OGL 481 Pro-Seminar I:

PCA-Choosing an Organization Worksheet

Worksheet Objectives:
1. Identify an organization and situation you want to study over the remainder of the course.
2. Describe the organization and situation.

Complete the following making sure to support your ideas and cite from the textbook and other
course materials per APA guidelines. After the peer review, you have a chance to update this and
format for your Electronic Portfolio due in Module 6.

1) Describe your organization.

The organization I currently work for is the Contra Costa County Office of the

Sheriff. The Office of the Sheriff is a law enforcement agency that has over 1100

employees, sworn and non-sworn staff. “The Office of the Sheriff works closely with our

many partners in the community to include residents, businesses, schools, leaders, and

private and governmental agencies to prevent crime and improve the quality of life”

(Contra Costa Sheriff, n.d.). I have worked for the Office of the Sheriff for over eight

years in the Personnel Unit. My unit is made up of six people who are tasked with

processing transactions such as hiring, transferring, promotions, demotions, firing,

retirement, pay increases, leaves of absences, Workers Compensation and Family

Medical Leave Act (FMLA).

2) Describe how Describe your role in the organization (it can be internal or external).

At the Office of the Sheriff, I am one of three Administrative Services Assistant

IIIs. I am considered middle-management and have taken on a more supervisory role in

the Personnel Unit. I assign tasks for the four Clerks to process while also entering

1
 transactions into the various countywide systems for processing. I am also the go-

between of the Office of the Sheriff and Contra Costa County's Human Resources

Department.

3) Describe the situation. (see the Canvas instructions for details, especially about how

your situation will be analyzed from five different perspectives over the next five

modules)

In February 2020, the Director of the Personnel Unit, R, had put in her two-week

notice to go to a different agency. We, as a unit, decided to throw her a small going-away

party. One of our co-workers, T, decided that she wanted to get the cake and make the

decorations as she was a friend of R’s and was also very crafty. The rest of us agreed and

decided that we would bring the snacks to munch on. The day of the party, which was a

Friday, the Commander of our unit decided that she would like to attend the party along

with the Fiscal Unit, so we had to scramble to make sure we had enough food and drinks

for everyone. T and one of the other clerks went into the conference room we were using

for the party and closed the doors so our Director could not see what was going on, and

decorated for the party. When the Fiscal Unit got there, we got the party started. Walking

into the conference room, we finally got to see the decorations. As an inside joke, T

decided to make a few signs that said "bye Felicia." Now, this is a quote that was often

said by R and was typically said as a joke. We in our unit thought it was funny because it

was a nod to our boss, who also laughed at the signs. However, looking around at the

other people in the room, I noticed that they did not seem to appreciate the joke. When T

brought out the cake, it was a pretty cake with flowers with the message "bye traitor." By

2
 now, the tension in the room was kind of noticeable. R laughed and cut the cake, and we

went on with the party.

The following Monday, R stormed into the office, did not say a word to anyone,

went into her office, slamming the door behind her. She did not come out for a couple of

hours, but we all knew nothing good was about to happen when she did finally come out.

One of our Clerks, J, asked R if she was okay and that is when R started yelling at all of

us. She told us that she was offended by the signs and cake and that we embarrassed her

in front of her boss. This yelling went on for fifteen minutes and included profanity and

even some insults. We all sat there in stunned silence while she berated all of us. After

she finished yelling, she went back into her office, slamming her door again. People on

the other side of the floor came over to ensure we were all okay because they could hear

her yelling from across the building. Luckily that was her last day, so we did not have to

relive that or tip-toe around her in order not to be yelled at again.

Looking back, we should have checked with T to see what she was planning;

though I do not think I would have asked her to change the signs, I definitely would have

told her to make a different cake. I understand that she was treating this party as a friend

would and not as a subordinate employee normally would have, but she has to realize that

there is a divide when at work. Though this entire situation was terrible, and there were

so many different ways R could have handled the situation, I use this as a learning tool of

how not to treat my employees.

3
 Reference or References

Contra Costa Sheriff, CA. Office of the Sheriff Overview | Contra Costa Sheriff, CA. (n.d.).

Retrieved January 17, 2022, from https://www.cocosheriff.org/about-us/office-of-the-

sheriff-overview