Project Description

Every business needs to have an in-house employee manual which explains company policies and serves as a contract between the employer and employees. A well-written, legally sound employee manual provides the documentation necessary to keep a business functioning by creating uniform policies that protect the company and its employees. With this in mind, each group will create a short employee manual for the business described in their business plan. The manual will provide the policies needed to begin hiring employees and start conducting business.

Project Goals

Writing in Context

• writing for a range of defined audiences and stakeholders;
• negotiating the ethical dimensions of workplace and/or business communication;
• representing one's business goals and innovative ideas persuasively, in written and oral forms.

Project Management

• Understand, develop and deploy various strategies for planning, researching, drafting, revising, and editing the important and necessary documents of entrepreneurship, including business plans, marketing materials, white papers, resumes, trademark applications, and grant proposals, both individually and collaboratively
• Select and use appropriate technologies that both effectively and ethically address professional situations and audiences.
• Build professional ethos through documentation and accountability.

Document Design
Make rhetorical design decisions about workplace documents commonly used by entrepreneurs, including

• understanding and adapting to genre conventions and audience expectations;

understanding and implementing design principles of format and layout;

• interpreting and arguing with design;
• drafting, researching, testing, and revising visual designs and information architecture.

Teamwork
Learn and apply strategies for successful teamwork and collaboration, such as

• working online with colleagues;
• determining individual and group roles and responsibilities;
• managing team conflicts constructively;
• responding constructively to peers' work
• soliciting and using peer feedback effectively;
• achieving team and business goals.

Research
Understand and use various research methods to produce professional documents, including

• analyzing professional contexts;
• locating, evaluating, and using print and online information selectively for particular audiences and purposes;
• triangulating sources of evidence;
• selecting appropriate primary research methods, such as interviews, observations, focus groups, and surveys to collect data;
• working ethically with research participants.

Technology
Use and evaluate the writing technologies frequently used in the workplace and for entrepreneurship, such as emailing, instant messaging, image editing, video editing, presentation design and delivery, HTML editing, Web browsing, content management, and desktop publishing technologies.

Deliverables

Employee Manual:

The only deliverable for this project is a professional, complete, and well-designed 10-15 page employee manual. This employee manual will establish policies for workers employed by the business described in your group's business plan. The employee manual must include a cover page, a table of contents, and consistent formatting for all sections. In addition, the employee manual must include the following sections:

• Code of Ethics: The Code of Ethics describes the expectations for ethical behavior at the workplace. This code should address any potential ethical dilemmas employees will face while at the workplace, handling workplace materials, or interacting with other workers and customers. This policy must comply with all local, industry, and federal regulations.
• Equal Opportunity Employment Policy: The Equal Opportunity Employment Policy describes the company's non-discrimination hiring policy. This policy must be in compliance with all local and federal regulations established by the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission.
• Sexual Harrassment Policy: The Sexual Harrassment policy defines and prohibits sexual harrassment in the workplace, and includes information for reporting and arbitrating instances of sexual harrassment. This policy must be in compliance with all local, state, and federal regulations established by the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission.
• Accomodations for Employees with Disabilities: The Accomodations for Employees with Disabilities explains how the company accomodates employees with disabilities. This policy must be in compliance with the Americans with Disabilities Act.
• At-Will Employment: An At-Will Employment policy allows both employer and employee to terminate employment at any time provided that termination complies with local, state, and federal law.

In addition, the manual must include at least five other policies determined by the group to be necessary for the business. Potential policies include: dress code, sick leave, vacation days, break policies, benefits, workplace violence policies, promotion policies, employee problem resolution guidelines, intellectual property, confidentiality agreements, alcohol screening, cash handling policies, scheduling procedures, parking, smoking policies, etc. Each policy should be catered to the business, clearly and concisely phrased, and in compliance with all necessary regulations.

The complete employee manual must be professional and usable with consistent formatting for each policy. The manual is due December 1, 2008.

Samples of Employee Manuals can be found at the following links. See also the article on employee manuals attached below.

• University of Denver.
• Technical and Field Engineering Manual.
• Grady Street Pizza Company.
• Burger King.

Grading for Employee Manual Project

The Employee Manual project will be graded on the clarity, research, appropriateness of the included policies, and the professional appearance and usability of the document. The manual will also be graded on how well the policies meet both government and industry regulations as well as the needs of your specific company.