Nepotism the Case of Mary Smith Records

Nepotism

THE CASE OF MARY SMITH

Records say that Mary Smith, in her first three weeks of employment as administrative assistant, failed to show fitness for the job. Instead of accurately and effectively performing all the transactional duties of her position, she misfiled documents and was late in completing her first tasks. And instead of exhibiting interpersonal skills with all the employees, she preferred to frequently associate only with certain employees. She is supposed to provide support assistance to her boss so that the office will run smoothly. Those seeking to transact business with him must first pass through her, the administrative assistant. Other employees were not pleased to learn that Mary Smith would be working with them. Unfortunately, her case will not be too easy to handle because she is the daughter of one of the firm's founders.

Job Description

An administrative assistant performs all the transactional duties for her supervisor and the smooth operation of his office (Henderson, 2012). She is expected to be very detail-oriented about every duty and watchful of every possible failure. Her exceptional oral and written communication capability and in answering written correspondence and all telephone and personal calls are basic qualifications. She is also expected to show excellent interpersonal skills. She is supposed to be friendly to everyone in the organization and not show favor or preference to a few. She is the gatekeeper and the front of her supervisor. For this, she should be adept at multitasking (Henderson).

Misfiling documents can disrupt office operations she is expected to manage flawlessly and promptly. She is supposed to know where all official documents should be filed and file or retrieve them at a moment's notice. Time is often of the essence in her work. Hence, she cannot be delayed in the accomplishment of tasks. In addition, she is expected to treat everyone pleasantly and professionally. This means she cannot favor particular employees over others.

Proposed Solution to Problems about Mary Smith

The supervisor is assumed to be aware of the problems surrounding Mary. If he was bypassed by a higher official who appointed her or Mary was presented to him for the position when it was vacated or created, the supervisor should obtain the company hiring policies for Mary's position from the personnel department. He should look for the appropriate policies covering filing inaccuracies, delay in completion of formal tasks and interpersonal employee relationships. He should then take notes from these policies.

With the backing of company policies, he should privately discuss the matter with the official who appointed Mary to the position or the next higher official. He should discuss that Mary has violated company policies and how her continued stay in her position will compromise company operations. Then he should recommend the appropriate remedy to the situation, based on company policies, especially if she is on probationary status. The higher official may or may not readily agree and caution the supervisor about displeasing the founder. They may agree to first call in Mary Smith about her failures and give her another chance for the sake of her father. There should be no official records of the private discussion and cautioning of Mary at this point. She should be given a month to improve and special training in administrative duties to help her. If she fails to substantially improve, the supervisor should take steps to fire her in writing. Copies of the notice should be addressed to the personnel department and to the founder. If she is on a permanent employment status, her case should be referred to the personnel department with the recommendation to fire her for cause. The decision of the personnel department and his recommendation should be sent to Mary Smith and a copy served to the founder.

Effects of Nepotism in the Workplace

Nepotism is favoritism shown to family members or friends by hiring or promoting them based on the relationship rather than competence (Brookins, 2012). Business owners and managers may justify it but many employees see it as an unfair practice in the workplace. It can lower employee morale and disrupt work operations. It can create a feeling of incompetence among employees when pitted against employees who are blood-related to company owners or officials. It can lead to loss of productivity among demoralized employees. It can reduce trust in the organization. Those who favor nepotism can get accused of favoritism even if the related employee is competent. Family conflicts can also arise as a consequence. And most importantly, there is the risk of legal action on the part of the complaining employee (Brookins).

The two sides of nepotism should be weighed carefully before business owners engage in it or allow it. One advantage is that it builds a legacy (Sparks, 2012). A parent who owns a business and has devoted his whole life to it as his career sees nepotism as a good thing if he intends to turn it over to his children. That is the very same motivation for embarking in the business, in the first place. If his heirs want to become part of the business and to grow it themselves, they are apt to view nepotism as something good. Another advantage is that nepotism enhances family unity. Family members of the boss who work for the company can find time to be together by being in the same place many hours of the day and most days of the week. They may quarrel frequently or infrequently. But sharing a common business goal and pursuing it together strengthen an otherwise weakening bond. They also give them a new perspective about one another (Sparks).