Last Post...Internship update

I have finally reached 20 posts. I learned a lot about blogging over the course of this semester. One of the things that I learned was that it is hard to find something interesting to write about on a regular basis. I always think of the reader; am I writing something that is going to interest them, does it make sense, do I need to add something or take away?

I thought that I would end this blogging with an update on the internship. I think I can safely say that it was a little different then I expected. I thought when I started the internship that I was going to be a lot like everything I was learning in my classes at school. I thought that I was going to tackle all facets of Human Resources; the training and development, budget, payroll, etc. I quickly learned that Human Resources is respective to the type of occupation, where you work, and who you work with.

Some of the things that I learned while in the internship was: payroll and using new computer programs in order to do payroll, filing (believe it or not, there are more and less effective ways to file), assisting in the paying of bills and knowing how the office pays those bills, gathering research, presenting information to co workers in order to gain a better understanding of procedures and policies within the Treasurers office.

I am glad that I was able to do this internship and hope to be able to use the skills that I learned in the future.

Productivity

Today was a very productive day.  The thing that I liked about this day the best was that I kept it pretty well balanced.  I was able to get a good amount of socialization, service, school work, and physical activity in today.  I think the hard part is maintaining that balance.  I have tried to stay on a schedule but, like I have said in previous blogs, sometimes things come up that change your priorities.  Even though I know a certain amount of my priorities will change from time to time, i think I should try to maintain a good social, service, and physical amount of activity going on in a day.  

Some new possibilities

Today was a good day at work because I got to see a little bit of fruit springing forth from my efforts in my Masters program.  At least I think that my Masters degree had a little bit to do with it.  I applied for a job a week ago with the county and today when I checked its status, it said that the application was sent to the head department for review.  This is good news, considering a while back, I had applied for several jobs with the county and, all of the jobs rejected my application.  They made it no where near the review from the head department.  Not that this sounds too out of the ordinary but, when I applied, I applied for about 5 jobs, and the county was not in any type of hiring freeze like it is now.  I don't know, maybe the degree doesn't have anything to do with it but, if it does, I am becoming a lot more grateful for the long hours I spent in my classes.

Succession Planning

One of the things  I have been asked to do for my internship is research with regards to different policies and procedures in the Treasurers office.  As  part of the research and my responsibilities as an intern, I am supposed to administer surveys to my co workers in order to find out what things they would like to learn more about in the Treasurers office.  This can be anything from questions about their general job duties to issues regarding company policies.  Right now, I am working on a succession plan for the cashiering department.  One of the things that the cashiers question is the lack of training they receive when they get hired on in the Treasurer's office.  The reason their is a lack of training is because there is no succession plan.  Nobody knows what to tell the cashiers when they get hired.  My plan is to write a succession plan for the Treasurers office and to hopefully implement it so that it will continue on to future employees.

A change of season

I took the day off of work today so I could finish up a couple of loose ends with my homework.  I still can't believe that I only have a couple of more things to do before I'm done with everything.  When I say everything, I mean everything required of me through my classes in order to get my Masters degree.  The other day I was asked what I am going to do with all of my spare time now that I am going to be out of school.  I started to think about all of the time that I will have but then realized that I probably won't do too many new things because when I wasn't going to school I was still busy.  I just organized my priorities differently once I started school.  I think it is interesting the types of things we consider priorities and how those things shift as new experiences or opportunities come into our life.  Don't get me wrong, there are some priorities that may always be a part of our life that don't change but, there are additional ones that we allow to be shifted.    I am excited for this semester to end.  Not only for the sense of accomplishment in getting a Masters degree but for new experiences and a priority shift.

A day of redemption

Today was a great day!  The reason was because I finally got together with the people I needed to, in order to get the pieces for my final project together.  It was hard to get our schedules to go together but, once we did, everything went perfect.  In fact, I got a lot more information then I thought I was going to.  I thanked them for their help but I feel like I owe them something more.  Maybe I can keep this experience in mind and remember to put myself out there when someone needs my help.  

Picking the brain

Today at work I got to sit down with one of the HR people today and ask questions about their job.  I always find it neat when I talk to other people about their job and how they started doing what they're doing.  Most of the time it is interesting because it seems like no two people ever have the same story.  What is even more interesting is the amount of people that go to school for one thing and then end up doing something totally different.  The lady that I talked to today had been out of school for quite a while, so I didn't talk to her much about her degree or what she did in school.  I did talk to her about things that she did professionally that prepared her for the job she is doing now, and the types of things she did in previous jobs that helped her to be more marketable.  Ironically enough, it sounded like the position that she has now just happened to her.  She had been working for different places, doing different types of administrative things when a job opening came.  The supervisor she was working for at the time thought that she would be a good fit and so he referred her to it.  She applied and has been there ever since.  Sometimes I get a little nervous in job searching because I am never quite sure if the job I will take is going to be beneficial to me in the long run.  It is an interesting thought because I don't think anyone is really prepared for the experiences they encounter.  The best thing to do is take advantage of the opportunities as they come and work hard in everything we do.

End of the semester

Today I got a strong realization that the end of the semester is coming near.  The reason  I got such a strong realization of that fact is because of the last couple of projects due in my classes in order to graduate.  One project in particular is causing some stress.  A little bit of stress is always a good sign that I am about to be done with my classes but,  I don't know if the stress I am feeling this time is due to the fact that I have a project due or the fact that in order to complete my project, I need to rely on other people whose participation is beyond my control.  It wouldn't be that bad if their participation wasn't such a large part of my project but, because of the nature of the project, their participation is vital.  I have a couple more days left before I will have to think of an alternative idea in order to compensate for this issue.  Tune in to the blog in a week to see what the answer to the issue was.

Internship Comparison

I had the opportunity to work on a Human Resource paper today for one of my classes.  It is so interesting to do research and see how certain practices have worked in different organizations, and then reflect on my company, and my internship, and compare and contrast the differences and similarities.  In the county, we are going through some issues with the budget and it is interesting to see how the higher ups are responding to it.  The higher ups being the Board of Supervisors.  They relay their plans to our department head, and then, over time, the rest of the office gets filled in as information is circulated around our office.  As far as the budget shortfall goes, our office has not seen too many effects as of yet but, I am sure that our time will come.  Going back to first couple of sentences; I think it is interesting to note the types of things you discover as you conduct a little bit of research.  I think every organization would benefit immensely if they would, from time to time, read up on the latest trends in HR.  If they were to do that, I believe they would be able to uncover a lot of neglected responsibilities.  And, if that happens, maybe they could correct them.

Cross Training

This last week I had the opportunity to do some additional things for my internship.  I sat down for a while with one of my co workers and participated in paying bills for the Treasurers office.  I was shown some of the bills that the Treasurers office receives and learned about how some of the bills were paid.  Some are paid by a company credit card on a monthly basis while others are paid by a wire every three months or so.  However the payments were paid, each had their own respective process. 

Although this first opportunity to sit down and help make payments was not very involved, it was nice to get an opportunity to see how other things in the Treasurers office work and it was good at helping me to piece together how a few parts of the company work together to help form a whole. 

County Charitable Campaign presentation

 Today at work I was able to give another presentation to my co workers.  Today's presentation was on the County Charitable Campaign (CCC).  Part of the reason I gave the presentation was because I am a representative of the CCC for the county Treasurers office.  As part of my presentation, I introduced the CCC's purpose to those employees that were unfamiliar with it, presented different types of fundraisers we are doing, and gave information about how donations to the CCC will be spent.

The presentation was well taken by my co workers and I was able to answer a few of the questions that some of them had about the CCC.  Hopefully the message was conveyed in a way that will encourage some of the employees to make donations to the CCC or, at least, motivate them to take some time and look into the program in their free time.

Community Involvement

With the passing of the recent elections, I think most people would agree that at least part of the huge turnout at the polls was due to organized efforts by community based groups.  One of the things we are learning about in my Community and Institutional conflict class is the power that people can have in creating change.  Whether it be a change in government policy or issues in a neighborhood organization, change can come as people get involved in the issues that affect them.  

I think one of the problems people have when there is an issue that is unfavorable to the people in a community is a lack of knowledge in getting a group organized to contest the issue.  Tonight I learned that there is a strategy to combating issues.  This strategy is a 5 part process. First, need to have goals (what are we going to accomplish?).  Second, need to have a group to target.  Third, need to have tactics (things we will do to bring target back to us).  Fourth, need to be aware of constituents, allies, and opponents (who they can help or harm you). And fifth, need to understand our own organizational considerations (what are our resources?).  

Community involvement can be a powerful tool as communities and people get involved and become aware of the resources available to them.

Softball

Oh yes! It's softball time again!  I just got done playing a game last night and I am going to have to say, it was probably the best game I have ever played in.  Funny thing is, I hated softball just a couple of months earlier.  Now, I love it!  I guess it is funny to think about different experiences that you have and how perceptions change over time.  Sometimes your outlook changes through an accumulation of many experiences while other times, it just takes one or two.  Don't get me wrong, I am not saying that softball has changed my life but, I am saying that the experience I have had with it over this short period of time this season has allowed me to give it a chance and appreciate it more.  Yah for softball!

Tax Week

This has been a crazy week down at the county Treasurers office.  The first half portion of property taxes is due by November 3rd this year and so most people in Maricopa county have almost collectively made a decision to come down to the office to pay their taxes together this last week.  As an office, not much happens during this part of the year except for post payments and help tax payers.  everything else has been put on hold.  In addition to taking in a lot of payments for taxes, the office has also been doing a lot of overtime to help compensate for the amount of payments that are coming in.  

One thing I have been able to take note of with regards to working in the Treasurers office is that people are creatures of habit.  I have worked for the county for over a year and it is so interesting how many people wait until the due date to come in and pay their taxes.  It is also interesting to note the type of conversations customers will make when they come up to the counter and make their payments.  It doesn't matter what economic class people are in, all will make comments about the high price of taxes.  

As the 1st half due date comes to a close, we should be able to finish taking in the payments, post them, and then get ready for the next tax period.

Charitable Campaign Committee

At my work, I was nominated to be a representative for the Charitable Campaign Committee (CCC). The CCC is a fundraising organization through the county whose purpose it is to collect money for the United Way and its respective organizations. As part of my job as a representative, I answer questions regarding donations and general information about the program. So far I am in the initial start up portion of the program but am excited to get going with the members of the Treasurers office. I know giving a little donation here and there shows kindness towards others and is a great opportunity to help those that have a hard time helping themselves.

Columbus Day

I don't confess to be a history buff and I don't know too much about Columbus but, what I do know is that I sure am thankful for him today.  I got the day off of work and was able to get a lot of things taken care of and ready for the week.  A large part of those things that I got ready had to do with school.  The free day gave me some time to tie up some of the loose ends for school.  You know, it seems like with school, you have those busy weeks and then you have those not so busy weeks.  Well, this is most likely going to be my busiest week in school for the semester.  I have a number of projects to do and if I effectively take advantage of the time that I have, I will be able to get all of the projects done.  Once again, thank you Columbus for giving me some more time. 

Overtime

This week we have been putting the overtime presentation into practice.  Everyone has been coming in early to take care of some of the work that has been piling up.  The first half of property taxes is due soon and with that comes more work to post.  We have been busier this year more then previous years at the county because we are in a hiring freeze.  we usually have a couple of temporary workers that come in to assist during the busy times but, due to the freeze, we have been without.  Things will calm down around the second week of November but, in the meantime, the amount of time to post payments has been delayed.  The overtime has been good because I think we are getting a lot of things done that we otherwise wouldn't if we didn't have it.  I am not sure how long the overtime work is going to continue but, I think it has been pretty effective in allowing us to post more payments and it has given some monetary incentives to the employees that have participated in it.

The First presentation

As part of my internship, one of the responsibilities I have been given is to present information to members of the organization with regards to policies or issues within the company. Last Friday was my first presentation. Because we are nearing a heavy part of the tax season for property taxes, there has been an increased amount of work for everyone in the office. In order to compensate for the large amount of work, many of the employees are given the opportunity to work overtime. Due to the fact that the Treasurers office works using a 9/80 work schedule, the way that overtime is paid out is different then a regular work schedule. Apparently, in the past, there had been some confusion with regards to our overtime policy. So, for my presentation, I was given the charge to research information on overtime and then present it to the department. I was also told employees might have questions and so I would need to be prepared to answer them.

The presentation came, I was a little nervous but, I presented the material. It seemed as if everyone understood the information and there was only a couple of questions with regards to the policy, all of which we seemed to answer collectively.

Internship Responsibilities

I forgot to mention in the previous post what I am doing for my internship.  I was given the opportunity to work with the Human Resource Department for the Maricopa County Treasurers office.  As an intern, I will be given the chance to do many of the same things the Human Resource Managers do.  Some of these duties include: entering payroll information, researching benefit information and then giving presentations to employees on the findings, filing, and other miscellaneous tasks as assigned.  I am enjoying the internship so far.  One thing that I have noticed about Human Resource management is the inconsistency of duties from day to day.  Some days are busier than others. 

A New Semester

Two weeks have passed so far in my final semester of the M.P.A. program (Masters of Public Administration).  For some reason, I never thought I would make it this far.  Not that I didn't think I would ever graduate but, more for the fact that the journey through the program has seemed long due to the experiences (both good and bad) that have accompanied me throughout the program.  There have definitely been more good experiences and I can say that even the bad have served as opportunities to learn, and learning never was a bad thing.