing the questions; otherwise, a brief e-mail
f. Responding to an upset customer should always be done orally, if possible. The best
procedure is to first call the customer and explain what happened. Oral communication
11.6 Constructive Criticism: It’s Part of the Job (L.O. 2)
a. Although tardiness can be frustrating, Jasper should have focused on improvement
by suggesting what Felix could do in the future. Jasper could also appeal to Felix’s
11.7 Telephone Skills: Keeping It Professional (L.O. 3)
Student responses will vary.
11.8 Voice Mail: Recording a Greeting Like a Pro (L.O. 3)
Assign this task individually or as teamwork. Depending on the size of the class, it may
not be feasible to listen to all recordings. In that case, either select a limited sample of
greetings or provide general feedback to your students. To motivate the class, offer a
11.9 Voice Mail: Leaving a Professional Message (L.O. 3)
You may recommend that students call your office number after hours and leave a
11.10 Workplace Conflict: The Perils of Groupthink (L.O. 4)
Answers will vary.
11.11 Meetings: Attacking Dysfunction (L.O. 5)
a. At the beginning of the meeting, lay down the rules and warn that speakers who
digress will be interrupted. Create a list of important but divergent issues that you
e. If possible, set the rules before or at the beginning of the meeting, including turning off
or silencing all mobile devices. Don’t embarrass offending individuals, but try to involve
11.12 Meetings: Stand Up to Keep Team Talk Short and Sweet (L.O. 5)
Answers will vary. Students may come up with creative methods to ensure turn-taking
and participation by instituting a system of sanctions and rewards. They may realize that
not all companies or industries may be able or willing to hold supershort daily stand–up
11.13 Virtual Meetings: Making Sure the Team Is on Board (L.O. 5)
a. Setting a more reasonable start time for the Portland office would have shown
courtesy to the West Coast participants.
b. Asking participants to log in early may have helped to avoid delays in starting the
11. 14 Virtual Meetings: Connecting by Skype or FaceTime to Clarify an Order (L.O. 4, 5)
This simulation should proceed smoothly as long as each participating student has
created a Skype account and downloaded the Skype connection software or app.
FaceTime can be used with Apple devices. Students could be asked to create or be
11.15 Virtual Meetings: Visiting Online Office Hours (L.O. 2, 5)
Virtual office hours can be a time-saver. Comments you make and questions you answer
are visible even to those who do not participate. Thus, you don’t have to answer the
COMMUNICATION WORKSHOP: Career Skills
Business Etiquette: Breaking the Smartphone Habit in Meetings
a. A short policy statement: In using a smartphone or other wireless device, be
professional. Respect others.
b. A more complete policy:
• Turn your smartphone off or set it on vibrate. Keep it off the meeting table.
• Don’t look at it during a meeting or conversation.