A rationale statement that briefly describes the artifact, elaborates on demonstrated competencies, states why it is included, and reflects on what ?????was learned from the experience represented by

Appendix E

The Importance of Financial Planning

University of the Cumberlands: Managerial Finance (BADM-534)

April 2021

Finance is not one of my strong subjects. I have been lucky to be surrounded by business minded and financial service family members my entire life that manage and take care of anything to do with money. Despite my dependency on others to manage the money, financial planning is one area that I am fond of and excel at. When I signed up to take Managerial Finance, I dreaded what I was getting myself into. However, through the course, I realized the importance of effective financial management for a business and one’s personal life. Therefore, when I had to choose a topic to research for the class research paper assignment, I chose The Importance of Financial Planning.

As a planner and an organized individual, I know how to categorize information and apply data for a result. Money is one thing in life that one must pay special attention to, to manage it well and keep up with what they have. If a person or a business does not keep track of their expenses and revenues, then there will be no order to where the money is and how it’s spent. After previously taking business and finance classes through high school, college, and the master’s program, I learned some additional tactics for managing money and implementing a budget.

By researching and writing a paper on the significance of financial planning, I was able to learn more about financial planning, as well as how to outline an effective process. The paper includes an overview, purpose of the research, a literature review, and application. By including each of these steps I can visualize the process of understanding the reason for the research, the support for information, and the similar uses of the methods. I’m also able to display a straightforward way for others to read and easily understand the material.

As with other lessons, financial planning is a skill that will remain applicable for a business or an individual’s life span. Through the assignment to research a topic, and specifically choosing to narrow down the ways financial planning is effective, has provided me with the knowledge and skills for understanding the finances of an organization as well as my own, and how to be more effective in the management of money. There are five topics to consider during financial planning, which are to determine the usage of funds, establishing a long-term view, implementing marketing strategies, understanding liabilities and assets, and how to measure profit and loss. Each part of financial planning takes time and information to develop an effective process. By focusing on the benefits and being intentional in the planning process, the five learned reasons for being smart with one’s money will result in the individual or business being more profitable and considerate of their financial status.

Appendix D

Motivation Theories and Applications Group Project

University of the Cumberlands: Organizational Behavior (BADM 532)

December 2020

Motivation is a feeling or drive that encourages a person to push forward and achieve their goal or the task that is at hand. The lesson on motivation is something that will always stick with me as motivation is something that pushes people to go the extra mile and accomplish milestones that may have not been possible. Motivation is also something that I’ve been lucky to have throughout my life between my personal desires and the support of the people around me. Therefore, when it came time to complete a group project on motivation, I was excited to learn some information on motivation and discover ways that I could motivate others.

When establishing our group for the project, each team member chose a certain part of the final presentation that they felt more knowledgeable and comfortable with. I chose the similarities and differences of motivation, and the conclusion of the assignment. I specifically chose these sections so that I could compare the differences between motivated companies and then have the opportunity to revise the paper and draw a conclusion from all the parts put together. In the past, I had taken courses that related to business and marketing. Each class provided me with lessons of individuals or companies working together based on their loyalty and motivation to fulfill their purpose. In turn, my experiences and the topic of the assignment enabled me to be a team leader and help the others in my group complete the certain aspect they had chosen.

Through the process of completing the group assignment, I encountered many obstacles that I had not experienced yet. Not only did I think that group projects were difficult due to working with a others who had their own opinions and schedules, but this project brought its own set of problems. By taking a course online, students live in many locations across the globe, with different languages, time zones, and personal life routines. As one of the members of the group, I had to be flexible with my time and ability to meet with the rest of the group when almost everyone could discuss the project together. The assignment of researching a topic, writing a paper, and constructing a PowerPoint presentation imposed many challenges, but this project demonstrates the ability to stay motivated and work together to complete a distinguished product.

With that said, I learned a lot about myself, working with others, dealing with uncertainties, and even a little more about motivation. Each assignment that one has is liable to pose challenges and uncertain conditions, but it is how one proceeds and finishes at the end. I learned a lot from this project and the Organizational Behavior course that will be essential as I continue my career in a Human Resource position and as I work towards my goal of becoming a manager.

Appendix H

Employee Handbook PowerPoint

Rockcastle Regional Hospital

January 2019

Each time that new employee is hired at Rockcastle Regional Hospital, they must attend and complete orientation where the policies and procedures, hours and pay, and benefits and responsibilities are discussed. At this time, each new hire is provided an Employee Handbook that includes each expectation and guideline that the hospital requires of all its employees. The handbook consists of 146 pages, single-spaced, that must be reviewed during each orientation session.

As the Human Resource Assistant, it is my job to prepare for and lead each orientation for various group of new hires. With my previous experience in being a new hire of the organization, I knew the redundancy of reading each page was not effectively meeting the intentions held by the director. By having the ability and knowledge to complete PowerPoints, I determined that a visual presentation would be more beneficial in explaining the necessary details included in each employee handbook.

Therefore, as a new employee of the Human Resource Department and the coordinator of orientations, I began constructing a PowerPoint that specifically touched on each page within the handbook so that the information was included, but in a way that would hold each new hire’s attention. The PowerPoint took many days to construct and required the managers of the Human Resource Department to review the information portrayed. The assignment to solely create a PowerPoint that met the director’s expectations, included each significant detail of the handbook, and was appealing to any viewer has been a substantial part of my role in my current career. I have personally sat through lectures that are intended to present important information to each attendee. Although, depending on the length of the material and how it is presented can highly affect how much information is retained by each individual.

After personally sitting through three orientations and leading five, I observed each new hire’s disinterest in the information presented, even to the point where some attendees were falling asleep. I knew that presenting the Employee Handbook to the new hires by reading through each page of the material was not effective. Therefore, I determined an informative way that would effectively reach each new hire and keep everyone’s eyes and ears on the screen of information presented. Through creating the PowerPoint, I learned how to condense the material to a point where all the necessary details were included, but the slides only contained what was needed. I also realized the importance of review. It’s nice to construct an assignment on your own, but there are many times when people see things differently, or material gets missed. Even though the PowerPoint was solely built individually, the final draft was reviewed and edited by the director and associate of my department.

Appendix I

It’s Not Supposed to Be This Way Book Study

Berea Baptist Church: Women’s Ministry

August 2020

It’s Not Supposed to Be This Way is a book written by Lysa Terkeurst that tells the story of circumstances that Lysa has encountered that did not go the way as planned. Life constantly throws us obstacles that we never expected, even when we plan every little detail in anticipation and preparation for what may come. As an avid reader and fan of Lysa Terkeurst books, I decided to lead a group of ladies in completing the book and study material with me through weekly readings, thought analyses, and a PowerPoint presentation that included a weekly videos and discussion questions.

I had read all Lysa Terkeursts books until this point and had loved how relatable her stories were and the influence her response had on the way I handled situations in my life. I’m not a great reader or teacher, but with my organization skills, the leaders’ materials, and my understanding of Lysa’s stories I was able to coordinate a group of 25 women and lead them in reading and understanding the material as well.

The task of leading a group of women in a book study, may not seem like a major responsibility, but reading and teaching is not something that I normally do, and especially not for a group of ladies that were older than myself. There were many parts to the planning and coordination of the book study, but by keeping things organized I was able to be effective and complete all of expectations that I and others had for myself. Specifically, the use of the PowerPoint that is included in Appendix I, helped to organize my questions and the discussion points of the chapters. Without the PowerPoint, I’m not sure how structured and understandable the book study would have been.

During the process of leading a women’s bible study, I learned many helpful tips for planning and coordinating an event. First, you must have a vision for conducting the event. The vision must include the marketing plans, the materials that will be needed, and the general information about how the event will be held. Second, you must have support that will cheer you on throughout the process and assist you when you need help. There are very few scenarios that a person or an organization can accomplish a goal on their own. Third, no matter how prepared you think you are, there will always be surprises. The planner should always anticipate the what-ifs and be informative of every aspect of the event. Although, when coordinating a fun and enjoyable event as described, the overall feeling should be carefree, and others should be understanding of shortcomings. In the big picture, the completion and teamwork in reading the entire book is the main focus for an activity like this and the morals of the stories should be what people take with them from the event.

Academic Artifact #1

Microsoft Office Excel Certification

Udemy Online Certification

Toronto, CA

March 1st, 2019

Appendix A

Academic Artifacts

Academic Artifact #2

Completion of Comprehensive Capstone Project/Case Study

Strategic Decision Making Course

University of the Cumberlands

Kentucky, US

June 19th, 2022

Appendix B

Academic Artifacts

Academic Artifact #3

Learning about various Project Management Methodologies and Models (Agile, Hybrid vs Traditional)

University of the Cumberlands

Kentucky, US

April 22nd, 2022

Appendix C

Academic Artifacts

Academic Artifact #4

The importance of Marketing Management by using various tools through social media platforms

University of the Cumberlands

Kentucky, US

Oct 10th, 2021

Appendix D

Academic Artifacts

Academic Artifact #5

The importance of studying global Human Resource Management and equal employment opportunity

University of the Cumberlands

Kentucky, US

Aug 19th, 2021

Appendix E

Professional Artifacts

Professional Artifact #1

Making a handbook on how to maintain top notch Employee health, safety and wellness

MV Kids Dentists & Braces

California, US

Feb 1st, 2021

Appendix F

Professional Artifacts

Professional Artifact #2

Cracking the PM Interview Book read

In order to start preparing for the Project Management Interview while job hunting

January 2021

Appendix F

Professional Artifacts

Professional Artifact #3

Learning how to/Performing 3 month reviews for new hires at work

MV Kids Dentists & Braces

March 2021

Appendix G

Professional Artifacts

Professional Artifact #4

Moving my way up to Manager position while working at a Dental Corporation

Altima Dental Coorporation

Dec 2020

Appendix H

Professional Artifacts

Professional Artifact #5

Attending Project Management Symposium

Agile and Beyond 2021

Dec 2021

Appendix I