Week 5 EOC: Still Cheerful

An HR related joke:Order Of Operations

The sales chief, the HR chief, and the boss of a company are on their way to lunch when they stumble upon a beat up, but valuable looking brass container.

The sales chief picks it up and starts cleaning it with his handkerchief. Suddenly, a genie emerges out of a curtain of purple smoke. The genie is grateful to be set free, and offers them each a wish.

The HR chief is wide-eyed and ecstatic. She says, “I want to be living on a beautiful beach in Jamaica with a sailboat and enough money to make me happy for the rest of my life.”

Poof! She disappears.

The sales chief says, “I want to be happily married to a wealthy supermodel with penthouses in New York, Paris, and Hong Kong.”

Presto! He vanishes.

“And how about you?” asks the Genie, looking at the boss. The boss scowls and says, “I want both those idiots back in the office by 2 PM.”

Moral of the Story: Always let your boss speak first.

Week 4 EOC: How to Answer Embarrassing Interview Questions

Going through the interview process is a tough obstacle to getting any job. However, many times in the interview there are some questions that are asked that are either embarrassing or inappropriate; when asked these questions one cannot ignore them or not answer them but responses have to be tailored so as not to cause issues. Many times when these questions are asked it is to see how you respond or to find out if you have outside commitments to the firm. The most common is: Are you married? The reason this is asked is to see if you’ll put anything before the job or what obligations you might have that interfere with the job. The best way to answer this question is to state: if you’re worried about my personal life interfering with work it won’t happen. The other major question is: have you smoked weed? The reason for this question is to see if you may use drugs the best way to answer is one of two ways. If you have established a good report with the interviewer and has been joking with you at any point you can say: Is that a requirement. If, however your report is not that style than simple state: If you’re worried about passing a drug test I could today. These strategies are not full proof but can act as a stepping stone for any interviews that have some questions can make one uncomfortable. 

Week 3 EOC: This Charming Man

In the short film Der Er En Yndig Mand(This Charming Man) we see many instances of and examples of behavior that are an HR managers nightmare. We see an example of this when Lars Hansen runs into Ida, he makes a comment on the fact that she has lost weight. Often times in the work place people sham or joke about others weight which can lead to having harassment claims being filed out by the injured party. Another instance is when Lars, Pelle and Niels are at the bar making a joke about Pakistanis. Once again this can lead to harassment charges at a place of work not to mention some might try and file claims of hostile workplace. Another instance of HR nightmares occurs when Omid complains about being denied for work despite have a degree in engineering. This is bad due to the fact that if this where true he could in the United States file a lawsuit for racial discrimination with the EEOC. One instance that doesn’t translate well is when Lars calls the receptionist a peasant girl. This is an instance of classism that Americans would not recognize; he essentially is being derogatory to her upbringing and education due to her job or the way she talks. The American equivalent is calling someone a red neck hick.