Running head: 1
Discussion Thread – Whole Foods or Design Disaster
Liberty University
Author Note
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Step 1: Define the problem
After reviewing the article regarding the acquirement of Whole Foods from Amazon, it
can be analyzed based on the reading that there was a difference in how management was being
conducted as opposed to how Amazon manages business. As a result, the Amazon acquisition
from Whole Foods that occurred in 2017 has been a trend concerning the employees' motivation
and the way business is being undertaken, resulting in a decrease in employee motivation in the
work environment and customer satisfaction. Although company mergers are for the benefit of
the company, evidence shows that a large variety of the times, consumers and employees are the
most affected by this (Fischer et al., 2019). The result of dissatisfaction from Whole Food
towards Amazon's management style could be considered a micro-management style rather than
being managed the way they were accustomed. However, Whole Foods performed had a very
delegative management style in which employees had a more lackadaisical way to create
determinations with far from a micro-managing style of method (Kinicki, 2021).
Step 2: Identify the causes of the problem. Which inputs and processes from the
Organizing Framework are evident?
The primary reason for the situation with Amazon since the merger was their incapability
of being more optimistic and being able to recognize the favorable specialties that Whole Foods
offered and already had and not implementing those the positive things that the company had to
offer (Kinicki, 2021). As a result, Amazon redirected the employee-centric, distinctive, and
individual culture of Whole Foods' way of conducting business to a performance-driven
mentality, guided by a statistics-driven corporation standard to boost a rise in performance and
efficiency. Instead, leadership traits from Amazon should have retained consideration and
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organization, at the same time improving group morale with the allocation of assignments and
administration capability via delegation (Kinicki, 2021). From what we know from the previous
article, Amazon's management style is known to be a bit overwhelming regarding the way that
employees are treated. With that being said, that could have created conflict with the Whole
Foods management team, thus, creating a conflicting work environment. Approaching employees
with a positive and motivating approach can bring an optimistic impact towards employees in a
way that they can relate it to their overall work (Mitka, 2002). Instead, it seems that Amazon's
business management came in and thoroughly diverted the Whole Foods business method
without letting any association between store administration and themselves. As a result of this,
Whole Foods was not able to make its way into the Fortune's Best Place list after being listed for
twenty consecutive years (Kinicki, 2021). This negative approach could have possibly resulted in
a loss of positive organizational behavior between the two organizations.
Step 3: Make recommendations to Amazon’s leadership regarding how to realize the
potential of the merger.
A favorable recommendation that could lead to positive results from Amazon is
approaching Whole Foods on an observational period. First, the company operates in a
traditional way that it used to before the merger, monitoring revenue and income to see if
consumers prefer the way that Whole Foods would traditionally manage. However, Amazon
would have to carefully monitor consumer behavior if the results are not as positive as they
would expect to be. One factor is trusting one another. If a management style was not flawed
prior to the merger, there should have been no necessary change. "Blessed is the man who makes
the Lord his trust, who does not turn to the proud, to those who go astray after a lie!" (English
Standard Version, 2001/2016). Generally speaking, in almost every organization, an authority
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leadership group incorporates approvingly, suitable, experienced, and professional executives or
managers who can design, execute and oversee operations and techniques in the organization and
is accountable for accomplishing the organization's expected development within the entire
process. I would furthermore suggest a hybrid compensation strategy that awards both personnel
and group performance (Kinicki, 2021). Implementing competition between different Whole
Food stores in the area with a worthwhile incentive for the winning store employees could
enhance the organizational environment at the individual establishment. This encourages workers
to assume the transitions occurring within their organization at the same time developing into
something more productive and improving productivity.
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References
Fischer, P., Greitemeyer, T., Omay, S. I., & Frey, D. (2019). Mergers and group status: The
impact of high, low and equal group status on identification and satisfaction with a
company merger, experienced controllability, group identity and group cohesion. Journal
of Community & Applied Social Psychology, 17(3), 203-217.
https://doi.org/10.1002/casp.874
Kinicki, A. (2021). Organizational behavior: A practical, problem-solving approach plus 3rd ed.
Connect. McGraw-Hill Education.
Mitka, M. (2002). Business learns wisdom of treating employees with psychiatric disability.
JAMA : The Journal of the American Medical Association, 287(22), 2933-2934.
https://doi.org/10.1001/jama.287.22.2933-JMN0612-2-1
The Holy Bible, English Standard Version. ESV® Text Edition: 2016. Retrieved from:
https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=psalms+40%3A4&version=ESV
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