AAFCS Exam Prep Flashcards
Explain some ways that teenage suicide can be prevented
Although teenage suicide can be difficult to prevent especially when teenagers have easy access to instruments conducive to committing suicide, identify the risk factors and attempting to minimize their effects before they are allowed to escalate is the most effective way to prevent teenage suicide. Teenagers who have access to both mental and physical health facilities and have strong family, societal, and religious support are much less likely to commit suicide. In addition, teenagers who have taught methods of solving problems and conflicts and nonviolent ways have a lower risk of suicide.
Define time management and explain its importance.
Time management is the process of using skills, tools, principles, and practices together in order to most efficiently use the time that an individual or group of individuals has available. The efficiency goal of time management is similar to that of work simplification; however, time management itself does not actually make work easier. Instead time management involves finding the most proficient way to complete a task at hand in the amount of given time. Time management is extremely important in both business and personal settings, as people often do not have enough time available to complete every single task they face. Planning how to complete the greatest number of tasks possible in the amount of time available allows people to get more value out of their time and efforts.
Identify some important techniques used in time management.
Some of the techniques used and time management includes setting goals, planning the best way to complete a task, scheduling, prioritizing tasks, making sure that all necessary equipment is easily accessible, and effectively managing one’s workload. A successful time management system successfully incorporates all of these techniques, with the end result of accomplishing the most tasks possible in the amount of time given
Explain some of the basic steps an individual or group might take when prioritizing activities
One of the most important techniques and time management is prioritizing so that the most important tasks are completed first and the least important tasks are left for when a person has more time available to do them. This system allows people to rank both goals and the corresponding past that lead to achieving these goals based on how essential they are to the individual or the organization. An individual, family, or organization can determine what activities are important by first identifying and defining which goals need to be achieved in order to continue functioning. Once this step is completed, people can then decide what tasks are the most crucial for the individual or organization to continue functioning. These tasks should be given to the highest priority, while less important tasks, although they can also lead to goal accomplishment, should be considered a lower priority.
Define the following terms in a management context:
- Goal
2. Decision-making
- A goal is a particular purpose that an individual or organization wants to achieve in the near or distant future in a corporate setting for example a cool could be achieving a specified amount of sales in the next quarter. And a family setting a goal might be for a teenager in the family to find a job before the end of summer.
- Decision- making is the process by which an individual or group attempts to determine what would be the best managerial selection from a set of possible options and/or actions from a managerial perspective, usually for the purpose of achieving a particular goal. For instance, a couple looking for a new home may make a list of the advantages and disadvantages of living in each house they view to help them decide which house to buy.
Explain the importance of goal setting:
Goal setting is important because it allows individuals and organizations to identify what objectives they seek to accomplish and then determine the best means by which to accomplish those objectives. goal setting typically involves establishing a particular time frame in which a goal should be achieved. Knowing what goals he or she is striving to reach in a set amount of time helps motivate each individual involved to reach that ultimate objective. goals also provide the individual or organization with a means of measuring the amount of effort- or lack thereof- that each individual puts into obtaining these goals. In a corporate setting, goals can also provide the organization with a way to measure its overall success, which in turn can be important in determining what future actions the organization will need to take.
Explain whether or not the following goals are valid
1. A manager of a local retailer that usually does somewhere between $35,000 and $60,000 a week decided that his or her store should set a goal of making $50,000 in sales a week each week for the month of November.
- The mother of a child who is having difficulty in school has decided that her son needs to improve his grades
- This example demonstrates a completely valid goal, as the goal is well-defined and quantifiable. It can’t be measured by examining the amount of sales the store has done each week. In addition, the goal is relevant to the store’s ability to make a profit within a set amount of time, as the goal of $50,000 is achievable because it falls within the store’s normal sales range.
While the goal of improving the child’s grades may be achievable and relevant to the success of the child, it is not well-defined enough to be considered a valid, effective goal. Although the goal could be measured, no criteria are established as to what would be satisfactory Improvement in the boys grades. Furthermore, the mother has not established a time frame in which her son is expected to reach the goal.
Identify some of the factors that are important to creating a valid goal:
Individuals or organizations attempting to set a goal can follow the common management mnemonic SMART (specific, measurable, achievable, relevant, and time-related) to make sure that their goal is well-defined, valid, and useful when both measuring success and motivating the organization as a whole. Establish goals should be specific and well-defined, have some way of being measured accurately, be attainable, and be relevant to the task that needs to be completed for the success of the organization. The individual or organization should also decide upon an appropriate amount of time that should be spent in achieving a goal not only to make sure that it is achieved in a timely fashion, but also to ensure that the goal can be compared to other goals in the future.
Identify some of the ways that an individual or organization can effectively work toward achieving any given goal.
Both internal and external factors can have an effect on whether an individual or organization will be able to achieve a particular goal. However, the most important thing for an individual or organization to keep in mind, regardless of the situation, is that everyone involved in the goal- attaining process should remain focused on the goal and the appropriate ways by which to achieve that goal. This means that a goal is important to the success of an individual or the organization as a whole, people must be committed to giving their best efforts to achieve that particular goal. Any less important or irrelevant goals should not be allowed to distract the individual or the organization from the primary goal; any secondary goals should ultimately be put aside until the primary goal is achieved. From a managerial standpoint, it is important that people are regularly encouraged to recognize that the goal is achievable so that no one gives up before the goal is actually reached.
Explain the importance of the decision making process
The decision making process is important because understanding the process can Aid in discovery of a future rational and reasonable course of action when an individual or organization is presented with a decision that must be made. Each individual has a unique perspective and therefore a different way of reaching a particular decision through a combination of intuition, knowledge, and an understanding of how the decision-making process works, a decision that is best suited for the goals of a particular individual or group can be made. Effective, knowledgeable decision-making consists of identifying the decision that needs to be made, recognizing the benefits of each choice related to that decision, analyzing the potential drawbacks of making each choice related to that decision, and oh, finally, actually making a choice. By understanding what specifically needs to be identified at each stage of the decision-making process, an individual or organization will be able to make a more informed decision that will be more likely to lead to the achievement of a particular goal.
Explain some of the actions that an individual or group should avoid when attempting to make a well-informed decision.
Some of the most common pitfalls that should be avoided when attempting to make a well-informed decision or entering the decision-making process with a preconvinced notion that the individual is unwillingly to abandon, allowing peer pressure to influence a decision, and overgeneralizing. Entering the decision-making process with a Prejudice either for or against a particular idea, source of information, or choice will often lead to the selection of an option that is not the best or most logical choice available. Well outside sources should be used to gather information about the decision that needs to be made, no single source should be allowed to pressure the individuals involved in making the decision into making a particular choice. Furthermore, the overuse of generalizations, stereotypes, and attempts to add tribute effects to causes that may not have any logical link will often lead to a decision being made that may not be the best course of action.
Identify some of the basic techniques that an individual might use when making a decision.
An individual who is in the process of making a well informed decision will often gather as much information as possible from as many reliable sources as possible, list the advantages and disadvantages of each choice, and then compare each choice with the others. In an employment or business situation where finances are involved, an individual may use a mathematical approach and calculate exactly how much money each job choice where each potential new product could offer, as well as how much a poor decision might cost if something goes wrong. A mathematical approach can be an extremely solid strategy when one is attempting to determine what choice might be the most appropriate. Unfortunately, many individuals do not make well-informed decisions because they oftentimes employ faulty methods of decision- making. In such instances, they may rely too heavily on the opinions of their peers, gather information from such unreliable sources as erroneous websites, or even leave the decision to random chance by flipping a coin.
Identify some of the more common strategies that a business or other organization might use when attempting to make a decision.
Some of the most common decision-making strategies that a business or other organization might use when making a decision include the Pareto analysis system, a cost and benefits analysis strategy, a force field analysis strategy, a grid analysis strategy, and a scenario analysis strategy. Because each strategy has its own advantages and disadvantages, businesses and other types of organizations will usually select the system or systems that best support the kind of decision they are attempting to make. For example a Pareto analysis system can be useful when an organization is attempting to handle a group of related problems that are discovered to be responsible for most of the difficulties that the organization is experiencing. However, Pareto analysis systems will not work as well, if at all, in situations where a large number of problems are caused by completely unrelated factors.
Explain the Pareto Analysis System
The Pareto analysis system is a decision-making model which assumes that approximately 80% of the benefits that an organization receives from a particular task or a result of 20% of the effort that the various individuals within the organization put into the task. It also assumes that 80% of the problems that the organization faces are produced by approximately 20% of the factors that may be causing them. .
Step 1: List all of the problems that need to be addressed and/or the choices that are available.
Step 2: Each of those problems/choices should be grouped so that the choice is offering similar benefits and or the factors leading to the larger related problems are grouped together.
Step 3: Each group is good given a score based on how much that particular group affects the overall organization.
Explain the cost/benefit analysis strategy
Cost and benefit analysis is a decision-making strategy that examines the total estimated cost of each option that is available alongside the total estimated benefit of each option available and then compares the cost with the benefit to determine if the benefits of the option outweigh their cost. Usually, a cost and benefit analysis refers to the financial cost and benefit of a particular decision, but it can actually be used in any situation in which resources are used. For example, if a corporation has two clothing materials, A & B, that both cost the same but material B can be used more efficiently, the cost and benefit analysis would show that material B is the best choice because it allows for the production of the most clothing using the least amount of material. While cost/benefit analysis can be useful when deciding which option will have the greatest benefit, this method also relies heavily on estimation, which makes it not as accurate as other methods of analysis.
