Reference no: EM133200029

Assignment:

An independent contractor is someone that is self-employed, and creates work based off of the connections that they have. Independent contractors are typically smaller, and do not generate as much money has large firms. "In economics producers - often referred to as firms or companies play a role in using inputs (different factors of production) and producing goods and services (output). Firms play a key role in deciding what to produce and how to produce." (Economics Help, 2022) The organization that I work for is the State of Arizona, so we are not really trying to make a profit off of other people.

In fact, we do the exact opposite, and try and help people out. Off of the top of my mind, we assisted with giving out stimulus checks to help other people make sure that they have enough money to make it through their day-to-day activities. Independent contractors do not have the funds to give out the amount of money that we have given out, nor would they need to. Typically independant contractors are trying to make as much money as they can so that they can be succesful!

Respond here:

When I read this question about how a firm influences efficiency in the marketplace I think of very competitive businesses that constantly work to bring in more customers. The first one I thought of is fast food and how it is influenced by the big firms over the smaller independent ones, even though they could be more efficient. McDonald's is known throughout the world for its products and above all else, they are renowned for speed, efficiency, and consistency. Back when McDonald's was starting to grow its franchise system most fast-food restaurants were regional or locally based. Because of their mass expansion across the United States and the world, they have the make sure their food was consistent for their customer, so they were comforted with knowing they were getting the product they were expecting.

Also, speed was key to making sure they could meet the demand for their product and the ease of service that was required for their system. Because of this so, many fast-food restaurants have adopted McDonald's go-to-market strategies and technology so they can replicate their success. Small fast-food joints have been successful in efficiency as well but because they run on a smaller scale they either are not noticed or have not proven their system could work on a large national scale.

Respond here:

We make decisions every day and prior to making that decision, whether we know it or not, we go through a decision-making process. According to Cuofano (2022), "the Vroom-Yetton decision model is a decision-making process based on situational leadersihp." It is further categorized into three styles: autocratic, consultative, and collaborative. In my current position, the people that work for me have many requests and the people I work for give me many taskers to fill. More commonly, however, is the decisions I make every day on how to utilize my staff. This means deciding whether to send them to help other units or do training or physical exercise, or to leave early for the day to get some rest. With this, I use the Vroom-Yetton decision model, usually consultive or collaborative with my enlisted leadership.

Respond here:

According to Anderson et al. (2016), decision trees are a "graphical representation of the decision-making process." The decision tree I made was crafted simply; these are the thoughts that always come to mind whenever I am faced with this decision or decisions very similar. I presented a problem, which is having nothing to do at work, when I see multiple people sitting around and scrolling their phones. I know there are productive things to do and other units that need help, but also know that my staff are tired and at times overworked. In short, I have to decide whether it is more beneficial to have them work more or rest. I would apply this same way of thinking to larger scale decisions; I would need to think quickly of the pros and cons of decisions I need to make.