Running head: ARTIFACT 3 1

Artifact 3 Demonstration of ECQ4 Business Acumen

Cheryl M. Calaustro
PUA 550 Seminar for Public Administration
McDaniel College
ARTIFACT 3 2
A Presentation and Reflection of Artifact 3
Administrators of environmental programs must be able to manage fiduciary,
personnel and technical needs. The aptitude for business is just as important as good
scientific methodology (Executive Core Qualifications, n.d.).

Presentation of the Artifact

The artifact presented is a current event paper from HRD 502 Introduction to
Human Resources Development. It contains a brief review of human resource
management related articles found in recent academic or research periodicals pertaining
to a human resource issue. The paper related topics discussed within class, explained
relevance to course materials, included a personal critique and reactions to the content
matter, as well as evaluated its impact and/or importance in Guams current
organizational environment. This artifact is provided as evidence of competency in
leveraging human capital management, a key characteristic of Executive Core
Qualification 4: Business Acumen.
The paper studies an ongoing wage evaluation of job salaries within the
Government of Guam which historically has been below the national average. As a local
government employee, I have often noticed low morale, insubordination and low
productivity among the various agencies. I often wondered if it is simply the clich of
the lazy government worker playing out in real life or if it was something more. The
culture of government efficiency and productivity touted by the current administration is
not a realistic portrayal of the current organizational culture as low response times, lack
of customer service and disgruntled feelings of employees is prevalent among the various
ARTIFACT 3 3
agencies. From my own department, I know that response times and employee
satisfaction is a result of the discrepancy of wages.
This topic is worthy of discussion because I have often witnessed environmental
program leaders or managers become fixated on scientific project goals and objectives
and lose sight of raising their human capital. Happy, healthy and satisfied staff can be
beneficial for company or organizational stability and growth. Ensuring fair and
equitable wages will foster not only good relations between management and staff but
likely facilitate the obtainment of project goals. As a scientist, I often wondered why
goals and objectives were emphasized while the process of getting to the end product was
not. As integral as having the right tools to complete the job, the right staff are a key
element of project management.
Furthermore, this course in human resources clarified to me the necessity for a
good working relationship between human resource and operating managers. Both must
understand the needs of the program to attract the right personnel for the job. Location,
benefits and often wage are large factors for consideration when trying to balance
program and organizational needs. Moreover, the need to encourage and foster diversity
in the workplace will certainly become a consideration as the workforce ages, funding
sources change as a result of organizational prioritization and advances in technology
creates a global workplace. Investment in human capital will help to overcome the
challenges of today's human resource managers.
Human resource managers can positively affect organizational performance as
their comprehensive view helps to keep programmatic and organizational goals aligned.
Understanding of this lens is needed especially since environmental administrators often
ARTIFACT 3 4
work for small organizations that sometimes do not employee dedicated human resource
staff. The human element of project management is equally important for project
success. Environmental program administrators must keep sight of this need.

Refection of the Artifact

Organizations, such as local government agencies, are slow to realize the potential
positive impact of human resource departments. The most successful companies align
human resource objectives with the strategic goals of the company. Human resource
activities must work together to create an overall culture that is conducive to their end
goal which for most is profit-making, however for non-profits is it the progress of social
and environmental solutions. Profitable companies have the following human resource
initiatives in common: extensive communication, the understanding that human resources
is capable of activities beyond cost reduction, involved employees who set goals,
understand the relationship between their jobs, the bottom line, and their paychecks as
well as internal programs that support productivity (Caudron, 2001).
The role of public administrators must evolve. To contribute to their
organizations bottom line, they must retain traditional administrative function but be
integrally involved in the organization's strategic and policy-making activities. Public
administrators, especially those in the environmental sector, must incorporate human
resource functions, overcome biases and negative impressions as scientific paper
shufflers. Environmental administrative professionals must become well-rounded
businesspeople and understand business complexities and strategies. If successful,
program administrators could become drivers of organizational effectiveness and
business strategy by the reduction of unnecessary resource loss and implementation of
ARTIFACT 3 5
internal organizational programs that fill gaps and streamline operations (Byars & Rue,
2011). The bottom line therefore is to not short-change employees, instead encourage,
engage and enable them to contribute to the organizations overall success by investing
resources and time on staff development and retention. This investment will steadily pay
off over time. Increases in employee satisfaction, productivity and overall success can be
accomplished if program administrators proactively align programmatic goals with their
organizations strategic objectives.

ARTIFACT 3 6
References
Byars, L. & Rue, L. (2011). Human Resource Management. (10th ed.). New York:
McGraw-Hill Irwin.
Caudron, S. (2001, December). How HR Drives Profits: Academic research and real-
world experience show how HR practices affect the bottom line. It's not about
obsessive cost cutting. It is about effectively investing in human capital. (Cover
Story). Workforce, 80(12), 26+. Retrieved from
http://go.galegroup.com/ps/i.do?id=GALE%7CA81007534&v=2.1&u=west4160
5&it=r&p=AONE&sw=w.
Executive Core Qualifications. (n.d.). OPM.gov. Retrieved J une 14, 2014, from
http://www.opm.gov/policy-data-oversight/senior-executive-service/executive-
core-qualifications/