Respond to at two (2) of colleague D2W2

Respond to at two (2) of colleagues' postings listed below in the following ways:

Respond to at least two of your colleagues' postings in one or more of the following ways:

· Share an insight about what you learned from your colleagues’ analysis or application of the case and discuss how and why your colleague’s posting resonated with you professionally or personally.

· Seek additional clarity or ask your colleague a question, with accompanying context that will help your colleague to think more critically or broadly about how to apply the case to other situations.

· Offer an example, from your experience or observation, which validates or differs from what your colleague discussed related to the case or how it might apply to a particular organization.

· Offer specific suggestions that will help your colleague use what he or she presented related to the case and how it applies to an organization that can help your colleague build upon his or her leadership skills within an organizational culture.

· Offer further assessment from having read your colleague’s post that could impact a leader’s effectiveness within an organizational culture.

· Share how you will apply something your colleague discussed to improve your own leadership qualities.

· No plagiarism

· APA citing

1st Colleagues – Cara Telleysh 

To better understand the impact of operational and cultural components on a work environment, I have selected Case 5.2. The "Delta" Sales Organization. (Schein, 2009). The same leader has led this European pharmaceutical company for over thirty years. The company's success results from a solid culture that reflects what they stand for, what they value, and what they aspire to achieve. (Rein, 2018). The VP of Sales plans to retire. To develop the right succession plan, the executive team needed to understand the department's present culture and whether or not it needed to change. Different levels of the management team participated in an assessment. The results show there is a good enough understanding of the implicit assumptions. Therefore, the artifacts and values are most important.

Building and maintaining a sales culture is not easy. I know this because I was a Membership Sales Director at one point in my career. To establish a culture that motivates, inspires, directs, and drives success, you must have a solid operational plan in the right environment. The Delta team finds the following components to be most effective and motivating: (Schein, 2009).

· A Sales Plan

· A Marketing Plan

· High Selling Standards

· Clear Expectations

· Good Communication Systems

· Personal Growth and Development through a training plan

· Reward System

To support these components, the company created a positive work culture for everyone to be successful. Key elements include: (Schein, 2009)

· Values

· Loyalty

· Flexibility

· Fostering Relationships

· Empowerment 

To create a winning sales culture, Delta hired the right leader. For thirty years, the VP of Sales creatively practiced and developed a winning operations plan. By investing in the growth and development of each team member, the employees were highly effective and highly satisfied. In addition, by putting team-oriented systems processes in place and encouraging knowledge sharing, positive work environments drove success.     

The main takeaway is to keep things simple by not creating a problem where there is not one. By strategically starting with the company culture, they quickly realized the artifacts and values were more important in the selection process.  By involving different team levels, they captured a better understanding of what employees wanted and needed.

In closing, when traditions, rules, and values come together and support a company's structure, influential leaders create a successful business.

References

Rein, Timeo, 2018, July 27. 7 Steps to Winning A Sales Culture. Entrepreneur. Retrieved from https://www.entrepreneur.com/article/316614  

Schein, E. H. (2009). The corporate culture survival guide. San Francisco, CA: Jossey-Bass.

2nd Colleagues – Natasha Mills

The Delta Case Example Assessment

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The example of “Delta” Sales Organization is a case study that consists of the organization’s dilemma in deciding who should succeed the retiring senior manager, an outsider or an insider. This aspect of the case presents the operational component of the organization because it is a representation of the organization’s professional resources. Another operational component that exists within this case example is budget. The case highlights that the organization had budgeted for enough time and money resources to facilitate an in-depth and lengthy culture assessment process (Schein, 2009).

On the other hand, the case study also portrays the cultural components of the “Delta” Sales Organization. The report of the assessment confirmed the existence of cultural components such as communication, interpersonal relationships, and vision within the organization. For instance, an aspect within the sales culture that made the team prefer an insider to an outsider for the succession was that the future of the company was anchored on the present sales culture. This element feeds the vision cultural component because it shows that the team considered the future of the organization. The results of the assessment also showed that the organization was built on informal relationships and a family feeling (Schein, 2009).

The cultural assessment of the “Delta” Sales Organization painted a positive picture of the company. A key factor that points to this positive environment was the unanimity that the task force of the organization displayed when it came to defending their culture. This means that the operational and cultural components were in sync with the deeper cultural assumptions that were driving the activities of the organization. The connection between these factors is the source of organizational strength and identity (Schein, 2009). The case example of the “Delta” Sales Organization has provided a perfect picture of the positive impact of being in touch with deeper assumptions on a company.

Consequently, the cultural components that have been outlined in the report are vastly positive. Components such as openness in communication, good collaboration and communication between reps and district managers, high morale, loyalty, and dedication of the sales rep, high professional and ethical standards, and a strong family feeling, among others, all signify a positive environment. This is because these cultural components are the reasons the entire task force believes that the existing culture holds the future success of the organization.

Lastly, it is possible to deduce that the “Delta” Sales Organization is a positive environment because every member of the organization understands that the culture is valuable. At the same time, the members of this organization go further than merely understanding their culture to use it to solve a problem. The ability to understand the culture and use that understanding to make a change or solve a problem is what makes that understanding valuable (Schein, 2009). Therefore, the fact that members of the “Delta” Sales Organization were able to use their understanding of their culture to solve a problem or make a change makes the environment positive.

The most vital lesson acquired from the case study that I can apply to my organization is that having an established culture equals organizational identity and strength. Even more critical is the awareness and adoption of the culture by members of the organization. The events of the case study prove this fact because it is the awareness and adoption of the culture that the outgoing VP of “Delta” Sale Organization had cultivated that made the decision-making process less challenging. This is a lesson worth integrating into my organization by striving to determine how much the task force knows about its operational and cultural components and then implementing strategies to help with the integration of unestablished but critical components.

The knowledge gained from the case and applying it to another organization can help me become a more effective leader because I am enlightened on how culture works within organizational settings. In many cases, organizations have established operational and cultural components that drive them. Further, these operational and cultural components are the source of these organizations’ strengths and identities. Armed with this knowledge, I have a grasp of how to approach organizations and their members without distorting their occupational cultures (Schein, 2016). 

Schein, E. (2016) Edgar Schein explains culture fundamentals. Retrieved from:  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gPqz315HSdg&ab_channel=TimKuppler

Schein, E. H. (2009). The corporate culture survival guide. San Francisco, CA: Jossey-Bass.

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