Task 1 Assessment Instructions
This is an individual assessment. There are two parts in this task. If you need help understanding any questions, ask your assessor to explain.
Part A
Procedure
Read the following scenarios and answer the corresponding questions for each.
To be deemed competent you will need to successfully demonstrate the following:
You must submit:
Satisfactorily answer all the scenarios.
Scenario 1:
You are working as part of the wait staff at a local restaurant. A customer you are serving has called you over to her table and has complained that she has found a hair in her meal. However, she has finished her meal and there is no hair to be seen. She is visibly unhappy and demanding a refund. This is not the policy of your restaurant.
1. Name 3 conflict resolution techniques and explain how you will use these to resolve this conflict:
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2. What are the dangers of leaving this conflict unresolved?
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Scenario 2
You are working at a hotel that is popular with international tourists. A foreign tourist approaches you with a complaint about his room, but you are struggling to understand his concerns due to his accent and language barrier. You begin to understand that the customer has an issue with the cleanliness of his bathroom. He is becoming agitated, aggressive, raising his voice and speaking quickly. He has crossed his arms and looks stiff and tense, as well as frowning at you. How will you manage this customer’s complaint? Answer the following questions based on this scenario.
1. What are the signs in this situation that conflict is occurring?
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2. How could you overcome this communication barrier?
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3. What actions can you take to resolve this complaint?
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4. What actions can you take to prevent this situation from happening again in the future?
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5. What actions could management take to assist employees to improve their communication with international customers?
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Scenario 3
Some hostility has been occurring among your work team as Sarah and James always receive the weekend off, and the rest of the team is required to work both Saturdays and Sundays. The other employees are beginning to resent Sarah and James for always receiving the weekend off work. The team rarely works with Sarah and James due to this rostering, and when they do, there is conflict. The other employees hold fixed opinions about Sarah and James and as a result, the working environment has become tense and there has been a lot of gossip. The conflict has not been resolved, and is therefore increasing in severity. As a result, arguments have occurred between Sarah and other employees. There has been a notable decrease in productivity.
1. Conflict theory can be divided into the following parts:
1) Signs
2) Stages
3) Levels
4) Factors involved
5) Results
Using the scenario, apply the situations to the relevant parts of conflict theory listed above. Which aspects need to be addressed by you as the manager?
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2. As the manager of this team, describe why you believe this conflict is occurring between Sarah and James and the other team members.
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3. During the initial stages of this conflict, team members were uncomfortable about the rostering situation but did not argue about the issue. Describe the stage of conflict that this situation has reached. What will happen if it is ignored further?
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4. How can you use communication techniques to effectively manage the conflict within your team and work well with the other members?
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5. How can management work with you to determine and implement a possible solution to this conflict?
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6. What results will be achieved if this conflict is managed effectively?
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Scenario 4
A customer at your bar appears to have become drunk and disorderly. He is knocking over drinks, talking loudly and has begun arguing with a new staff member working next to you at the bar when she refuses to serve the customer. You notice that his behaviour is becoming increasingly threatening to customers and your fellow staff member, who is becoming frightened of the situation.
1. How might this situation escalate if you do not respond appropriately?
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2. What actions will you take and what resources can you use to effectively address this situation and prevent escalation?
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3. Which documentation do you need to complete in this instance? List 3 instances which must be recorded associated with conflict situations in a workplace and explain the reasons why this needs to occur.
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Part B
Procedure
Answer all the questions.
To be deemed competent you will need to successfully demonstrate the following:
You must submit:
Satisfactorily answer all the questions.
Questions Workplace policies and protocols to deal with and manage conflict
1. Outline the common procedures and policies which could be part of a company policy regarding the requirements for reporting and management of conflict. What does this need to include?
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2. What are the regulatory, industrial and legislative requirements related to the handling of disputes?
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3. Explain the variety of communication skills which could be employed to ensure the effectiveness of dealing with conflict and conflict resolution.
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4. What are the procedures where conflict involves drugs, alcohol or violence?
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5. What should be covered in an induction program with regards to conflict situations?
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6. To whom (other than the HR department) should escalated conflict situations or problems be reported in an organisation?
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7. What is the purpose of evaluating conflict situations? Provide examples how this could be achieved effectively.
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Task 2 Assessment Instructions
This is an individual assessment. There are three parts in this task. If you need help understanding any questions, ask your assessor to explain.
Procedure
You are to role play with your assessor the following three customer complaint scenarios. Use the Customer complains handling procedure in Appendix 1.
To be deemed competent you will need to successfully demonstrate the following:
You must participate in all three customer complaint scenarios and solve the customer issues satisfactorily.
Scenario 1:
2 businessmen have ordered the 3-course lunch special at your establishment. They have advised the waitress that they only have 1 hour for lunch as they need to attend an important meeting and were advised that this was no problem at all.
They are being served their beverages and shortly after, the first course is being served. 10 minutes after they have finished the first course, the waitress returns to the table and advises that the kitchen has run out of the main course for the lunch special, and advises the customers that there is an alternative they can offer for a surcharge of $15 per person. The customers are annoyed about this “Recommendation” not to mention the impact on their limited time available for lunch and ask to see the manager – YOU. Demonstrate how you will resolve this issue.
Scenario 2:
Andrew and Ella are angry because they are rostered every weekend whilst John, the assistant manager, has every weekend off to enable him to participate in his hobby related sports events. They hold a grudge against John and they believe there is little they can do due to John’s position as assistant manager. You as the manager, have noticed that Andrew and Ella’s regular outgoing friendly nature has changed and this has started to reflect on how they interact with their colleagues. You have called Andrew and Ella into your office and they now air their frustration.
Demonstrate how you will resolve this issue. Your actions are underpinned by common workplace relation provisions (as these may exist) and EEO legislation, awards etc.
Scenario 3:
You are the bar manager in Sydney bar. You notice a customer at the other end of the bar who starts to become aggressive after s/he has been refused service of alcoholic beverages due to signs of intoxication and lewd behaviour.
The customer calls the service attendant a derogatory name and threatens to take the place apart. The situation looks serious.
Demonstrate how you will manage this issue. Your actions are underpinned by existing workplace policies etc. where these exist
Appendix 1
Compliment and complaint management procedure
The compliment and complaint management process can be simplified into five steps:
1. Receive
2. Record
3. Acknowledge
4. Resolve
5. Communicate resolution.
1. Receive
• Listen – openly to the concerns being raised by the complainant.
• Ask – the complainant what outcome they are seeking.
• Inform – the complainant clearly of the complaint process, the time the process takes and set realistic expectations.
• Accountable – be empathic towards the affected person and action all commitments made.
• Assess – create a prioritisation framework to identify situations which pose an immediate threat or danger, or require a specialised response.
• Refer to the Compliment and complaint form template to assist in recording key information at the time of first contact.
2. Record
• Record – all information that is relevant to the compliment or complaint, in its original and simplest form.
• Store – in a compliment or complaint management system that also allows for data analysis.
• Protect – use a system that restricts access to clients who are involved in managing the compliment or complaint.
• Refer to the Template reporting system that can be used for reporting purposes.
3. Acknowledge
• Acknowledge – receipt of the complaint early to build a relationship of trust and confidence with the person who raised the complaint.
• Anonymity – a person may request to remain anonymous in their lodgement and therefore contact may not be possible or expected.
• Desired outcomes – provide realistic expectations and refer the matter to other organisations where identified as being more suitable to handle.
• Conflict of interest – avoid this by appointing a person unrelated to the matter as an investigator.
• Timeframes and expectations – provide these to the complainant where possible.
4. Resolve
• Involve the complainant – keep them informed of the progress of the complaint and discuss any disparities identified in the information held.
• Additional information – request when required but apply a timeframe that limits when it is to be provided.
• Extensions in time – consider only where necessary and always communicate any additional time requirements to the complainant with an explanation of the need.
• Record – continue to record all decisions or actions of the complaint investigation in the compliment and complaint management system.
• Focus – when investigating, focus on the identified complaint matters only. A complaint is not an opportunity to review the whole case.
5. Communicate resolution
• Outcome – Where possible, discuss the outcome verbally with the complainant before providing written advice and allow them the opportunity to make further contact following receipt of the written advice.
• Recourse – include what further action may be available to the complainant at the conclusion of the complaint investigation. An action of recourse may be to escalate the matter further with an external agency or for a further review within the organisation.
• Further reviews – providing a minimum of one further review will enable the first investigation to be reviewed for soundness and allow additional information not available in the first complaint to be included.
• Opportunities – develop a mechanism or process by which complaint outcomes can be relayed to the appropriate area within the organisation for action to improve service delivery.
• Feedback – develop a process that allows for a review of the complainant’s experience of the complaints process by encouraging and enabling feedback on how the process by which their complaint was dealt with.
• Support – is available from the Department of Health and Human Services and the Department of Education and Training or other organisations in the form of training, advice and resources to support receiving and managing compliments and complaints. Refer to the Listing of organisations for additional support.