Reading for discussion 1

Here’s how to remove EBOLA waste from a Hospital. Retrieved from http://time.com/3614010/heres-how-to-remove-ebola-waste-from-a-hospital/

Management of Biomedical Waste in Florida [Video file]. Retrieved from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KPQf-EJyd9M (22:44)

Discussion 1

The term ‘treatment’ refers to the process that modifies the waste in some way before it is taken to its final resting place. Treatment is mainly required to disinfect or decontaminate the waste, right at source so that it is no longer the source of pathogenic organisms. After such treatment, the residue can be handled safely, transported and stored.

Use the background readings and external resources (if applicable) to discuss who maintains the liability for the disposal of treated biohazardous waste when transportation is facilitated by a contracted service.

Cite your source(s) and respond to the response below.

In New York, hazardous waste is regulated from the time of its creation until the time it reaches its final disposal, a concept the state calls “cradle-to-grave” waste management (DEC, n.d.). This is managed by the Division of Materials Management, which also contains a Division of Law Enforcement and the Office of General Counsel who enforce the laws and regulations on the hazardous waste generators, transporters, and TSDFs (treatment, storage and disposal facilities). Due to this cradle-to-grave concept, those who generate the waste are actually liable for it until it is completely neutralized (defined as steam sterilization, microwaving, autoclaving, chemical treatment, or incineration), even if they contract an outside company to handle its removal and disposal (Brenner, 2017). This means that a medical office which generates biohazard waste and pays a large fee to a contactor to regularly remove it is still actually responsible if anything goes wrong; the same would apply to hospitals, nursing homes, funeral homes, veterinary clinics, hotels and other entities (Brenner, 2017). The way to mitigate financial risk is to choose a reliable waste disposal company to outsource to, and to also make sure the contracted disposal company has enough liability insurance to cover any fines on the producer if something were to go wrong with the disposal.

References:

Brenner, B. (2017, August 8). Medical Waste: Who’s Liable for It? Retrieved from: https://www.medprodisposal.com/medical-waste-disposal/medical-waste-who-is-liable-for-it/

New York State Department of Environmental Conservation (DEC). Hazardous Waste Treatment, Storage, and Disposal. Retrieved from: https://www.dec.ny.gov/chemical/8477.html

Reading for discussion 2

APA Style Formatting: http://www.dianahacker.com/pdfs/hacker-shaw-apa.pdf (Provides an example on how to write a COMPLETE research paper)

Diversity and Inclusion – Human Resources Fundamentals. Retrieved May 24, 2019, from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nsX0KKCdHNw

Steve Jobs Talks about Apple’s Organization. This video presents useful information in considering how organization design relies on organizational behavior. Culture fosters some business models and inhibits others. Running time: 2:26– https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=39mXMv8MyNI

Goerke, P. (2014, July 17). Challenges Of Managing A Global Workforce. Retrieved September 25, 2018, from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=salPR_x99eA (4:09)

HR Jetpack. (2015, June 19). Diversity and Inclusion – Human Resources Fundamentals. Retrieved May 24, 2019, from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nsX0KKCdHNw

Discussion 2

Review Amazon organizational chart and try to retrieve as much background information as possible on the top “C” level positions, i.e., CEO, CIO, COO, etc. Is the organizational structure similar to another organization you are benchmarking? Explain your answer. After reviewing the background information on the C level positions, are there any related HR issues (positive or negative) in the media, articles, or other external sources? Please share your findings.

Cite your source(s) and respond to the response below.

Below is the organizational structure of Southwest Airlines:

Image

Bases on the chart above, we see Southwest Airlines has a standard organizational structure where the CEO is at the top and has executives working beneath him. Gary Kelly, CEO is at the top of the company structure. Beneath him is Chief People and Admin Officer, COO, CFO, and Chief Technology Officer. This type of structure is very common in corporate companies, especially with in the airline industry, This structure ensures that all decision making occurs at the top levels of management in a functional manner. This method also creates a clear career trajectory for employees at levels.

CEO Gary Kelly has been an essential part of Southwest’s success. He is one of the pioneers of the company and has grown Southwest despite set back such as the great recession and the Covid-19 pandemic. ‘Kelly has been in the top job at the airline during the financial crisis, a merger, an aggressive expansion and the grounding of the Boeing 737 Max. The pandemic devastated travel demand and last year pushed Southwest to its first annual loss since 1972.’ (Joseph 2021)

Mike Van de Ven is Southwest Airlines COO. He joined the company back in 1993 and has held numerous positions. ‘Mike provides Executive Leadership to many Departments including Air Operations, Ground Operations, Technical Operations, Customer Support & Services, Network Operations Control, Safety and Security, Operational Strategy & Performance, Labor Relations, and Hospitality Operations Support, which includes the Company’s President’s Council and Hospitality efforts.’ (Southwest Media)

Tammy Romo serves as the Executive Vice President and CFO of southwest airlines. Her position is to oversee the company’s overall finance activities including Reporting, Accounting, Investor Relations, Treasury, Tax, Corporate Planning and Financial Planning and Analysis.

Southwest has been ranked the world’s number 1 company for HR! SW is the top ranked company in the 2019 Workforce 100, which recognizes companies that have excelled in human resources during the past year. Things taken into consideration when ranking companies HR are: ‘talent acquisition challenges, the evolving role of artificial intelligence (AI) in HR, how to best utilize data-driven insights, and an increased emphasis on agility. Of course, traditional HR pain points — including compliance, culture, diversity — remain at the forefront as well.’ This shows that SW is an airline that far surpasses other companies in these areas. This also shows that they are true to their mission statements which is ‘all about the people’. (Carsen)