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In order for a meal to taste good, each individual ingredient needs to taste good on its own as well as compliment the flavours of the other ingredients when combined. For example, a pizza is composed of several different ingredients that individually taste good, yet when baked together, creates a delectable dish. However, too much of one ingredient, such as onions can overpower the other flavours, thus ruining the appetizing taste of pizza.

Applying this analogy to the business world, having a shared mindset and mutual understanding amongst individuals in the workplace is an essential element for establishing a healthy organizational culture. This will mitigate the potential for problematic situations of occuring within the organization such as abuse ofpower. According to the Pearson Seventh Canadian Edition textbook Organizational Behaviour: Concepts, Controversies, Applications, “A strong organizational culture can guide individual decisions and help everyone work together towards the same goals”, however this is not always an easy task to accomplish as seen in the video below:

Evidently, there is an unethical organizational culture fostering from Chef Ramsey who inflicts two types of bases of power on his employees: coercive power and expert power. He uses coercive power by instilling fear in his employees in attempt to get them to complete the tasks. In addition, he exerts expert power by arrogantly shouting out commands at his employees, as he is well-aware that he is more skilled and knowledgeable in the cooking realm than the other chefs in the kitchen.

Due to Chef Ramsay’s abuse of authority, he creates a high-stress and negative atmosphere which stimulates unethical workplace behaviour such as swearing. This harassment like atmosphere within the workplace hinders productivity as the employees feel devalued and unmotivated. Management Guru, Peter Drucker corroborates this statement as he claims that “Culture eats strategy for breakfast”Links to an external site.. Regardless of the fact that the chefs are talented and well-versed in skills, they have difficulty executing the tasks up to a high standard because of the tensions linked to unethical organizational culture surrounding them.

As we discussed in our Comm 292 class, organizational culture is one of the most sustainable criteria that sets a company apart from one another. With a well-established, welcoming organizational culture, a sense of ‘warmth’ and ‘home’ is felt within the workplace. This tends to promote productivity and synergyamongst employees.

As a Swim Instructor and Lifeguard for the City of Delta, I fully support this ideology as I have witnessed how influential a rich organizational culture can impact motivation and productivity amongst employees. For example, myself and many of my coworkers consider our workplace to be like a second home. As a result, our jobs do not feel like an obligation but rather a fun activity that we all willingly want to do. This makes for an enjoyable, yet productive time.

Therefore, a well established organizational culture is a valuable ingredient that differentiates a bad workplace from a michelin star worthy workplace. Ultimately, organizational culture holds the power to dictate the extent of productivityachieved from employees.

Sources:

Taylor, A. (2017, June 10). Strategic planning facilitator Vancouver | Strategic plan consulting | SME Strategy. Strategic Planning and Management Insights. Retrieved March 14, 2018, from http://www.smestrategy.net/blog/what-does-culture-eats-strategy-mean-for-you-and-your-organization

Sismithin. (2009, November 26). Angry Rage Attack – Gordon Ramsay. Retrieved March 15, 2018, from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UjE-cBDFphQ&feature=youtu.be.

Happy Workplace [Digital image]. (n.d.). Retrieved from https://cvpco.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/03/happy-workplace1.jpg.

Culture Strategy [Digital image]. (n.d.). Retrieved from http://gomindshift.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/08/pacman_image.jpg.

Often times, people use the word ‘group’ and ‘team’ interchangeably. However there is a fine, yet important line that differentiates the two. According to the Pearson Seventh Canadian Edition textbook Organizational Behaviour: Concepts, Controversies, Applications, a group is defined as “Two or more people with a common relationships”. On the other hand, a team is defined as “A small number of people who work closely towards a common objective and are accountable to one another”. Therefore the necessity of a common objective, seen in teams facilitates an environment for “Dreamwork” to be fostered.

As seen in this clip from The Big Bang Theory, many organizational behaviour components of teamwork are addressed. This scene exemplifies the complexity of communication, conflict and negotiation within a team. Their common objective is to plan a night out accordingly to ensure that they 1. Find an adequate restaurant to eat at 2. Arrive on time to watch a movie at the theaters and 3. Ensure that they have the snacks such as “icies” to enjoy the movie. However, many obstacles, such as time management are encountered throughout their collaboration process . Overall, it is evident that the benefits of teamwork are resource pooling as each team member has different insights and skill sets to offer. For example, in this scene, Raj is the imaginative team member who offers alternative ideas, whereas Sheldon is a realist who questions each decision or idea that is presented. Thus, the cost of teamwork and collaboration is the overwhelm of opinions which can lead to unproductive or time consuming meetings.

Looking closely at Sheldon’s contribution to the team, he listens to each members input, yet is quick to reply with a remark that shuts their ideas down. This situation was similar to an activity that was assessed in our Comm 290 class called “Yes, but…”. The objective of this activity was to create a plan that our OB group would partake in. Once a general idea for the plan had been established, each member could add details to this plan, by saying “Yes, but…”. This activity mimics the negative approach Sheldon took in collaborating with his friends. As experienced in this OB class activity and as seen in this clip, the “but” in collaborative work dampens progress. Although the “yes” at the start of the sentence is ensuring, the “but” cancels the tentative idea or plan that was initially created.

An alternative approach that was assessed in our OB class was by having each  member respond with “Yes, and…”. The addition of the “and” eliminated possible borders for our plan and allowed for our group to collectively come closer to a common goal. Therefore, if Sheldon utilized the “Yes, and..” approach, he would have been on the same page as Leonard, Raj and Howard in planning their night and would not have been left behind at the end of the  scene.

Ultimately, conflict is inevitable in teamwork, however to ensure that a positive outcome is achieved, negotiation through communication must be implemented.These fundamental tools are not only used in teamwork scenarios seen on T.V or in class but are also present in the business world. Due to the fact that a business is essentially a team working towards a common goal, the same obstacles that may present in teamwork in class are also present in the workplace. This statement is corroborated in a Harvard Business Review about (Links to an external site.)Links to an external site. “The Secrets of Great Teamwork” which states that having a shared mindset among team members is essential for collaboration and negotiation.

Thus, to address the title of this discussion: No, Group Work Does Not Make The Dreamworks due to the inexistence of a of a shared mindset and common objective that are only seen within teams.

Therefore it is “Teamwork (that) Makes The Dreamwork”*.

*quote by John C. Maxwell.

Sources:

Mortensen, M. H. (2016, May 16). The Secrets of Great Teamwork. Retrieved February 23, 2018, from https://hbr.org/2016/06/the-secrets-of-great-teamwork

Hooton, M. (2015, June 10). Effective Collaboration – Big Bang Theory. Retrieved February 22, 2018, from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tSMT1ut8xgY

Teamwork [Letters and Hands]. (n.d.). Retrieved from http://vorkspace.com/blog/wp-content/uploads/iStock_000026543869Small_banner.jpg.

Collaboration [Digital image]. (n.d.). Retrieved from https://www.questteam.com/classroom/images/gear_team_420.png

Whether we admit it or not, people do judge a book by its cover. This was proven during the second week of Comm 292 classes where we had to make assumptions about our team members before actually getting to know them. Ultimately, this activity was a test of perception: Process by which individuals organize and interpret their impressions in order to give meaning to their environment. (Links to an external site.)Links to an external site. Therefore, due to the fact that we had no previous about our team members, we made perceptual guesses to add meaning to the foreign environment that we were put into. Unfortunately, there are many factors that distort perception. According to Dr. Amir Abou Elgna, Vice Dean of College of Business Administration, perceptual errors are often seen on the basis of limited information. (Links to an external site.)Links to an external site. In short, my team members and I placed each other in ‘categories’ due to the limited information that we knew about one another. For example, we assumed that the team member with glasses was an avid gamer and was interested in technology. Whereas, they assumed that my interests were in fashionand beauty based on the way that I dressed and presented myself that day. Both these assumptions were incorrect. Thus, a single characteristic led us to make a general impression of that individual (Links to an external site.)Links to an external site., which is also known as the Halo effect.

Therefore, you should not judge a book by its cover, right?

In my opinion, I believe that one should not judge someone based on purely looks, however being conscientious about how others act and present themselves can be a useful indicator of their personality. For example, despite having others categorize me as “girly” based on the way I presented myself, another team member associated the way I present myself with the notes I was taking and gathered that I was very organized and meticulous , which was an accurate claim. Therefore, judging a book by its cover may not tell you its full story, however it can give indicators of what there is inside it.

Upon getting to know each member of my team, it was pretty easy reading their behaviours and figuring out what their attitudes were towards certain topics such as school or sports. However, the underlying component, values, which dictates behaviours and attitudes was not as evident to see. Precisely, values “reflect what is important to us. They are a shorthand way of describing our individual and collective motivations. (Links to an external site.)Links to an external site.”. This was an essential part to know about my team members as values underlie perceptions, behaviours and attitudes. Despite behaviours changing, attitudes shifting and perceptions being skewed, values remain constant. Thus knowing each individuals’ personal values allows for the group to effectively implement shared values. By doing so, core valueswithin the group will be established, thus facilitating ease for communication and collaboration for future team projects.

Overall, my biggest takeaways from the individual level of analysis of OB so far are: Assume Nothing*, but Asses Everything. Assumptions lead to falsified and narrow-minded findings. However, taking a step back and assessing the situation/person/environment as a whole will allow for a more clear and accurate conclusion of the given event.

*Expression famously used by Robert Gateman.

Sources:

Anon, (2018). [image] Available at: http://www.21stcenturylawyer.ca/userimages/Newsroom%20Images/2016/January%202016/s%20values.jpg [Accessed 28 Jan. 2018].

Anon, (2018). [image] Available at: https://www.proprofs.com/quiz-school/topic_images/p1b95avvf11l7rjf8v6u1atfo7r5.jpg [Accessed 29 Jan. 2018].

Do “Mean Girls” exists in the workplace as they do in high school? According to Mitch Prinstein, the Director of Psychology at the University of North Carolina, the same social hierarchy seen in high schools are apparent in business environments. At the top of the social hierarchy, whether it be Jocks, “Means Girls” or Bosses, are those deemed as “popular”. Nonetheless, there are two routes to reach this popularity, one way through likeability and the other way through status. However, is one route better than the other?

Gretchen Wieners (right) & her posey in Mean Girls.

Personally, I believe that one who achieves popularity through likeability is superior as they are more valuable than one who achieves popularity through status. For example, in high school, the “Mean Girls” are attention seeking, power-hungry individuals. On the other hand, there are the Student Council members, well-rounded, happy and inclusive individuals. In both cases, these groups are popular, however one key aspect differs between the two: likeability. One who is liked, yet popular holds the power to positively influence others, wherehease the “Gretchen Wieners” of the school creates a cloudy environment by downgrading others. Thus, one who achieves popularity through likeability is better as they hold the power to positively impact others.

Furthermore, it is argued that it is “one’s likeability that ultimately leads to success” in a corporation environment. Initially, I disagreed with this statement as I believed that success is achieved through motivation and hard work. However, after last Comm 101 class on Human Resources, I realized that motivation and hard work are simply results produced by likeability. To clarify, one who is liked by others is motivated to continue to work hard as they feel valued and appreciated. Therefore, likeability is the match that ignites productivity in the workplace.

My National Lifeguard class post team bonding.

Moreover, as an employee of a corporation, I fully corroborate the statement above arguing  that likeability fuels success in a corporation. For instance, during my training for my position as a Lifeguard for the Corporation of Delta, I underwent extensive practical training along with team building activities. Not only did I practice spinal and drowning procedures, but I engaged in activities like California kickball, work dinners and activities outside of the workplace with my colleagues. Initially, my attitude towards these extracurriculars were that they were useless. However, a sense of inclusivity and happiness were fostered amongst us by these activity. Inturn, the work environment at my pool became more enjoyable and I looked forward to working as it no longer felt like a task.

Ultimately, employees are a business’ greatest asset. Therefore by ensuring that a welcoming and inclusive environment is created will allow for productivity to naturally cultivate in the workplace.

Word Count: 435

References:

http://www.bbc.com/capital/story/20171106-popularity-at-work-still-matters-whether-we-like-it-or-not

https://qz.com/1027802/there-are-two-kinds-of-popularity-and-we-are-choosing-the-wrong-one/

Image 1:

http://www.cnn.com/2017/10/03/entertainment/mean-girls-day/index.html

Imagine 2:

National Lifeguard Team. Personal photograph by Jeshin Toor. 2016.

From the classic cheeseburger, to the egg Mcmuffins, Mcdonald’s is expanding their menu with the addition of products like hormone and antibiotic free chicken and kale salads. This menu expansion is in effort for the company to keep sales revenue constant through the 21st century consumer preference shift revolving around “healthy living”.

According to Ximena Diaz Lopez’s blog, McDonald’s is altering their brand image deceivingly in order to conform to consumer demands. This is exemplified with the addition of healthy food options such as oatmeal and salads to entice customers seeking healthy alternatives to still choose McDonald’s to eat at. However these “healthy” food additions at McDonald’s are in fact unhealthier than a burger. For example, a caesar salad from McDonald’s is higher in calories, fat and sodium than a Double Big Mac . Therefore, Ximena believes that “This marketing strategy is being used to increase sales but (is also) fundamentally dishonest.”.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rQy9vtNOs80

Although I believe that there is validity in Ximena’s statement with her claiming that McDonald’s strategy is being utilized to increase sales, I do not fully agree with the fact that she claims that McDonald’s is being dishonest. At most, I would classify McDonald’s’ marketing as borderline deceiving. Looking at the short commercial above, McDonald’s has not once claimed that their salad is healthy nor better in nutritional value that its burgers. It clearly presents a salad and associates it with being “seriously delicious” not “seriously healthy”. However, society deems salads as healthy, therefore one would assume that a salad from McDonald’s would be healthier than a Big Mac. Therefore, their marketing may not be ethically valid, however the object of McDonald’s is not to be an ethically sound company. After all, they are selling fast food which is detrimental to one’s health.

As such, McDonald’s goal is to maintain their high position and stable revenue in the market. Due to the 21st century fade of “healthy living”, McDonald’s experienced lower sales revenue compared to normal. Consequently, McDonald’s evolved its menu to cater towards the new consumer preference of “healthy living”. Personally, I believe that this was a clever way to differentiate McDonald’s from other fast food chains, while accommodating the wants of consumers. Moreover, this showcases the importance of product adaptation for the continual success of a company. Despite McDonald’s already have a strong stance in the market, the company had to adapt to accommodate evolving consumer wants in order to avoid extensive decrease in revenue sales.

Therefore, McDonald’s cleverly adapted their menu to accommodate the shift in consumer preference which allowed them to reignite their revenue sales. Thus, the company achieved their goal of regaining revenue sales through product adaption in an unethically marketed way.

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Image Source: https://i.cbc.ca/1.3432205.1454529000!/fileImage/httpImage/image.jpg_gen/derivatives/original_620/mcdonalds-big-mac-salad.jpg

http://www.freeestufffinder.ca/coupons-mcdonalds-healthier-menu/

Blog Source:

https://blogs.ubc.ca/ximenadiazlopez/

Video Source:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v-rQy9vtNos80

‘Easy, Breezy, Beautiful…’

CoverGirl, a makeup brand has had the same iconic slogan for the past 60 years: Easy, Breezy, Beautiful. However as of October 11 2017, the mega beauty brand has given their company a whole new makeover with a wider variety of CoverGirl ambassadors and a new slogan. This strategic move is providing CoverGirl with a new look that compliments the evolution of societal beauty standards.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yARn15Ks1DE

Rather than asking “what else can we make”, CoverGirl asked “what else can we do for our customers”. This allowed them to solidify their previous value proposition, thus allowing them to take a step further in differentiating themselves to other cosmetic brands with their new slogan: #IAmWhatIMakeUp. This slogan embraces every individuals’ uniqueness as beautiful.

According to SVP Ojo, “(CoverGirl) started with the insight that people no longer strive for a singular standard of beauty, but use makeup as a tool for self-expression and personal transformation.”. Therefore, CoverGirl’s marketing strategy is to effectively align its business value with those of society.

In Dani’s ‘The Power Of Makeup’ blog, she speaks about how society “makeup shames” people for expressing themselves through cosmetics. Interestingly, her post dates back to 2015, showing that makeup has been a tool for self-expression for a while, however marketing has neglected to acknowledge this.

Although I believe Ojo’s statement is flawed as to saying that people “no longer” try to obtain a certain beauty standard, I applaud CoverGirl’s marketing strategy as they are capitalizing on the playing field of promoting inner beauty unlike majority of its competitors.

Moreover, CoverGirl was already a well-positioned brand and by changing their iconic slogan posed for many potential risks. Nonetheless, the strategic move to revamp its brand shows the importance for a business to continually update their brand to keep up with society in order to gain a stronger competitive advantage, despite already being successful.

Interestingly, in addition to the new inclusive slogan, the brand has acquired a wider variety of ambassadors: Popstar-Katy Perry, Personal Trainer-Massy Arias, 69-year old Dietitian-Myne Musk, and Professional Motorcycle Racer-Shelina Moreda.

Personally this move resonates strongly with me as it is comforting to see a wide array of women ranging in age, race and professions who are all promoting one goal: individuality is beautiful.

As a consumer, I am enticed to use CoverGirl products as opposed to competing brands as I feel as though CoverGirl does not make me feel obligated to obtain a certain beauty standard, but rather encourages me to embrace who I already am, hence #IAmWhatIMakeUp.

From ‘Easy, Breezy, Beautiful’ to ‘I am what I makeup’, CoverGirl is a powerfully evolving cosmetic brand that is helping evolve societal beauty standards.

Word Count: 445

Video Source:

https://youtu.be//yARn15Ks1DE

Blog Source:

https://dirtylooks.com/blog/the-power-of-makeup

Article Sources:

http://www.huffingtonpost.ca/2017/10/11/covergirl-new-slogan_a_23239778/

http://www.businessinsider.com/cover-girl-has-ditches-its-signature-easy-breezy-slogan-2017-10

https://hbr.org/2013/12/when-marketing-is-strategy

https://www.instagram.com/explore/tags/iamwhatimakeup/

Image Source:

https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_asset/file/9438109/COVERGIRL_LOCKUP_KO.JPG

Toronto Chef and Food Network star Susur Lee regretfully apologizes and promises to pay back all employees after placing IOU’s on mishaps in his restaurants. Claiming to be unaware of the Ontario’s Employment Standards Act which states that “…. employers can’t take tips and other gratuities to cover things like spilled food or beverages and broken supplies…”, Chef Lee would deduct tips from his employees at his eateries: Fring’s, Lee and Bent. Luckily, this illegal act was brought to the public’s attention with an ex-employee who posted a picture of his IOU worth more than $100 on the internet. With the power of social media and the help of a petition signed by over 7,100 fighting for compensation, Lee has stopped his fraudulent IOU system and will be repaying his employees. 

Chef Susur Lee.

Upon reading CBC new’s article, I was shocked by how unprofessional a World-renowned chef dealt with mistakes at his restaurants. Is punishment the way to go to address mistakes? Surely each mistake was noted by having one’s tip amount decrease, but there was no solution provided to avoid these mistakes from reoccurring. Consequently, Lee’s IOU system has a negative effect on employees’ attitudes, which can consequently affect the business as a whole. For example, tips are an essential incentive for one to work to the best of their abilities. However, if these incentives diminish, there is less motivation to work hard, thus deteriorating the business’ work ethic and overall customer service output. Looking at the fundamental components of teamwork discussed in class, feedback must be rooted in good intentions. Personally, I believe inservices are a productive alternative to Chef Lee’s IOU method of addressing employee mistakes. As a Lifeguard for the Corporation of Delta, seasonal inservices are held to discuss, improve and strengthen our skills within the workplace. This method not only allows for issues to be addressed but for solutions to be practiced. As opposed to Lee who punished his employees for harmless mistakes, an inservice would be a method in which he could effectively communicate improvements for the recurring issues at his restaurants.

Ex-employee Dylan Turner’s tip reduction.

Moreover, a welcoming atmosphere and positive attitude are essential for a successful workplace. With the harsh use of IOU’s, ex-employee Taylor Davis says that they worked in an environment of “intimidation and fear”. They feared to make mistakes which caused a division between employer and employee. Similar to group projects at school, an accepting environment must be established for a cohesive work ethic to be produced. Therefore the implementation of his IOU system resulted in mistakes to be continually made with the added stress of being heavily penalized.

Ultimately a business is a team. Therefore the same components that produce a productive team must be utilized to achieve a successful business.

Other Sources:

https://www.ontario.ca/page/new-laws-employees-tips

https://www.change.org/p/lee-restaurants-stop-the-iou-system-and-refund-confiscated-worker-tips

Article Source: 

http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/toronto/susur-lee-restaurant-staff-iou-1.4252959

Image Sources:

http://www.blogto.com/eat_drink/2017/07/susur-lee-open-healthy-fast-food-restaurant-toronto/

http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/toronto/susur-lee-restaurant-staff-iou-1.4252959

Word count: 446

An allergy-reaction device known as an EpiPen not only holds the power to save lives, but holds the power to exploit buyer’s essential needs. According to Fortune Insiders article “Mylan EpiPen Pricing Crossed Ethical Boundaries”, Mylan, an EpiPen company unethically increased its price of product from $100 to $608 within a timeframe of 2 years. From a business perspective, an increase in revenue like such is seen as impressive, however from a consumer’s point of view, it is seen as selfish as Mylan is profiting from exploiting the necessities of others.

~EpiPen’s packaging~ https://www.statnews.com/2016/07/06/epipen-prices-allergies/

Therefore, the rise in price of this life-saving tool supports Friedman’s theory that “The Social Responsibility of Business is to Increase its profit”. If Mylan’s root intentions were to save lives, a “six fold price increase” would not have occurred. By capitalizing on the fact that the demand of EpiPens would be constant due to its limited shelf life, Mylan abused its power by increasing its prices. It’s unethical pricing proves that the business’ true intention were to profit and not address health needs. Consequently, this damages the integrity of the company as consumers have a negative perspective of the company’s objective. As a result, marketing, a business specialization which will be discussed in Comm 101 can be utilized to rebuild the relationship between the consumers and sellers of Mylan.

Moreover, as a near monopolistic business, Mylan did not require the need to increase its price to benefit, however by doing so, its margins of profit have dramatically increased as people who require EpiPens will still buy them. Therefore, a substitute product could limit Mylan’s abuse of power of increasing price. If this product was in a competitive market, it is probable that the potential of Mylan losing its customers to cheaper retailers would increase.

~Epipen’s rise in price~ http://fortune.com/2016/08/24/mylan-ceo-epipen-heather-bresch/

Despite being deemed as unethical to society, Mylan’s increase in price for EpiPens does follow the basic laws and ethical customs discussed by Friedman. Mylan’s increase in price was transparent for consumers and was done in a legal way. However, it’s reason to increase price was unethical. Therefore, Mylan’s tactic to increase prices catered to the best interest of the seller and in turn negatively affected those of the buyer. Thus, the increase of price for EpiPens supports the premise that a business’ primary objective is to profit  instead of upholding any social responsibilities.

In my opinion, the best solution to reduce the repercussions of a price increase would be to survey the group of consumers of the product and to find an equilibrium of accommodating the needs of the seller and those of the buyer. Ultimately, in order for a price increase to be ethical, it must benefit both the interests of the business and the consumer.

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