Instructions: Please respond to peer discussion board and include sources. You do not have to do the discussion board you just respond

Peers Discussion Board Post:

The difficulties of adding 25 percent more employees for the holiday season are as follows;

• Adding more employees will double the amount of goal theory set in place for the former and new employees during the most hectic time of the year. Managers will definitely have to put in more effort to keep employees motivated toto reach the level of employee performance goals for the holiday season (University of Maryland Global Campus, n.d.).
• Another difficulty could possibly be the increase in wages for the new employees and old. To recruit new employees, the way to attract people to come aboard for the holiday season is by increased wages and benefits. The question is, will the company be able to fulfill that all while in hopes of receiving a profit with all that the company has to spend on production.
• It is possible to run into over staffing issues, for example, the warehouses could become overcrowded causing chaos (Staffing a concern as companies plan ahead for the holidays, 2022, September 8).
• Another difficulty could possibly be the rising fuel costs, when more staff are placed to work the delivery trucks, etc., more trucks will be on the road (Hiring for uncertain holiday season continues, 2022, September 15).

The kind of planning that would be needed is hybrid planning because it allows managers to use the plan that is set into place, and approach possible obstacles that may arise as more knowledge is gathered (University of Maryland Global Campus, n.d.). Shipping companies are aware of the possibilities, so they are not blind to what issues arise during peak season, therefore, goals are set. As time passes, management can address these issues and get a handle over it because they have more knowledge to work with.

China shutting down for two weeks for the lunar new year is the exactly the opposite of peak season in western countries. China shuts down operations, while western countries continue operations during the busiest time of the year. Not only do western countries continue but they, more specifically the United States of America, puts in more efforts (hiring more staff, investing more money to keep operations afloat for the busy time) to work through the peak season. It has become a common practice in China, where employees will withhold their employees checks until after Lunar to ensure that they will return to work (The Christian Science Monitor, 2005, February 1). Although it has gotten better, this just goes to show that all operations including pay to employees often times, is shut down and does not resemble peak season in western countries.

European markets are getting hit pretty hard. Particularly during this time, due to the inflation it has caused retailers to move pass record low levels. The increase of energy bills and just the cost-of-living all around has caused consumers to slow down with spending and shopping (Person, & ALves, J., 2022, October 28).

With the ease of online shopping, most of my shopping especially for the holidays, is done online. I don't see it changing anytime soon it is just more convenient.

Reference

Starling, N. (2022, September 8). Staffing a concern as companies plan ahead for the holidays. CBS News. Retrieved November 18, 2022, from https://www.cbsnews.com/dfw/news/staffing-a-concern-as-companies-plan-ahead-for-the-holidays/

The Christian Science Monitor. (2005, February 1). It's Chinese New Year. will workers get paid? The Christian Science Monitor. Retrieved November 19, 2022, from https://www.csmonitor.com/2005/0201/p07s02-woap.html

University of Maryland Global Campus. (n.d.). Organizational Structure and Change. Document posted in UMGC 160 7381 online classroom, archived at https://learn.umgc.edu

Person, & Alves, J. (2022, October 28). Analysis: European retailers are on investors' naughty lists this christmas. Reuters. Retrieved November 18, 2022, from https://