Assignment 2: 3-4 pg paper-Integrating Culture and Diversity in Decision Making: The CEO and Organizational Culture Profile and 2 discussion questions.

perceived they were being treated inequitably, we experienced prob- lems. Lowering prices meant incur- ring losses; not lowering them meant losing customers. The next two financial quarters saw sales dol- lars decline by 40 percent. As the sales manager, I felt pretty rotten presenting my figures to Fred.

With regard to Dinah, I now faced a monumental problem. The internal feeling was she should be avoided at all costs. Because of price erosions, we faced cutbacks. Employees blamed her for produc- tion layoffs. The internal friction kept mounting. Dinah’s ability to interface effectively with her col- leagues and other departments plummeted to a point where normal functioning was impossible.

Fred called me into his office two months after the Partco episode and suggested that I fire Dinah. He told me that he was worried about results. Although he had nothing personally against her, he felt that she must go because she was seri- ously affecting my department’s overall performance. I defended Dinah by stating that the Partco matter would blow over and given time I could smooth things out. I pointed out Dinah’s accomplish- ments and stated I really wanted her to stay. Fred dropped the issue, but my problem persisted.

Things went from bad to worse. Finally, I decided to try to solve the problem myself. I had known Dinah well for many years and had a good relationship with her before the inci- dent. I took her to lunch to address the issue. Over lunch, I acknowl- edged the stress the Partco situation had put on her and suggested that she move away for a while to the West Coast, where she could handle that area independently.

Dinah was hurt and asked why I didn’t just fire her already. I responded by accusing her of caus-

ing the problem in the first place by going to Partco.

Dinah came back at me, calling me a lackey for having taken her story to Fred and having brought his management message back. She said I hadn’t even attempted a solution and that I didn’t have the guts to stand up for what was right. I was only interested in protecting my backside and keeping Fred happy. As her manager, I should have protected her and taken some of the heat off her back. Dinah refused to transfer or to quit. She told me to go ahead and fire her, and she walked out.

I sat in a daze as I watched Dinah leave the restaurant. What the heck went wrong? Had Dinah done the morally right thing? Was I right in defending MagRec’s position? Should I have taken a stand with Fred? Should I have gone over

Fred’s head to Mr. Leed? Am I doing the right thing? Should I listen to Fred and fire Dinah? If not, how do I get my department back on track? What am I saying? If Dinah is right, shouldn’t I be defending her rather than MagRec?

Review Questions

1. Place yourself in the role of the manager. What should you do now? After considering what hap- pened, would you change any of your behaviors?

2. Do you think Dinah was right? Why or why not? If you were she and you had it to do all over again, would you do any- thing differently? If so, what and why?

3. Using cognitive dissonance theory, explain the actions of Pat, Dinah, and Fred. ■

C A S E 5

It Isn’t Fair Developed by Barry R. Armandi, SUNY–Old Westbury

M ary Jones was in her senior year at Central University and interviewing for jobs. Mary was in the top 1 percent of her class, active in numerous extracurricular activities, and highly respected by her professors. After the interviews, Mary was offered positions with every company with

which she interviewed. After much thought, she decided to take the offer from Universal Products, a multinational company. She felt that the salary was superb ($40,000), there were excellent benefits, and there was good potential for promotion.

Mary started work a few weeks after graduation and learned her job assignments and responsibilities thoroughly and quickly. Mary was asked on many occasions to work late because report deadlines were often moved forward. Without hesi- tation she said “Of course!” even though as an exempt employee she would receive no overtime.

Frequently she would take work home with her and use her personal computer to do further analyses. At other times she would come into the office on weekends to monitor the progress of her projects or just to catch up on the ever-growing moun- tain of correspondence.

On one occasion her manager asked her to take on a difficult

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been stellar, I’m delighted to give you a 10 percent increase effective immediately!

Mary: (mouth agape, and eyes wide) Tom, frankly I’m flabbergasted! I don’t know what to say, but thank you very much. I hope I can con- tinue to do as fine a job as I have this last year. Thanks once again.

After exchanging some parting remarks and some more thank- you’s, Mary left Tom’s office with a smile from ear to ear. She was float- ing on air! Not only did she feel the performance review process was uplifting, but her review was out- standing and so was her raise. She knew from other employees that the company was only giving out a 5 per- cent average increase. She figured that if she got that, or perhaps 6 or 7, she would be happy. But to get 10 percent . . . wow!! Imagine . . .

Sue: Hi, Mary! Lost in thought? My, you look great. Looks like you got some great news. What’s up?

Susan Stevens was a recent hire, working for Tom. She had graduated from Central University also, but a year after Mary. Sue had excelled while at Central, graduating in the top 1 percent of her class. She had lauda- tory letters of recommendation from her professors and was into many after-school clubs and activities.

Mary: Oh, hi, Sue! Sorry, but I was just thinking about Universal and the opportunities here.

Sue: Yes, it truly is . . .

Mary: Sue, I just came from my perfor- mance review and let me tell you, the process isn’t that bad. As a mat- ter of fact I found it quite rewarding, if you get my drift. I got a wonderful review, and can’t wait till next year’s. What a great company!

Sue: You can say that again! I couldn’t believe them hiring me right out

assignment. It seemed that the com- pany’s Costa Rican manufacturing facility was having production prob- lems. The quality of one of the prod- ucts was highly questionable, and the reports on the matter were confusing. Mary was asked to be part of a team to investigate the quality and report- ing problems. The team stayed in poor accommodations for the entire three weeks they were there. This was because of the plant’s location near its resources, which happened to be in the heart of the jungle. Within the three-week period the team had located the source of the quality prob- lem, corrected it, and altered the reporting documents and processes. The head of the team, a quality engi- neer, wrote a note to Mary’s manager stating the following: “Just wanted to inform you of the superb job Mary Jones did down in Costa Rica. Her suggestions and insights into the reporting system were invaluable. Without her help we would have been down there for another three weeks, and I was getting tired of the mosqui- toes. Thanks for sending her.”

Universal Products, like most companies, has a yearly performance review system. Since Mary had been with the company for a little over one year, it was time for her review. Mary entered her manager’s office nervous, since this was her first review ever and she didn’t know what to expect. After closing the door and exchang- ing the usual pleasantries, her manager, Tom, got right to the point.

Tom: Well, Mary, as I told you last week this meeting would be for your annual review. As you are aware, your performance and com- pensation are tied together. Since the philosophy of the company is to reward those who perform, we take these reviews very sincerely. I have spent a great deal of time thinking about your performance over the

past year, but before I begin I would like to know your impres- sions of the company, your assignments, and me as a manager.

Mary: Honestly, Tom, I have no com- plaints. The company and my job are everything I was led to believe. I enjoy working here. The staff are all very helpful. I like the team atmosphere, and my job is very challenging. I really feel appreci- ated and that I’m making a contri- bution. You have been very helpful and patient with me. You got me involved right from the start and listened to my opinions. You taught me a lot and I’m very grateful. All in all I’m happy being here.

Tom: Great, Mary, I was hoping that’s the way you felt because from my vantage point, most of the people you worked with feel the same. But before I give you the qualitative side of the review, allow me to go through the quantitative appraisal first. As you know, the rankings go from 1 (lowest) to 5 (highest). Let’s go down each category and I’ll explain my reasoning for each.

Tom starts with category one (Quantity of Work) and ends with category ten (Teamwork). In each of the categories, Tom has either given Mary a 5 or a 4. Indeed, only two categories have a 4 and Tom explains these are normal areas for improvement for most employees.

Tom: As you can see, Mary, I was very happy with your performance. You have received the highest rating I have ever given any of my subordi- nates. Your attitude, desire, and help are truly appreciated. The other peo- ple on the Costa Rican team gave you glowing reports, and speaking with the plant manager, she felt that you helped her understand the reporting system better than anyone else. Since your performance has

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day at the meal table also raise the percentage figure. An occasional bucket of sauce may be spilled or a pizza accidentally burned.

In the event of an employee mistake, the expense is supposed to come from the individual. Because of peer pressure, the night manager seldom writes up a bill for the erring employee. Instead, the establish- ment takes the loss and the error goes unnoticed until the end of the month when the inventory is taken. That’s when the manager finds out that the percentage is high and that there will be no bonus.

In the present instance, the manager took retaliatory measures. Previously, each employee was enti- tled to a free pizza, salad, and all the soft drinks he or she could drink for every 6 hours of work. The manager raised this figure from 6 to 12 hours of work. However, the employees had received these 6-hour benefits for a long time. Therefore, they sim- ply took advantage of the situation whenever the manager or the assis- tant was not in the building. Although the night manager theoret- ically had complete control of the operation in the evenings, he did not command the respect that the man- ager or assistant manager did. This was because he received the same pay as the regular employees, he could not reprimand other employ- ees, and he was basically the same age or sometimes even younger than the other employees.

Thus, apathy grew within the pizzeria. There seemed to be a fur- ther separation between the man- ager and his workers, who started out as a closely knit group. The man- ager made no attempt to alleviate the problem, because he felt it would iron itself out. Either the employees that were dissatisfied would quit or they would be content to put up with the new regulations. As it turned out, there was a rash of

of college at such a good salary. Between you and me, Mary, they started me at $45,000. Imagine that? Wow, was I impressed. I just couldn’t believe that they would . . . Where are you going, Mary? Mary? What’s that you say, “It isn’t fair”? What do you mean? Mary? Mary . . .

Review Questions

1. Indicate Mary’s attitudes before and after meeting Sue. If there was a change, why?

2. What do you think Mary will do now? Later?

3. What motivation theory applies best to this scenario? Explain. ■

C A S E 6 A

Perfect Pizzeria

P erfect Pizzeria in Southville, in deep southern Illinois, is the second-largest franchise of the chain in the United States. The headquarters is located in Phoenix, Arizona. Although the business is prospering, employee and managerial problems exist.

Each operation has one man- ager, an assistant manager, and from two to five night managers. The managers of each pizzeria work under an area supervisor. There are no systematic criteria for being a manager or becoming a manager trainee. The franchise has no formal- ized training period for the manager. No college education is required. The managers for whom the case observer worked during a four-year period were relatively young (ages 24 to 27) and only one had com- pleted college. They came from the ranks of night managers or assistant managers, or both. The night man- agers were chosen for their ability to perform the duties of the regular employees. The assistant managers worked a two-hour shift during the luncheon period five days a week to gain knowledge about bookkeeping and management. Those becoming managers remained at that level unless they expressed interest in investing in the business.

The employees were mostly col- lege students, with a few high school

students performing the less chal- lenging jobs. Since Perfect Pizzeria was located in an area with few job opportunities, it had a relatively easy task of filling its employee quotas. All the employees, with the exception of the manager, were employed part time and were paid the minimum wage.

The Perfect Pizzeria system is devised so that food and beverage costs and profits are computed according to a percentage. If the per- centage of food unsold or damaged in any way is very low, the manager gets a bonus. If the percentage is high, the manager does not receive a bonus; rather, he or she receives only his or her normal salary.

There are many ways in which the percentage can fluctuate. Since the manager cannot be in the store 24 hours a day, some employees make up for their paychecks by help- ing themselves to the food. When a friend comes in to order a pizza, extra ingredients are put on the friend’s pizza. Occasional nibbles by 18 to 20 employees throughout the

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