Explain why firms experience evolutionary cycles in which there is a fight between strategy and structure, punctuated with periods in which strategy and structure are reshaped. Provide examples of global firms that have experienced this pattern.
Choose a CEO of a prominent firm that you believe exemplifies the positive aspects of strategic leadership.
What actions has this CEO taken that demonstrate effective strategic leadership?
What are the effects of those actions on the firm’s performance?
Category: Management
Fight between strategy and structure
Explain why firms experience evolutionary cycles in which there is a fight between strategy and structure, punctuated with periods in which strategy and structure are reshaped. Provide examples of global firms that have experienced this pattern.
Choose a CEO of a prominent firm that you believe exemplifies the positive aspects of strategic leadership.
What actions has this CEO taken that demonstrate effective strategic leadership?
What are the effects of those actions on the firm’s performance?
Creating value for stakeholders to improve profitability.
For this Discussion Board, please complete the following:
This week, we have learned that companies that are able to create value for stakeholders are able to improve profitability. For example, we learned that Patagonia is a market leader in outdoor gear due in part to its attention to stakeholders and a focus on social responsibility. Review this week’s reading assignment to learn more about Patagonia.
Describe the characteristics of a company that you prefer to buy a product or service from.
What are some characteristics of a company you would NOT buy a product or service buy from?
Creating value for stakeholders to improve profitability.
For this Discussion Board, please complete the following:
This week, we have learned that companies that are able to create value for stakeholders are able to improve profitability. For example, we learned that Patagonia is a market leader in outdoor gear due in part to its attention to stakeholders and a focus on social responsibility. Review this week’s reading assignment to learn more about Patagonia.
Describe the characteristics of a company that you prefer to buy a product or service from.
What are some characteristics of a company you would NOT buy a product or service buy from?
The importance of an organization’s mission, vision, values, and strategies.
How a manager and their team succeed and perform at their best is when their purpose and their organizational culture connects with who they are.
Discuss the importance of an organization’s mission, vision, values, and strategies. How should these elements shape the organizational culture and develop culture for change? Support your response with a specific example to illustrate your explanation.
The importance of an organization’s mission, vision, values, and strategies.
How a manager and their team succeed and perform at their best is when their purpose and their organizational culture connects with who they are.
Discuss the importance of an organization’s mission, vision, values, and strategies. How should these elements shape the organizational culture and develop culture for change? Support your response with a specific example to illustrate your explanation.
Person-focused pay programs
Person-focused pay programs are not really new. Various early forms of these programs appeared in the 1980s. Organizational adoption was slow partly because they can very quickly drive labor costs up. Why is this changing? Explain the reasons for this change. Consider Susan Jackson’s situation. Susan is a young professional in her 8th year of her technological manufacturing career since graduating from college. She is frustrated by the lack of opportunity to showcase her talent and skillset. Susan feels like she has so much more to offer than is asked of her. Consequently, she is once again on the job market. If she succeeds in her search, Susan will join her third organization in 8 years. Explain why a job with a person-focused pay program might help alleviate her frustration. Finally, what are the potential advantages and disadvantages of these programs for the organization? For the employee?
Management question
You are the supervisor of a highly specialized team of investigators who only handle the seemingly impossible cases. Your major case squad consists of seven men and two women. Your production for solving the tough cases is very high, and the team functions like a well-oiled machine. Lately, there has been dissension among the team members. One of the more reliable members comes to you and explains that two male members of the team are having a relationship with one of the female members, and there is a jealousy issue. To top it off, the female involved is married to the Operations Commander for Patrol.
What do you think are the internal stressors for this situation? Explain your reasoning.
What do you think are the potential external stressors for this situation? Why?
What do you think are at least 3 things that you would do to deal with this problem? Explain in detail.
Negotiation
Your professor suggested that “erratic behavior can be a powerful weapon” in a negotiation. Do you agree or disagree? What is the potential value in such behavior and what are the pitfalls? Provide your thoughts in a paragraph or so.
Reread pages 128 through 134 in the book. Explain your position on the value (or lack thereof) of apologies before, during, or after the negotiation process. Provide support for your position.
Why is it a good idea to commit the results of a negotiation (even a simple one) to writing? Can you think of any drawbacks to committing the results to writing?
The book discusses active listening as a means of helping move negotiations forward to resolution. Describe how you understand this process. What are the benefits of active listening during a negotiation? Are there any disadvantages to active listening?
During the lecture, your professor listed five things that you should not let bother you during a negotiation – see if you can remember three of them and list them.
Managing special teams
You are the special teams commander in a major metropolitan police agency. You have a Special Weapons and Tactics (SWAT) team, a Narcotics unit, a Vice unit, and a Street Crimes squad. You have heard that the Street Crimes squad is starting to have a growing number of complaints of citizen abuse in terms of physical intimidation and claims of missing funds and property. You start by interviewing the newest member of the team, who has only been on the team for 4 months.
He is a great police officer who came from the Detective Bureau to work in the Street Crimes unit. In the interview, he related that several members of the nine-person team were heavy-handed with suspects. He also related that after a month on the team, he received an envelope in his locker that contained $3,000. He does not know who slipped it through the vent slots in the door, but on that day, he saw two other members of the team with similar envelopes. Address the following in your main post:
What are 2 potential problems that are occurring in this team?
Can these problems be attributed to stress caused by high-stakes, traumatic events? Why or why not? Explain.
How do you think this situation could have progressed to this extreme? Explain.
Are interpersonal reactions among police different from those of regular citizens regarding high-stakes, traumatic events? Why or why not? Explain in detail.