Week 15 Learnings of Human Resource

Kahn was famous for the way he organized and communicated his thoughts and feelings to his men so clearly

Last week I wrote about the background and foundation of who really Genghis Kahn was, now I wanted to talk about modern-day companies that actually relate to the style and characteristics that Kahn lived and breathed by. 

We can clearly apply the lessons of Genghis Kahn's leadership to the modern world. To be a great leader it seems, you should be high born but have known hardship; you should be a fighter, but also a lover; you should dress casually; you should not be interested in wealth. Most important, you should always keep in mind that you, the leader, are not bigger than your project. I suppose it also helps, when you are negotiating a deal, to be backed by 50,000 blood thirsty maniacs.

There are striking parallels between the management secrets of Genghis Kahn and some of the most successful modern corporations.

Microsoft, Wal-Mart and Dell, for example, all dominate their industries through organizational self-discipline, flexibility and aggressiveness. Like the Mongols, they are criticized as ruthless and lacking innovation. In truth, all three companies are brilliant organization innovators.

Additionally, General Electric's use of Six Sigma process improvement as an aggressive weapon for change has much in common with the Mongols highly organized, flexible and ruthless organization.

Genghis Kahn can be thought of as the first "lean" executive, brilliantly organized and able to use his resources to optimize efficiency and flexibility. Kahn had many of the attributes of a modern executive and aggressively intertwined people, process, and technology, in both strategy and execution.

Week 14 Learnings of Human Resource

This week I have learned a ton about Genghis Kahn.  It being the last little bit until we have to hand in our research papers, I have been able to study more and more about this incredible man that had the goal to conquer the entire world, and probably would have if he had more years to live!!!  Here are a few facts about G. Kahn that are amazing!

Kahn was the greatest conqueror of all time, measured by the land mass he controlled.

His empire at its peak was more than 5 million square miles, more than twice that of Alexander the Great.

He had more than 700 tribes and cities under his rule, and his domain stretched from the Caspian Sea to the Sea of Japan.

He managed to capture in only 25 years more land than the Romans had conquered in more than 400 years.

He introduced a writing system (still in use today) to communicate with people not standing in front of him, a postal service to deliver his communiqués, and he was the first to introduce paper money.

Genghis Kahn - One of the World's most effective and powerful leaders

That would be amazing if we could all be as productive as Kahn was.  Imagine the stunning accomplishments you could acquire.

 There are some important key lessons that we can receive from the life of Genghis Kahn.

Here are five key management principles that Kahn lead by:

Keep only the best people

Look after their needs

Organize and communicate clearly

Train, train, train

Go after it hard

Human Resource Week 13 Learnings

In our modern world of today, check to make sure that all individuals applying for a given positions have represented themselves honest and fair, and the only way that we have to do that is background checks. Knowing that 8 out of 10 large companies do background checks helps us to know that this is no small problem, but that many applicants are misrepresenting themselves.
Emotional hook (provocative question/ claim/real-life problem):

You have just applied for a job at a large company, with great compensation, great benefits, and an awesome fit for you. You are equally if not more qualified than other applicants. They call you back and say that they are unable to offer you a position, due to the results of your background check. How do you feel?
Key points to elicit in discussion

Wal-Mart will not even offer a position to individual that has lied on his or her application. Everyone is not perfect and has made a mistake or two that they are not proud of in the past. Does one bad decision force a lifetime of consequences? Or does it make a given applicant more qualified for a position if he or she has not been involved in any criminal history. The ability to detect crimes from other nations in dramatically different than those here in the U.S.A., so does that give an unfair advantage to a non-US citizen?

Are background checks the best way for companies to verify a job Candidates credentials? Is it fair for companies to check credit scores, and bank information?

Human Resource Week 12 Learnings

How many times have you heard about employee fudging a bit on their resume to make themselves look better? Is the resume still a viable recruiting tool? How often have you heard,” Make sure your resume is up to date”? Does the prospective employee’s resume provide the information required to make an accurate decision by itself?


What if you were competing for a position and you knew that a person you were competing against “cleaned’ their resume, and you lost the position to this person because you were honest and they weren’t. What would you do?


1) In today’s economic reality, does the resume still play the role it once did?
2) What other tools could be used to replace the resume that would even the playing field.
3) How do you make yourself stand out in a very crowded field of applicants

Human Resources Week 11 Learnings

Human resources are responsible for hiring new employees. Many times there are a lot of candidates for a single position, therefore human resources has a selection process to determine who is qualified for the position, and who is not. First the human resource department will look at the applicant’s résumés; at this point they can filter out applicants that are not qualified. Then the qualified applicants will be asked to take company tests, and the HR department will review their previous work. The applicants with the best abilities for the company will then be asked to come in and interview. From this point there may be supervisors and other qualified employees asked to help the HR department interview. For the few applicants that are chosen to interview, the credentials will be checked. Then the applicant that is best for the position will be asked if they will accept the job. From this point the applicant can negotiate salary, benefits, and any other questions.

This process can help an organization know that they are finding the best employees. This process can ensure reliability, and validity.

Imagine you are very excited to be called in to interview for a job that you want very badly. The interviewer then conducts the interview in a manner that you never seen, you didn’t expect the interview to go this way and it throws you off. You feel bad because you didn’t get the job, how can you use this interview to help you in the future?

I think that the selection process in more accurate for certain job positions than others. I think that the selection process is really good for many positions, however for small, personal jobs this process does not always apply.

Have all of your interviews followed this same pattern? Will you use this same process when you work in human resource, or when you are the CEO/ boss? Do you think that this hiring process is a good way to find the best employees? Is there anything you would change about the standard interview process? If so what? Everyone finds interviews stressful, what have your interviews went like? Do you think that giving references is productive?

Week 10 Learnings of Human Resource

This week I decided to talk about things in our world that may not be the best things around this area.......but maybe seen as a blessing in another culture.  I decided to focus on Sweatshops.

Many say that Sweatshops around the world are negative impacts on kids and are almost a form of "Cruel and Unusual Punishment." The question that many people have to ask is are sweatshops really a bad investment for the people who are receiving jobs because of there existence.

Now, ask yourself:  Are families being fed, because of the existence and pay of Sweatshops? Are Sweatshops a bad thing in other economies?

This is all too true in the USA

One of the main points I want to make is that I think that many people compare Sweatshops too closely to our economy here in the USA. In other economies $5 a day or even a week can be seen as an opportunity and not unlawful labor acts.

Look how many people are benefiting from these jobs

What do you think are the rules behind setting up a Sweatshop?  Do yo think there are Stipulations?

Week 9 Learnings of Human Resource

This week I decided to write about Retirement plans.  Retirement Plans are a big part of choosing a job. There are two main types of retirement plans offered. A Contributory Plan is when the business that you are working for contributes all or the majority of the funding to your retirement. A Noncontributory Plan is when the employer funds the complete amount. Most companies will offer retirement plans or 401K options for their employees.

Now with the government changing a lot of the laws, what have you invested your retirement into?  I have always wondered if these laws will and have changed retirement.  I wonder if this will affect me and my children as well.

This is now more true than ever.

A 401K is an account that the employer sets up in the employee’s name. With the account in the name of the employee, the employee then has the power and agency to control the investment decisions. What has changed since the government has passed the new laws for social security? Does this affect the retirement plans of the companies or its’ employees?

Do you have a 401K? If not, what have you chosen to support your retirement with? Have you ever done a Noncontributory Plan? If so, why?