Cliffside Holding Company: Critical Thinking

UMUC |

Week 2 Individual Paper: Critical Thinking |

Cliffside Holding Company Memo |

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1/17/2015 |

Introduction:

Browne and Keeley (2015) define critical thinking as “an ongoing process that allows an individual to analyze situations, solve problems, develop logical conclusions, and formulate informed decisions.” In the publication “Asking the Right Questions: A Guide to Critical Thinking” by M. Neil Browne and Stuart M. Keeley 10 steps to critical thinking are presented.

The following sections will review each of the critical thinking steps as they apply to the “memo: Cliffside Holding Company of Massapequa” (A. Ravaswami, personal communication, October 10, 2013). Ms. Cynthia Castle has asked Mr. Anil Ravaswami, the Vice-President of Human Resources, to examine and evaluate the proposal presented by Ms. Forsythe to establish and fund a new leadership development program for junior insurance executives at Cliffside Holding Company. The memo being analyzed is Mr. Ravaswami findings.

What are the issue and the conclusion?

To begin the critical thinking process one must identify the issue and conclusion being presented. According to Browne and Keeley’s (2015) book “Asking the Right Questions: A Guide to Critical Thinking” an issue is “a question or controversy responsible for the conversation or discussion. It is the stimulus for what is being said (2015 p.24).” To identify the issue, one must first determine whether it is descriptive or prescriptive. Descriptive issues can be described as issues arising from questions regarding the accuracy of descriptions of the past, present, or future (2015 p.24). Prescriptive issues are issues arising from questions about what should be done or “what is right or wrong, good or bad” (2015 p.25).

The issue presented in the Memo: Cliffside Holding Company is “to determine whether the Cliffside Holding Company of Massapequa (Ravaswami) should accept the proposal of Ms. Forsythe to establish and fund a...