Problem Posing—Research Project Proposal

The topic that I have chosen to present for my proposal is experiencing work overload during global pandemics. However, in order to narrow this topic down I have decided to focus on the negative effects of experiencing work overload during global pandemics and the why of it all. Since I have decided to focus on the negative effects, I will be looking at things such as behavioral stress, overall health issues as well as issues that can arise in the home. In an effort to gather research, I will be utilizing popular publications such as the New York times and Forbes magazine. So far while researching I have come across an article by the new york times. The first article is titled Companies can’t stop overworking.

This article goes on to explain the why behind companies overworking their employees and why it does not benefit either the employee or the company in the long run. This is done by interviewing employers such as Goldman Sachs in an effort to get their points of view. I believe that this topic is worth exploring not only because it’s currently the topic of conversation when looking for a job but also because most of us will find our way into the workforce in the next year or so we should be more aware of what we are going into. The thing that I am interested in learning about the most is the why of it all. I know that it’s mostly corporate greed. However, I think that there is something else along with the greed that allows companies to treat their employees in such a terrible manner. If you’ve ever had a TikTok account depending on which side of the app that you are on you hear stories about people quitting their corporate job or even just their regular nine-to-five because they feel so overwhelmed at the thought of the workload. However, companies haven’t been giving out good reasons if any as to why they are giving out such copious amounts of work without any added benefits to go along with said work.

The overall problem that needs to be solved is how can employees get what they need in order to produce the results that companies want. From what I was able to read from the New York Times article before the paywall is introduced this isn’t the first time that employees at Goldman Sachs had complaints about long work hours. I also learned from a Forbes article that a way for employers to avoid overworking their employees is by creating a healthy culture in the work environment. One of the biggest things that I’ve seen repeated in these articles is how employees don’t feel supported by the corporations that they work for. In terms of questions that I have pertaining to the research assignment. I would like to know if this assignment will end up being a research paper or if is it more of a power point type of assignment.

Mobile Version

For the mobile version of this site, I tried to make it as cohesive as possible. In terms of the changes that I made. I added a quick access bubble to the bottom left of the screen that moves as you scroll down. If you click on the bubble you will be taken to one of many social media sites. I also went through and made sure that all of the fonts and headings are readable since colors tend to look different as you move across devices. I think adding the social media links improved my portfolio overall in the sense that It gives the person who accesses my site an easier way of not only getting in contact with me but also the ability to see my most recent updates. For the background of the mobile menu, I added a piece of digital art that I made as the background image. I think by adding that I am able to showcase some of my digital artwork. This could lead whoever, is viewing my site to click on the tumble link and check out even more of the artwork that I have created on that platform.

Work-life Balance

I created this Wix page initially for another class. However, I have been tasked with curating my page to better fit my current communication courses. This site in general is a mix of things that I have been working on both personally and professionally as I learn more about and grow in my field of study. To me, a proper work-life balance should be centered around a person's mental and emotional health. For example, how we have a five-day work week and most people end up working 40 hours or more just to make ends meet. I think that in order for people ( especially my generation) to enjoy working that they need more time to not only relax but also be paid a livable wage. I think a good example would be entry-level remote jobs. I've noticed that a lot of people who work those jobs tend to have a better work-life balance because they are able to do their job almost anywhere at any time. As a result, people will usually take their work with them if they are traveling for vacation and just do their work in whatever country they are in. Given the time that we are in where everything is technologically advanced to some degree. I think that people should be able to work where it is most convenient for them whether that be in an office or in bed at home. I don't think that being in an office building to work should be mandatory unless the project/ assignment absolutely calls for it. I do think that with most things there are going to be people who abuse the system and just do not get their work done. However, if that problem does arise I think that hr should be equipped to handle that. I think more companies should offer mental health services since a lot of time people's insurance won't or can't cover things like meds or therapy visits. I also think people should be offered both menstrual and maternity leave. Especially since some people have such bad cramps to the point that they can't get out of bed or to the point that they get sick. Currently, with how most companies are set up they aren't willing to make changes to better suit their worker's needs and that could end up costing them in the long run in terms of product sales, etc. Sure they could replace people with robots. However, maintenance gets expensive after a while, and what happens once cost starts to outweigh the profits that are coming in?