Maslow's Hierarchy at work

Quite often when we hear the name Maslow we think of psychology because thats probably the classroom we first heard the name in. Believe it or not, this psychological theory drags over to the business world as well. In my Management course we learned about how that same pyramid of needs is apparent in the work place.

The first level starts at the bottom with physiological. This refers to the basic human needs such as hunger, thirst, sleep,etc. The next level is safety which pertains to the need to assure that physiological needs will be met into the future. The first two levels can be satisfied by the same means in the work place. For example, an employees pay can satisfy those needs. If s/he is paid enough to live comfortably those levels are satisfied.

Looking upwards, we see the love/belonging level sometimes also known as the social level. This is the need to feel that we are an accepted part of a social unit. For example, subordinates are not likely to like a fellow subordinate if s/he does not do their work.

The next level we come across is esteem which is the need for recognition for what we do. Managers play a big role in satisfying this need. Employees will operate more efficiently and better if their work is recognized by a manager. Lastly, we have the level of self-actualization which is the need to be challenged. This level is also satisfied by a manager. Both of the last two levels can be satisfied by similar or combined rewards in the work place.

The pyramid works by starting at the bottom and once a need is satisfied, then its a managers job to identify the next need. Essentially, the manager needs to offer rewards that will satisfy the subordinates level of unsatisfied needs. However, there a few problems with applying this theory in the workplace. Often times it is difficult for the managers to identify what level the subordinates are on and even once they do, the level can shift. Another issue evolves because different people receiving the same rewards may be at different levels of needs. Lastly, people receiving different rewards tend to compare other subordinates's awards and compare. I do agree with applying the hierarchy of needs at work, but I do think managers need to put thorough thought prior to taking action.



Works cited:
FireflySixetySeven. Pyramid showing Maslow's hierarchy of needs. Digital image. Psychclassics.yorku.ca. N.p., 02 Nov. 2014. Web. 14 Sept. 2015.

Kilbourne Group Buys Historical Fargo Building.

Kilbourne Group's newest project

The Kilbourne Group is a well known name to the people of the Fargo/Moorhead area. With renovating projects and business they've done, they have left a great impact on downtown Fargo. The group's newest purchase is the Black Building located on Broadway. At the 1st of the year, the Kilbourne Group will officially take over the building and begin renovation. Kilbourne Group hasn't officially announced what they plan to do with the space or to whom they are going to rent out to but I am assuming it will remain as commercial space for the first 3 floors. The Black Building has unfortunately, in recent years, become dilapidated.

Kilbourne Group's newest project is bound to create even more of a positive impact on downtown Fargo. Creating more business space and bringing new businesses to downtown has made downtown a thriving environment for business owners. With increased popularity, more businesses are wanting to enter downtown spaces to operate in. Thanks to the Kilbourne Group, the downtown businesses that already exist and the future downtown businesses have a large consumer market to do business with.

Works Cited:

Springer, Patrick. "Kilbourne Group Buys Downtown's Black Building." Fargo Forum [Fargo] 12 Sept. 2015: Front Page. Print.

Fargo. Digital image. Http://www.computer-chair-traveler.org/. N.p., n.d. Web. 12 Sept. 2015.

Wedding Industry/How to plan a wedding.

Most of us do not put a lot of thought into planning a wedding prior to getting engaged. However, since I work at a small business bridal store, I'm exposed to the wedding crowd on a daily basis. You could say after a year and a half of working in this environment that I am a wedding expert. Being the multi-billion dollar industry that many businesses thrive on, let me tell you a little bit about the wedding industry and how to get started planning a wedding.

• Set a budget that you're comfortable with.
•  You and your significant other need to set a date. Timing is everything when it comes to planning a wedding. I recommend between 8 months-1 year. Anything less or more can get to be quite stressful. 
• Next you need to book and pick a venue and catering for the ceremony and reception. Most venues in fargo book out over one year in advance. Yes, I said one year. If you want the venue of your dreams book it ASAP. When it comes to picking a company to cater you will sometimes have the option to go with a caterer within your venue or outside of your venue. 
• Now, my favorite part, find THE dress. This is the part where I get to help out the most in. For some brides finding the dress is as easy as pie. For others, It takes a quite a few appointments before they "have the moment". Finding the dress may seem like a very minor step in the wedding process, but in reality it plays a huge part in planning the rest of the wedding. Most brides plan the rest of the wedding party attire based around their dress. In addition, most bridal gowns take between 4-6 months to order in.
• Next you need to decide what the bridesmaids and groomsmen are going to wear. To many people's surprise, this step can be quite difficult. Color, style, and ordering can take quite some time as well. Bridesmaids dresses and suits can take around 4-6 months to order in as well.
• By now, you're probably about 6 months away from the wedding date. Now that you've found the dress and attire for the rest of your wedding party, you can start looking at decorations and flowers. Florists will be able to assist you in the process of finding flowers. As far as the decorations go, there are many budget friendly options found on Pinterest and other websites similar.
• Send out the invites.
• Say "I do"!    

Works Cited:

Weddingphotographymagazine.com. Wedding Flowers and Rings. 2013. Www.weddingphotographymagazine.com. Web. 12 Sept. 2015.

Resume writing 101

In the world of business a person without a strong resume might find it hard to survive. With recent opportunities i've encountered, I  had to write a very detailed resume. Little did I know how much time and effort goes into making a substantial resume. I would like to share with you some tips that I found to be extremely helpful while writing mine.

Tip # 1. Identify accomplishments not just previous job duties:
A lot of the time we get carried away with listing all of our previous job duties and rambling about how much responsibility we took on doing this or that. In actuality, accomplishments stand out way more than duties.

Tip # 2. Keep it relevant 
Yes, most of us have all worked a job in which it was a pretty part time, extra spending money-type job. For example when applying for a job in the accounting field, don't include on your resume that you babysat one summer. It is a huge waste of space and completely irrelevant for the job you're looking at.

Tip # 3. Keep it easy to read
More than likely if your resume has crazy fonts, lots of color, and a funky format, whoever is in charge of reading it will throw it away. If it is hard to read it won't be considered. The chances are, there is a huge stack of other resumes behind yours to be read and you're wasting an employers time by doing that.

Tip # 4. Good objective statement
Make your objective statement short and to the point. However, that doesn't mean make it boring. Express yourself and your strengths as best as you can in a couple of sentences. A good objective statement makes for a good start to the resume.

Tip # 5. Keep it short.
The last thing employers want to do is read a 3 or 4 page resume. Summarize everything onto one page if possible. Of course this is not doable for everyone but if you can make it one page do so. Employers don't want to spend more time than they need to just reading through the same ideas over and over again.


Happy Resume Writing!

Works Cited:
 "resume." Personal Interview. 4 Sept. 2015

Labor Day, holiday for who?

On Monday, September 7th most of us get to relax and spend the day at home because there is no school and businesses close. Why? Labor Day, a holiday that used to be recognized nation wide as a day for the work force to be recognized for their hard work and achievements. Notice I used the word "used to". Nowadays it seems like less businesses are honoring the workman's holiday.

Bigger retailers such as Walmart, Target, and Costco keep their doors open on Labor Day. For us consumers, that seems like a great idea.  The employees of Walmart, Target, and Costco might not agree. If the government recognizes Labor Day as a holiday, then so should these businesses. From the perspective of an employee who has worked retail for 4 years, I would have to side with the employees. I believe the Labor Day holiday should be honored by all businesses in respect to their employees. Especially being a retail worker, I understand the annoyance of going into work on holidays. In fact, I have already hear a number of advertisements on the radio for stores having special labor day sales. Ironically enough, most businesses who are staying open are having some type of sale in honor of the holiday, the holiday that is supposed to be work- free for all Americans. Businesses are using this to gain competitive advantage over other stores who might not be opening their doors on Labor day. It seems like if one store decides to be open on Labor Day we see a trickle effect on other stores in result.

Works Cited:

Harvey, Martin. "Shop like a Pro: How to Score the Best Labor Day Deals."TODAY.com. N.p., n.d. Web. 03 Sept. 2015.

Social Media as a Form of Marketing

Many of us know that businesses around the world utilize one or more forms of social media. We may think that its just a way for the business to provide connivence to us as customers for viewing products and keeping updated with that particular business. To no surprise, the business is not doing that for convenience purposes, but rather using it as a marketing tool. I think it is a very smart decision for businesses to make. Choosing to be active on social media has so many perks for businesses.

If you think about marketers, one of their goals is to reach out to mass amounts of people. What better way to reach a large number of people than to create a facebook account/Instagram/twitter? Social media is something that almost everyone uses on a daily basis. As times change, less and less people are listening to the radio, watching TV, reading news papers etc. 74% of all internet users have some form of social media according to Pew Research Center. That is a very high percentage of people that could possibly be reached out to via social media.

Equipped with features such as direct messaging on twitter, messenger on facebook, and private messaging on Instagram, customers are able to communicate with businesses without picking up the "oh so terrifying" telephone and dialing the store. From personal experience, the store I work in advertises strictly via Facebook and Instagram. This technique has worked phenomenally for the business while cutting huge advertising expenses. Social media has given the store the opportunity to create it's own feel that it communicates to customers without them having to set foot in the store. With changing times comes changing ways. It is up to businesses to keep up with the current marketing strategies in order to reach out to the potential customers, and social media just happens to be the new marketing channel.




Works Cited:
"Social Networking Fact Sheet." Pew Research Center Internet Science Tech RSS.N.p.,27 Dec. 2013. Web. 03 Sept. 2015.

Sunday is for shopping

Some downtown Fargo businesses are choosing to open their doors on Sundays.

Downtown Fargo Businesses opening Sundays.

In a recent article written in the Fargo Forum by Angie Wieck an interview was conducted with the owner of Zandbroz, a locally owned small business in downtown Fargo. According to the article, Zandbroz was one of the first downtown businesses that opened it's doors on Sundays. For most fargo natives like myself, we are used to shopping downtown only Monday through Saturday or even sometimes Tuesday through Saturday. With encouragement from the Downtown Community Partnership, the number of downtown Fargo businesses that are open sundays went from 17 to 28 in recent months (Wieck). This is quite a dramatic hop considering 5 years ago next to no businesses besides liquor stores kept their doors open on Sundays.

Does opening Sundays generate revenue?

Zandbroz claims its reasoning behind opening it's doors on Sundays comes from its desire to compete with stores in the mall. Some stores argue that the fixed costs of staying open sunday don't even out with the revenue generated from staying open. The business owner of Lot 2029 disagrees by commenting how they always end up better off if they open on Sundays than if they were to keep their doors closed (Wieck). I think the matter lies within the type of business. I agree that it is a great idea for a business to stay open on sundays for limited hours if they are a retail clothing store/boutique, tourist shop, or restaurant. For other businesses such as large offices, firms, and corporate owned companies, they are better off keeping the regular weekend hours.

Consistency is key.

Being that I do work downtown at a bridal store I have experienced this somewhat popular debate. The store I work in is closed sundays but available by appointment only. This is because it is a store that operates primarily by appointment and purpose driven customers only. I think a company should have the option to decide the hours it operates and the seasons it wants to stay open when it comes to Sunday shopping. What works for Zandbroz might not work for other boutiques downtown. One of the greatest perks of working in a store outside of a mall, it not having regulation hours and having the flexibility of operating during the chosen hours. However, I do agree that shops have to be consistent with their hours for the sake of customer ease.

Works Cited:
Weick, Angie. "Sunday Sales: more downtown businesses are opening Sundays." Fargo Forum [Fargo] 29 August 2015: Print.

PPicture Citation: Downtown Fargo. Open Sundays Downtown Fargo. Digital Image. www.downtownfargo.com. Downtown Fargo, n.d. Web. 1 Sept. 2015.