Work Place Organisation Analysis

Work Experience

Work Practice Portfolio

Table of Contents

Introduction

1. Key Features of work practice organisation

a) Evaluate work Practice organisation in terms of status and size in relation to the both, the Irish economy (if applicable)

b) Summarise the work practice organisations structure main aims and overall objectives.

c) Determine the organisations culture and values as demonstrated by management practices and staff client engagement.

2. Key factors which impact the work practice organisation

a) Evaluate the impact of globalisation and new technology and science on the work practice organisation.

b) Review the impact of relevant government policy on the work practice organisation.

c) Assess if social or ethical issues have affected the work practice organisation or may impact in the future.

d) Comment on any impact to the work practice organisation in relation to economic and population shifts.

3. Health, safety and welfare at work:  Employment and Equality

a) Summarise the main legislation and regulations relevant to your work practice organisation specifically relation to health, safety and welfare at work, employment, equality and matters related specifically to the context of the organisation.

4. Explain the internal and external policies and procedures appropriate to your own role and that of others within your work practice organisation.

For this Assignment I have been asked to put together a Work Practice Portfolio on my Work Experience.

On this portfolio you will find information on:

Key features of Work Practice Organisation

Key factors which impact the Work Practice

Internal and external policies and procedures

In order to complete this portfolio I have done some research online, class notes and also gathered some form my work experience.

a) Evaluate work Practice organisation in terms of status and size in relation to the both, the Irish economy (if applicable)

Reilly Spray Foam Company is almost two years in operation.  They are based in Dublin but, they have a sales office in Longford as well.  They provide their services nationwide.

They are Insulation Company, who provide their services for commercial use, private property insulation as well as garden shed, farm and mobile home insulation.  Unfortunately, they do not provide their services abroad.

They are the leading providers of Spray Foam Insulation due to their extensive knowledge of their products and services.  They are using spray foam that is NSI certified which is needed if you want to insulate your house up to a certain standard and it also establishes proof that the certified products are “proper materials” suitable for their intended use under Irish site conditions and in accordance with the Building Regulations Act 1997 to 2014.

See Appendix 1

Services available internationally

This type of service is available globally.  Reilly Spray Foam is benefitting from this because they are able to order products for the spray foam from other country suppliers which is more cost effective and also allows them to stand out from other Spray Foam companies because, they would be able to order products that competitors wouldn’t be using.

Available funding in terms of government support

When people are thinking of house improvements first thing that comes in their mind is the expenses.  Now days there are many different ways of improving your house decor or insulation for less with the help of government funding. Of course not everyone will be able to apply for some of these grants or schemes.

At Reilly Spray Foam Ltd., we let our clients to know about these two things that could ease their financial burden because, some clients would not improve their house only because it is too expensive, so they would leave it to be done for another time.   Because, Reilly Spray Foam cares about their clients, we let them know about these options if they are concerned about the expenses.

HRI (Home Renovation Incentive) Scheme

This scheme will allow homeowners; landlords and local authority tenants claim their tax credit back at the end of the year on repairs, renovations and improvement work.  The works must be completed by tax-complaint contractor and be subject to 13.5% VAT.  Also, the work value can’t exceed 30,000 euro.

SEAI (Sustainable Energy Authority of Ireland) – Grants

The Sustainable Energy Authority of Ireland will give out grants of varying amounts depending on the work being done. 

Before applying for this grant there are some things that has to be checked:

This grant is only available on homes built before 2006

Must use an SEAI registered contractor for all works

Educational attainments of employees in sector

At Reilly Spray Foam everyone is treated as an equal.  Reilly Spray Foam Ltd. is an equal opportunity employer.  They are giving equal opportunity for existing and potential employees.  The main aim of this Equal opportunity is to build a workplace which provides for Equal opportunities for all staff and to make sure that their dignity is protected and respected at all times.  Everyone will be provided with equality of access to employment, and also encouraged and assisted to achieve their full potential. 

There will always be an opportunity to grow, improve and progress in their carrier.

b) Summarise the work practice organisations structure main aims and overall objectives.

When Reilly Spray Foam was founded it was run by two people.  Since then they have employed others to help them to grow and run the business even bigger and more successful.

This is Organisational Chart of Longford’s office.  Unfortunately, I was not able to obtain organisational chart for the headquarters.

Reilly Spray foam offers their services to a wide range individuals and businesses.  They provide their services for both home and commercial use.  Their Spray Foam does not contain wood or paper, which use the natural resources of the planet.  Because of this their product is environmentally friendly which now days are very important.

Reilly Spray Foam insulation is energy efficient, durable, and helps create a comfortable building environment by helping keep homes warm in the winter and cool in the summer.

They offer their services for commercial use, private property insulation as well as garden shed, farm, mobile home and container insulation

Overall aims

Their main goal is to provide the best service at the highest standard. Clients who are very concerned of their property or just wants to know step by step, what is going to happen, Reilly spray Foam Ltd. would be obligated to issue a Site Specification Method Statement.

Site Specification Method Statement must provide enough information to describe in detail the proposed involvements, operations and works intended for the completion of the development with the least possible damage to the site and its surroundings. The likely environmental impacts of these interventions, operations and works, and the proposed justification measures to address such impacts, must be put forward in theSite Specification Method Statement.

See appendix 2

c) Determine the organisations culture and values as demonstrated by management practices and staff client engagement.

Company Background and mission statement

Management is committed to the long-term development of the company by meeting customer needs with quality products.  They value our employees and will endeavour to create a safe and positive working environment where all workers are treated with dignity and respect.

Their management style is based on the need for flexibility of operations dictated by rapidly changing technology and markets.  It is also based on our belief that our people are honest and trustworthy and should be treated with respect and confidence.

See appendix 3

Carrier Development and training

Opportunity for career development and training at Reilly Spray Foam is open to all and will not discriminate directly or indirectly on any of the grounds outlined in the 1998 Act.  All employees will be provided with every opportunity to acquire the range of training, skills and experience necessary for their carrier development.

Opportunities for training will be based on the requirements of the job and career development will be based people’s ability and merit.

Th Company is committed to a relevant training and career development policy for all staff irrespective of background.

Culture and values in terms of day to day practice

At Reilly Spray Foam every team member values teamwork and they are always willing to pitch in or stay late if someone is behind on an important deadline.  This has led to a culture of trust, friendliness and mutual respect within the team.

a)     Evaluate the impact of globalisation and new technology and science on the work practice organisation.

Spray Foam Is applied as liquid and then hardens in to a foam. The chemicals to make spray foam are mixed under pressure and sprayed into wall cavities, roof rafters, basements, attics or crawlspaces.  This will create air tightness and will seal all of the cracks and crevices from which hot and cold air, moisture, and even sound enter a building.

The Global market for polyurethane products is varied and complex with a countless uses.  It has been growing at an average rate of over seven percent per annum for the last 15 years. The growth of polyurethane construction market segment has mainly been driven in the past 10 years by the penetration of polyurethanes into new construction fields.  One of the fastest growing uses of it is spray polyurethane foam.

This type of service is available globally.  Reilly Spray Foam is benefitting from this because they are able to order products for the spray foam from other countries which is more cost effective and also allows them to stand out from the other suppliers because they would be able to order products that competitors wouldn’t be using.

In terms of technology that helps the businesses to communicate and deal with customers is continuously improving.  There are many different software systems that will allow any field professionals to complete their work quickly and efficiently.  For example, at Reilly Spray Foam there are different systems that assist them to increase efficiency and productivity.

When the Surveyor is completing his daily Site Surveys he would need to fill out the pricing sheet and a Quote which would need to be processed in the office and entered on the system.  In order to do that this person would need to travel back to the office to hand them in.  This would be very time consuming not cost efficient.  Thanks to modern technology there is an application that can be downloaded on the phone, which will allow you to scan all of your paper work on your smart phone and then you can send it on an email to whoever needs it.

Also, at Reilly Spray Foam they use system called CRM (Customer Relation Management).  This will allow the user to operate effectively and quickly, letting other users to know about changes made on clients profiles, upcoming jobs and even sales progress.

b)     Review the impact of relevant government policy on the work practice organisation.

Ethics policy – purpose of this policy is to establish a culture of openness, trust and to emphasize the employees and consumer’s expectation to be treated to fair business practices.  It will serve to guide nosiness behaviour to ensure ethical conduct.

Email policy – the purpose email policy is to ensure the proper use of Reilly Spray Foam Ltd email systems and make users aware of what Reilly Spray Foam Ltd deems as acceptable and unacceptable use of its email system.  This policy outlines the minimum requirements for use of email within Reilly Spray Foam Ltd network.

Data Breach Policy –This policy will clearly define to whom it applies and under what circumstances, and it will include the definition of a breach, staff roles and responsibilities, standards and metrics (e.g. to enable prioritization of the incidents), as well as reporting, remediation and feedback mechanisms.  The policy shall be well publicized and made easily available to all personnel whose duties involve data privacy and security protection.  This policy has been released to focus significant attention on data security and data and data security breaches and how Reilly Spray Foam Ltd established culture of openness, trust and integrity should respond to such activity.

Clean desk policy – is an important tool to safeguard that all sensitive and confidential paper work  are removed from users workstation and locked away when the items are not in use or an employee leaves his/her workstation.

This policy is set out to establish the minimum requirements for maintaining a “clean desk” – where sensitive information about or employees, our intellectual property, our customers and our vendors is secure in locked areas and out of site.

Impact on work practice – day to day and over – all

These Policies are very important when working in an office environment.  Because you are dealing with other people’s personal information like; Bank details, Home addresses and other sensitive information that can’t be discussed with others.  It is very important to follow the guidelines of these policies because if you are not careful you could possibly be dealing with a court case later on.

c)      Assess if social or ethical issues have affected the work practice organisation or may impact in the future.

Diversity and discrimination

Social and ethical issues have become so common in modern world that now every employer/workplace including Reilly Spray Foam Ltd. has Ethics policy in their policy book.  The purpose of this policy is to establish a culture of openness, trust and to emphasize the employee’s and consumer’s expectation to be treated to fair business practices.  If these policies are not set in place, workplace can become unpleasant for many.

Customers now days are looking for an exceptional customer service and if your company is not providing one professionally they will start to avoid organizations develop unethical reputations. Also companies could get in to legal troubles if the staff are not trained properly how to deal with different types of customers.

In past few years green issue has become a hot topic in the business world. Majority of the organizations wanted to go green and many have done it. Going green means simply reducing the impact or damage which can happen to the environment because of a business. It includes reducing CO2 emission, reducing wastage, reducing the power usage and using environmentally friendly power sources.

Environmental Issues

At Reilly Spray Foam Ltd. only the highest quality products are used and one of these products is called Purcell 2000.  It is green product with a unique formula,that contains no ozone-depleting chemicals, such as Microsoft CFCs, HCFCs, or fibres, formaldehyde and asbestos. No toxins are emitted after installation. And since it never decomposes or deteriorates, there are no fibres concerns about harmful or gases escaping into the air in the future.

d)      Comment on any impact to the work practice organisation in relation to economic and population shifts.

Ireland’s population has grown significantly since year of 2000.  In 2000 Ireland’s population count was 3.805 million. In 2016 it was 4.773 million and the numbers just keep growing.

Ireland now is multinational country accommodating multiple nationalities, allowing them to live, work and study in Ireland.

There are 535,475 non-Irish nationals living in Ireland, from 200 different nations. The largest group was Polish with 122,515 persons,followed by 103,113 UK nationals and 36,552 Lithuanians. Just twelve Nationalities each with over 10,000 residents; America, Brazil, France, Germany, India, Italy, Latvia, Lithuania, Poland, Romania, Spain and the UK – accounted for 73.6% of the total non-Irish national population.

Impact on recession and boom

Reilly spray Foam Ltd. Is benefitting from these growing numbers because the more people live here the more, new houses are being built in Ireland.  It is also due to the weather and climate change that plays a big part in their success.  As the weather is changing so significantly in Ireland people are starting to realise that their homes are much harder to keep worm and they have learned that spray foam insulation is the best option.

It was in 2008 that the Irish government officially admitted that Ireland has entered in to recession.  This left many people unemployment due to companies bankrupting and being unable to keep their staff.  But since Reilly Spray Foam Insulation company was founded only two years ago this hasn’t affected them.

The company stared to operate when Ireland was slowly staring to come out of the recession and continues to do so.  Due to this the employment rates have increased and many have been able to find new jobs and because of that, people are able to afford more.

Also, there are more government funding available now that the recession is gradually declining.

a)     Summarise the main legislation and regulations relevant to your work practice organisation specifically relation to health, safety and welfare at work, employment, equality and matters related specifically to the context of the organisation.

Safety, Health and Welfare at Work Act 2005 – this act applies to type of employers and employees (self-employed fixed term and temporary employees). This act establishes the rights and the responsibilities of both the employees and the employers.  It also provides for substantial fines and penalties for breaches of the health and safety legislation.

Some of employers’ duties would include:

Provide safe workplace with safe plant and equipment

Prevent any improper conduct or behaviour likely to put the safety, health and welfare of employees at risk

Provide protective clothing and equipment t employees

Appointing a competent person as the organisation’s Safety Officer

Some of employees’ duties would include:

To follow health and safety rules to protect their own and other peoples health and safety

Not to engage in improper behaviour that will endanger themselves or others

Not to be intoxicated at work place (alcohol or drugs)

It is employees duty to immediately report any damaged equipment to prevent injury at work place

Relevant Employment Legislations

Terms of Employment (information) Act 1994-2014 – This Act provides employee with information of their employment.  It entitles them with contract of employment, job description, and rate of pay and hours of work.

General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) 2018 – It will allow the employee to control their personal data.  This regulation will also ensure that the rights of an individual are protected in relation to the processing of their personal data.  This regulation confers rights on individual as well as placing responsibilities on persons processing personal data.

These rights apply when your details are:

Held on a computer

Held on a paper or another manual form as part of a filing system

Made up of photographs or voice recordings of your image or recordings of your voice

Here you will find some of the rights on an individual when they apply:

Have the right to have their information obtained and processed fairly, kept securely and no illegitimately disclosed to others

To know the purpose for obtaining the data and to know the identity of data controller

An individual has the right to get a copy of their personal data as well as the right to have their personal information corrected or deleted if inaccurate

Not to be forced into accessing personal information for a potential employer

Equal Status Act 2000 – This Act allows everyone to have an equal right to participate in our society.  Reilly Spray Foam Ltd. recognise the equal opportunity Legislation and is commited to giving everyone an equal opportunity regardless.  All persons regardless of their gender, material status, family status, race, religious beliefs, sexual orientation, disability, age or membership of a traveller community will be provided with equality of access to employment, and also encouraged and assisted to achieve their full potential. (Ref Equal Status Act 2000)

When working for any employer no matter what is your position, Data Protection has to be considered at all times.  As Administrator at Reilly spray foam Ltd. I am required to comply with rules that are set out on General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) 2018.  It is very important that I follow the guide lines that are outlined on Data BreechPolicy at Reilly Spray Foam.It is my duty to make sure that all of the data processed by me is kept safe and secure.  Any paperwork that contains sensitive data should not be left at workstation unattended; it should be filed and stored away in secure place (cabinet with a lock).  Allautomated data should be kept safe with a password.  I would also have to make sure that data is accurate, relevant and not excessive.  Also, I would have to give a copy of clients’ information on their request.

Internal Policies at Reilly Spry foam

Every company or business has to have a Procedure book which consist of different internal policies and procedures that have to be followed at all times.  It is very important that every single employee is complying with all of the rules and regulations that company has set out.

Here are some of the policies and regulations that are set out at Reilly Spray Foam:

Clean desk policy

Data breach policy

Email policy

Ethics policy

Information security policy

Internet usage policy

Mobile phone policy

Safety Statement

Se appendix 4

Accident and Safety Policy

The purpose of the Safety, Health and Welfare at Work Act 2005, is to ensure the

safety, health and welfare of all employees in the workplace. The Act applies to

employees in all types of work and embraces all the activities of Reilly Spray

Foam

In compliance with the Reilly Builders Safety Statement, each Reilly Spray Foam

Site has prepared its own local safety statement, documenting its hazards, risks,

risk control protective and preventive measures and resources for ensuring a safe

and healthy work environment.

This Safety Statement is aimed at protecting employees, clients, contractors, visitors

and the public at large from potential injury or ill-health arising from our work

Activities.

See appendix 5

Employee Co-Operation

Section 13 of the Safety, Health and Welfare at Work Act 2005 imposes several obligations on employees while at work.

Here are some of obligations that employees need comply with:

Each employee must ensure that the take reasonable care in the workplace they must protect themselves and their colleagues and act in a responsible way towards health and safety.

Employees must not attend their work under the influence of liquor or drugs as this is prohibited and will endanger their own safety and that of their colleagues

They must not conduct themselves in an improper manner or behave in a manner that would endanger themselves or contribute to endanger others with their behaviour.

If an accident occurs, all Reilly Spray Foam staff are required to immediately report to Mr. Danny Reilly of the incident resulting in loss or injury and any incident that could have resulted in loss or injury.  The injured party is also required to co-operate in the investigation of the incident and the completion of the injury/incident report form.

Reilly Spray Foam is responsible for providing the following health and safety training:

Health and safety induction of all new employees and apprentices including information on fire and emergency procedures

Manual handling training

Fire warden training

First aid training

Management training in health and safety

Out of hours policy induction training

Emergency response plan training

Risk assessment and control training

Office ergonomics training

Other training where risk assessment identifies specific need

Equality and equal opportunities at Reilly Spray Foam

At Reilly Spray Foam all persons regardless of gender, marital status, family status, race, religious beliefs, sexual orientation, disability, age or member of the travelling community will be provided with equality of access to employment and encouraged and assisted to achieve their full potential.

The main aim of the Equality Policy is to ensure that no job applicant or employee receives less favourable treatment on any grounds which cannot be shown to be justified.  This applies to Recruitment and Selection, Training, Promotion, Pay and Employee Benefits, Employee Grievances and discipline Procedures and all Terms and conditions of Employment.

Responsibilities:

All staff have an important role to play in ensuring Equality of Opportunity throughout the organisation.  It is also recognised that individual employees on behalf of Reilly Spray Foam Ltd. Have responsibilities in law and re:

Required to co-operate with any measures introduced by the company to promote Equal Opportunities

Must not themselves, either directly or indirectly, discriminate against fellow employees or harass or intimidate them in any way

Confidentiality

Employees will be required not to disclose secrets or any information, which is regarded as confidential by the company or any associated companies or their business during or after your employment, except in the proper course of your employment or as required by law.  Employee may not remove any documents or things belonging to the company or which contains any confidential information from the company’s premises at any time without proper advance authorisation.

In the event of your termination you must return all documents and company belongings to the company upon request.

Child Protection

Reilly Spray Foam Ltd prior spraying would recommend to families with infants to leave the building for the next 24hours.  Although, it would not affect an adult,but it might affect infants because of their sensitivity to their surroundings.

If any signs of fumes are noticeable after 24 hours Reilly Spray Foam Ltd advises to their clients to contact them and they will investigate the situation further.

Evacuation Drills

Evacuation Drills are organised twice annually by the Health and Safety

Committee. Feedback on performance in terms of time taken to evacuate and

Difficulties with alarm systems/building fabric are notified to all staff

via e-mail or post. Details of evacuation procedures are posted on site and at head

office.

The role is to sweep their designated section of the building in the event of an alarm activation and to provide information on building occupancy etc. to the emergency services in the event of a genuine emergency.  All staffs are required to comply with the instructions of Fire Wardens and to evacuate the building promptly in the event of an emergency.

Reilly Spray Foam will ensure that sufficient Fire Wardens are trained and available on an ongoing basis to provide an effective service throughout the relevant building. The Safety Officer is responsible for ensuring that the Health & Safety Committee is notified of any changes in the Fire Warden Team and for ensuring that names of new Fire Wardens are added to the waiting list for training.

Customer Charter – Comments and complaints Procedure

If a customer is unhappy of the service they have received they have a right to file a complaint or report the situation.  At Reilly Spray Foam they consider every complaint very seriously but they also use it as a chance to improve their services.