the Big day
...nd what qualifications do you have?” he said. The manner in which he spoke made me think, although by all his framed degrees on the wall there was no doubt that he was “book smart” and intelligence was not an issue. It just seemed he didn’t get out much. With his glasses, neatly slicked back hair and pressed suit he seemed a formidable opponent to any modern businessman today, except when he spoke. When he opened his mouth to speak he sounded like he should be somewhere in the backwoods of Virginia. Emerson says “I learn immediately from any speaker how much he has already lived, through the poverty or the splendor of his speech (301).” I thought for a second and replied back, “I have always been self-motivated, goal-oriented, and a stickler for detail. I am a recent graduate from Tennessee Tech University with a Bachelor’s Degree in Business Management with a concentration in Human Resources. I also hold an Associates Degree in Business Management Technology in Accounting from Roane State Community College. Then he asked me, “What further education have you had that would make you uniquely suited for this position?” “Well, I have completed a Conflict Management and Negotiation class where I learned how to handle and resolve disputes in the workplace. If a situation came up where two workers were arguing because one worker said the other was “always late and did not do their share of the work” I would talk with them both separately. I would ask the first worker how did she know the other worker was not doing her share and was always late. I would advise her that I would check out her allegations and would speak with the second worker. I told her that if she had a problem with her workload or with another worker, then she should speak with me about that. When I speak with the second worker I would ask her if she thought she was doing her fair share of the work. No one should be made to take up anybody’s slack. If she had a problem with her work or there was a reason why she was late, then she should let me know. I would tell her that we are a team and everybody works together. Because of this skill I believe I will be able to diffuse any situation involving employee disputes in the workplace. I also took a Leadership and Employee Development class where I learned how to build my leadership abilities and how to guide and motivate employees. I would motivate my employees by making sure they understood that they could do anything. I would encourage them by letting them know what their strengths were and how to build on those strengths. I would help them to realize their weaknesses and how to make them into strengths, because it is important to know what your weaknesses are as well. That is part of being a good leader. If they had a specific goal, I would help them realize that goal to fruition. This skill I have learned will help motivate, encourage and lead your employees to do the best job they can. Another class I’ve completed was Management and Organization Behavior class, which taught me the functions of good management and organizational skills and how vital they are to a business. Organization is important. If you are not organized, especially in the business world, you will feel overwhelmed. I organize my tasks on a daily, weekly and monthly basis, and then I do not feel so overwhelmed. In the job I had before applying for this job I kept a list of all the things to be done for that day in order of importance. I would keep up with my boss’ meeting on that calendar as well as any meetings or classes I was attending. I also kept a list of the monthly duties, like payroll, bill paying for our department and monies due us. I kept very organized files so that I or anyone else could find whatever they needed to. Being organized helped me do my job better as well as helping my boss do his job better. These classes will help me interact better with the employees and deal with any problems that may come up in the job. As you can see, my education is commensurate with your job requirements,” I said. With my last statement his whole unibrow raised markedly and he smiled sincerely. I was on a roll and puffed with self-confidence. He asked, “What personal traits do you possess that would contribute to our organization?” I replied, “I possess an investigative instinct that drives me to always follow the trail back to the source. Ever since I was a little child I have always been asking questions. Trying to find out the behind the scenes story. Let me give you an example of what I am talking about. When I worked at American Express I was on the Optima Card Airlines Team. I was the only one on the team who handled Delta Airlines disputes, which left me with hundreds of cases. There were no procedures written specifically for Delta Airlines. I took it upon myself to contact Delta Airlines to find out if there is a consistency in ticket numbers as to the type of charge it was. I also inquired about the specific information they needed from the cardmember and us to prove or disprove the cardmembers case. I then called around to the different departments at American Express to find which department could give me what I needed. I took all of this information that I had found out and put in writing. The Delta Airlines Front-end procedures for Optima in simple to follow directions were born. I know this personal trait would contribute substantially to your organization.” He then asked, “And what work experience have you had?” My previous work has prepared me for employment with your company. “I worked at American Express where I investigated and resolved Cardmember disputes and negotiated an agreeable outcome. I had to investigate the charges the cardmember said were invalid by contacting the merchant and finding out their version of the story. I would get copies of the charges and depending on what the cardmembers’ story was I would usually try to negotiate with the merchant for some type of credit for the cardmember. I also trained and supervised newly hired Customer Service Representatives. I was given the responsibility of four trainees. I had to approve all letters they did before they went out to the cardmembers. I also had to approve all credits and debits made to the cardmember accounts. I kept track of all the work my trainees did and had to give them evaluations weekly. Their futures at American Express were bas...