WHEN NO GOOD DEED GOES UNPUNISHED:

THE CASE OF THE MISPRINTED PHONE NUMBER

ABSTRACT

Mark volunteered to help with the community arts festival; he was supporting the not-for-profit organization as he had in the past. However, he did not know his good intentions as a volunteer would cost him his job as an assistant manager. The retail store’s phone number was printed in the festival advertising in error and ticket requests overloaded the phone lines, causing loss of business and annoyed the store manager. As a result, Mark was seen as the cause of the problems and terminated. The Board of Directors did not respond to his request for an investigation, leaving Mark without a job and wondering what had happened to cause an unhappy experience when he had such good intentions.

Teaching objectives:

· Identify the impact of substantive areas of organizational behavior in a realistic scenario

· Define how various leadership and motivational models may be used best to improve productivity and job satisfaction within organizations.

· Demonstrate how various leadership and motivational models may be used best to improve productivity and job satisfaction within organizations

· Demonstrate the importance of an ethical approach to business

· Provide an example of how various aspects of organizational life can create negative impacts internal and external to the organization

· Provide an opportunity for critical thinking as noted through multiple opportunities to incorporate theory and resolve problems

· Apply organizational-behavior strategies to management scenarios utilizing a systems approach

· Discuss methods for undertaking planned-change programs within organizations.

· Create realistic problem resolutions

· Create realistic action plans

Mark, the Volunteer

Mark is an employee of a small community drugstore and has volunteered for different assignments with nonprofit agencies. One of the assignments he thinks that he will enjoy the most is working as a member of the core committee which organizes and runs the yearly community festival for the neighborhood. Because of his experience with community events, Mark has been placed in charge of logistics coordination, planning, security, and public safety. While this appears to be an extensive workload, Mark has a great deal of previous experience and understands the tasks that need to be completed. Because the planning for the festival started a year in advance, he knows that as the festival grows closer there will be additional volunteers to assist him, so he will not be individually responsible for each one of these areas; for now, the workload is sufficient for one person.

The Community Festival

The community festival is a nonprofit organization that has a tax exempt status as well as a history of over 20 years. The organization and the event are run by a board of directors and a small, permanent staff composed of no more than five employees at any given time. The goal of the festival is to promote local arts and crafts and to support local artists by providing a venue through which they can sell their work, advertise their work, and develop and expand their customer base. Because the festival has been held for many years, it is well-known in the area and typically attracts supporters of the arts and owners of small and independent art galleries as well as boutique and specialty stores owners who are in search of unique forms of art for clientele. As a result, the festival has established a reputation as a well-known venue for local art.

One of the unique aspects of this festival is that it has enjoyed growth and continuity within the community even though the community itself was part of a much larger metropolitan area in the southwestern United States. The identity of the festival has remained intact and is considered a part of the local community. Part of the mission of the community festival Board of Directors is to educate the community about art in addition to creating a venue for creative expression. During its growth, the festival’s mission gradually expanded to include educational and other programs which run throughout the year. However, in recent times local artists who used to be yearly participants have drifted away and local funding used to support the festival is diminishing, because fewer and fewer local artists were participating. As a result, the Board of Directors focused on bringing in a nationally known talent and artists in various fields to attract more participants. Because local funding was lost, more funding now is being sought through grants. The focus of the festival is gradually changing from community artists to a broader scope and more national talent.

The Community Festival Organization

The nonprofit agency that was charged with running the community festival was made up of a Board of Directors consisting of 10 appointed positions, including three to five permanent staff members, one of whom is the supervisor. The supervisor works at many of the same jobs as the staff members to support the agency. The supervisor believes that everyone who works at the agency shares her love of the arts and uses a laissez-faire management style with the other staff members. The supervisor believes everyone hired at the non-profit understands the need to support the organization, and employees should not need specific instructions to do so; this is the general opinion also held by the Board. Because the permanent staff is so small, formal training for the supervisor and staff is not conducted, primarily because of the lack of funds for training. All funds are used for the festival and the programs, and the prevailing attitude is that employees can learn from each other. Although the nonprofit agency has a mission to support local artists, the Board of Directors sees no need to take the time to develop specifics such as rules of conduct, expected behaviors, or guidelines. The supervisor follows this example, because she believes that it is important to use their time for the festival and the programs instead of the permanent staff, especially because the staff can be managed one-on-one if training needs are identified. The primary support for the agency initially came from individual donators and, later on, more grants which supported the annual event and the ongoing educational programs. The Board of Directors itself consists primarily of those who support the arts and the community. Some are serving as political appointees and none of the members has any experience in running a business. Volunteers have noted in the past how there are inconsistencies in the decisions coming from the Board of Directors, depending on personal interests and sometimes as favors for friends.

Volunteers and Staffing

Staffing is always a challenge for supervisor and the Board of Directors. Many who have the interest and the inclination to volunteer hold full-time jobs, and many of those jobs were outside of the community in the larger metropolitan area; therefore, they have little time to donate because of the time it takes to commute back and forth from their jobs. Nonetheless, there are always some volunteers available, but there is turnover from year to year depending on how much time individuals could contribute, whether or not they have taken a full-time job in another location, or whether they still remain in the community.

In the past, a member of the Board of Directors has acknowledged that staffing is a concern, because those who are truly interested are not available, and sometimes, when seeking volunteers, the organization has to “settle” for whoever shows up. One of the primary concerns is that some of the volunteers and the permanent staff have exhibited more interest in being “in charge” than actually supporting the community festival. When individuals are more worried about who is in charge rather than what needs to be done, there has been an issue about what priorities could actually be accomplished and whether those were personal priorities or festival priorities. Nevertheless, volunteers are still needed, so all volunteers are accepted. Some volunteers have known each other for several years, because they have worked together through the festival organization, but there was always enough turnover to provide the need for new volunteers every year.

Internal Issues

Some volunteers have speculated openly over the last few years on the reasons why volunteers leave. The general consensus among the volunteers is that personality conflicts or authority conflicts with other volunteers, and even other staff members, drove people away. On some occasions staff members were also aware of political appointees by the Board of Directors. These appointees were perceived by the general staff and volunteers to be “untouchable” and their behavior beyond reproach. Poor interpersonal experiences and ineffective conversations between volunteers and staff members suggest that staff members are frequently ineffective in their interactions with volunteers. Such incidents, when they occur, are shared widely and quickly among the volunteers through the organizational grapevine, a highly effective communication method for relaying personal dissatisfaction and personal events with the permanent staff and other volunteers. One example of a personal experience is a conversation where a permanent staff member told a volunteer “if you don’t like the way I do things….then you can just leave. We can always get more volunteers”. A witness to that conversation indicates that the permanent staff member has this same attitude with other volunteers and has repeated the same comment or similar comments to other individuals in the organization on various occasions. Permanent staff members have also developed a tendency to blame volunteers if something does not go as planned or if something unplanned occurs in a manner that causes problems. Volunteers have the perception that they are the ‘scapegoats’ for the staff and, by default, for the Board of Directors. This has precipitated a perception that staff members hold themselves in higher esteem and at a different level than the volunteers. Volunteers have become very sensitive to this and discuss it frequently.

External Issues

Local artists who have regularly participated in the festival provide anecdotal support about similar interactions with permanent staff. One of the artists indicates that he feels as if he is an “intruder” when trying to obtain information about dates and events for the upcoming festival. Others report a similar lack of responsiveness; more specifically, phone calls are not returned while other artists note a ‘rude’ tone of voice and curt treatment by staff members. A number of the artists who have participated in the past have now elected not to apply for a vendor position for the upcoming festival. The loss of local artists has also contributed to the community festival need to focus on nationally known talent to generate revenues and interest that have been forfeited through the loss of local artists.

Implementing the Community Festival

About six months before the community festival was scheduled, the Board of Directors proceeded with the normal activities required to facilitate the festival. Some of these activities included activating an 800 phone number to facilitate ticket ordering, publishing the brochure for the festival, and proceeding with efforts to advertise both inside the community and outside the community about the upcoming festival. The Board approved the brochures before they were printed and distributed, reviewed all information for accuracy and correctness, and then proceeded with the brochure printing.

The Brochure Incident

One day, Mark is at work in the drugstore where he serves as an assistant manager when the first call comes through to order tickets for the festival. Mark is quite surprised, because the drugstore has nothing to do with the festival. Mark advises the caller that this is the wrong number if the caller wishes to purchase tickets. That same day, many more calls come in with requests to purchase tickets for the festival. Mark is puzzled by the number of phone calls, because he is certain that the phone number is incorrect. He can think of no reason why people are calling the 800 number of the drugstore and asking for festival tickets. He checks with a member of the Board of Directors the following day and discovers that the 800 number to order tickets that is printed in the festival brochure is actually the 800 number of his drugstore. The phone calls have been very disruptive to business in the drugstore.

After numerous complaints and pleas from the drugstore manager to adjust the 800-number, the Board of Directors discuss the problem and decide that the best interests of the festival are served taking over the 800 phone number at the drugstore and using it for the festival. This is completely unacceptable for the drugstore, because it has used this 800 number for many years. The 800 number is integral to the identity of the drugstore within the community. The drugstore refuses to give the number to the community festival agency, and the calls continue. Finally, the festival Board of Directors request a correction be printed in the brochure, and the correction to the 800-number is made on the front of the brochure. None of the corrections are made inside the brochure where the 800-number is listed multiple times. The Board of Directors considers the “brochure incident” resolved. The calls still continue at the drugstore.

Several days later Mark calls in to check on the days he is scheduled to work in the coming week. At that time he is informed by one of the drugstore employees that he has been removed from the schedule, and the rumors are that the store manager blames Mark for the phone number problem as well as the lost business that resulted from the phone lines being tied up by calls seeking tickets to the community festival. Mark is fired because the store manager blames him as being ultimately responsible for the incorrect phone number, the misdirected phone calls, and the resulting loss of business.

What Happened?

In an effort to “clear the air” and prove that he is not responsible, Mark approaches a member of the Board of Directors of the festival organization and explains that he lost his job over the misprinted phone number in the community festival brochure. The Director with whom he speaks apologizes for the problems and advises Mark to blame the store. The Director suggests that he, perhaps, consider filing a lawsuit against the store, because this is not an issue of the community festival organization or of the Board of Directors but, instead, between Mark and the drugstore. The Director also offers to write a letter of recommendation to Mark if he needs this to find another job. However, when Mark needs a letter of recommendation and approaches the Director several weeks later, the Director refuses to provide the letter. Mark is frustrated, because he believes he is not being treated fairly. He now writes a letter to the entire Board of Directors and explains what has happened and asks for an investigation. He never receives a response or any acknowledgment from the Board of Directors about his request for an investigation or about the letter addressed to the Board.

A Case for Change

Every change plan has several elements. When treated appropriately, those elements work together to create a change plan that is aligned from the moment the consumer begins reading or listening. Everything must work with everything else to keep the plan on track as a fundamental guide to how you want a specific change or set of changes to take place. Those elements are analysis, formulation, implementation, and evaluation. You will see that the chapters in your text support your work as you learn to develop each of these elements.

Analysis

The analysis phase of the case deals with a scan of external factors that impact the organization as well as an internal scan of factors. Below, you will see a table that is designed for your use in categorizing external factors that impact the organization. You can type into this table as you work through your analysis to help organize your work.

Opportunities are advantages that belong to an entire industry, and the individual organization does not have control over them. OPEC reduces the price of crude, so oil companies can reduce the price of gas. The result is that more people buy more gas. The fuel industry has the opportunity to sell more gas.

Threats are disadvantages that belong to an entire industry, and the individual organization does not have control over them. For example, the crash of the housing bubble caused many companies to fail if they were associated with housing. The housing industry suffered. Higher gas prices cause people to buy fewer and smaller cars. The automobile industry suffered. A health conscious society results in the consumption of fewer soft drinks. The soft drink industry suffered.

Environmental Pressures	Opportunity	Threat
Fashion
Mandate
Geopolitical
Market decline
Hypercompetition

Below, you will see a table that is designed for your use in categorizing internal factors that impact the organization.

Strengths are advantages that belong to a single company, and the company exercises control over the ability to build this advantage. For example, no matter where I go in the world, I can recognize a Coca-Cola can. Coke has the strongest brand identity in the world, because they spent countless dollars building and exporting their brand. Troy University is #3 in the United States for technology and information security, because we have spent many man hours as well as dollars to insure the safety and security of our information.

Weaknesses are disadvantages that belong to a single company, and the company exercises control over the ability to build this disadvantage. For example, a university (not in the U.S.) recently told me that they had been through four presidents in the last five years. The impact is that this university is suffering from new broom changes, many of which have not been allowed to play out over the course of time. The university is struggling to keep enrollments up and to provide good service to their students.

Organizational Pressures	Strength	Weakness
Growth
Integration and collaboration
Identity
New broom
Power and politics

Below, you will see a table that is designed for your use in categorizing organizational functions that can support or impede change.

Organizational functions	Strength	Weakness
Management
Marketing
Accounting/Finance
Information systems
Research and development

Analysis is a description only of the factors that will impact the organization’s need to change. This is not the place to discuss what strategies need to take place nor is this the place to introduce your recommendations. Analysis is only a description, albeit a very detailed description. This is the place to do some research on the industry and the environment, because many organizations are simply not familiar with the overall environment of the industry. Often, they internalize their problems as “I’m just not good enough” when there are other factors that contribute to the problem.

Formulation

This is the piece that addresses the goals and strategies that you recommend for change. Take on the persona of an outside consultant, and set goals and strategies in an assertive manner. For example, do not tell the organization that it should improve sales. That is far too generic and will not help the organization improve its bottom line. Instead, tell the organization HOW to improve its sales. Give the organization a set of goals and strategies that help it to improve sales. Make recommendations in a straightforward and knowledgeable manner that will help people in the organization want to change.

Implementation

This is the piece that describes the set of action steps that you want to see to fulfill the goals and strategies that you created in the formulation phase. For example, if the goal is to improve sales and if the strategy is to improve sales through market penetration, you want to hire more sales people to help cover the market. The first step in this is to have the HR department hire more sales people. Tell HR how many people you want to hire and when those people need to be on the job. In this phase, you need to be very specific about dates, timelines, who is responsible, how many of what, and all the details that will help your change plan become a reality.

Evaluation

Evaluation is a simple phase if your work in the implementation phase was detailed and provided quantitative expectations. For example, if you told the company to hire 10 sales people by Nov. 1, 2013, the measure is quite simple. Did the company hire 10 sales people by Nov. 1, 2013? If not, why not?

For evaluation, I suggest that you create a table that includes the following columns:

Which action step are you measuring? Who is responsible for reporting results? To whom is that person reporting? When is the outcome expected? How will the outcome be measured? What is the expected outcome? Was the outcome met? (This is a yes or no. Keep it simple and straightforward.)

As you work through your cases we will add a piece to each case. The “No Good Deed” case focuses on analysis and formulation. In McDonald’s, we will add implementation. Finally, in your personal project case, we will add evaluation. The key to developing a case for change is organization, so keep this as organized and straightforward as you can. This is not meant to be tricky, because if it is too tricky, people will not understand your plan and become resistant immediately. I prefer plans that answer questions before they can be asked.

Imagine you presenting this case and having the following conversation during the presentation.

“Why do we need to do this?”

“We need to do this because….. You will find that on page 14.”

If you want to learn to think outside of the box, this is the time to do it. Anticipate questions and give details. Stay away from generic directions, such as “You should do more marketing” and go toward, “We need to spend X dollars on your marketing over the next 6 months to improve your market share.” When you evaluate your plan, you can measure dollars, time, and market share.

Case Outline

I. Introduction – Take the perspective that you are a consultant to the organization and they have hired you to help with their problem. Do not repeat the text of the case. Set assumptions. For example, when did this happen? Yesterday? Last year? Describe the environment relative to the time, place, and industry involved. Introduce the work that will be accomplished to provide a full plan.

II. Analysis

a. External Analysis – no bullets, explain why you included the factors as opportunities or threats. Support this portion of the case with research.

b. Internal Analysis- no bullets, explain why you included the factors as opportunities or threats

i. Diagnostic model that fits the problem. Talk about each piece of the model as it relates to the organization. Support this portion of the case with research. Justify your decision to use your model. Use the models that are in the text.

ii. Cultural Web

iii. Structural Dilemmas

III. Formulation – strategy(ies)/initiatives that will be used to resolve the problem. Do not suggest a remedy, e.g. using the phrase “the company should…”. Instead, tell the organization directly what must happen for them to succeed. These are recommendations that follow directly from your analysis. For example, if you determine that the organization is functioning in a changing industry, e.g. radio and television, your initiatives need to address that problem as it relates to the central issue. In the case of McDs, how would using television and radio remedy the problem of lack of consumer information?

IV. Implementation – Kotter’s Eight Step Model. Each step defines the action steps that must happen for EACH initiative to take place. Be very specific – for example, if you want training to happen, you need to say how many hours of training, who will be trained, the date by which everyone must be trained, and any other details that will help the organization do exactly what it needs to do to successfully change.

a. Plan to address resistance

b. Communication plan

c. Image of change

d. Lessons learned

V. Evaluation – who collects the data? What are the measures? When are they due? To whom are the results reported? Again, be very specific. Make this a table that follows all other portions of your

VI. Conclusion

Individual Case Instructions

You will identify a problem that requires a change initiative through an organization with which you are associated. You will develop the final case by clearly explaining the problem, by including background, and by completing all of the tasks that are identified below.  If you are uncomfortable with using your organization or do not have sufficient visibility to a problem in your organization, you may use the 
No Good Deed
 case instead.

   Here are the tasks to be completed:

1. Use the 
6681 case outline mar9’17 (1).docx


 
 Download 6681 case outline mar9’17 (1).docx to help you structure the case in a logical manner.

2. Identify the symptoms that trigger your awareness of the need for change. This is a short explanation that does not require you to describe everything about your organization. Instead, list the set of symptoms that arise from your organization’s current manner of doing business.

3. Choose one of the following diagnostic models and explain each and every component of that model to fully analyze where the real problem exists.

1. The diagnostic models that you may use are: Six-Box, 7-S, or Star. To use these models correctly, you must discuss, comprehensively, each component of the model as it relates to the case.

2. Do not describe the model for the reader. Instead, explain why you chose the model that you chose as the diagnostic guide.

3. Then, explain your analysis of each model component.

4. Do NOT give recommendations in this section. This section is about analysis only. The analysis section describes current conditions.

4. Explain, in detail, the external factors that are impacting change as they relate to this case. Complete the external table found in 
Elements of a case.docx


 
 Download Elements of a case.docx using the external factors table and the 
6681 PESTLE Analysis.docx


 
 Download 6681 PESTLE Analysis.docx that specifically describe the factors of the external environment. If you have a gap in the information in the table, look it up, and provide current information to complete the table. Again, do NOT make recommendations in this section of the case/change plan. Do not tell me what should happen or what you want to see. Describe ONLY what you find as you analyze the information you have looked about the external environment of this industry. Follow the instructions from the lecture videos.

5. Explain, in detail, why the external forces so important to this situation.

6. Explain, in detail, the internal factors that are impacting change as the relate to this case. Complete the internal tables found in 
Elements of a case.docx


 
 Download Elements of a case.docxthat specifically describe the factors of the internal environment. You will find two internal tables that you will complete. If you have a gap in the information in the table, look it up, and provide current information to complete the table. 

7. Analyze/ Map the organization’s culture by explaining each component of the Cultural Web as it relates to the case. What are the notable aspects of the culture?  

8. Diagnose structural dilemmas by using Table 5.10. You will need to reproduce the table to show your analysis. (Did you include your findings here in your large diagnosis model in question 6 above? If not, you missed something.) You MUST interpret the meaning of the score for your client, not in generic terms, but in terms that apply directly to your client.

9. Assess the organization’s readiness to change by using the table found in exercise 4.3. You will need to reproduce the table to show your analysis. Interpret the results of the table.

I. Note: At this point, analysis is completed. You should see all of the pieces fitting neatly together, such that readiness for change is noted as either a strength or weakness, structural dilemmas are classified as either a strength or weakness, and opportunities and threats are all conditions over which the organization has no control. They simply exist and must be taken into consideration before you make you recommendations.

1. Identify your recommendation for either first-order or second-order change and provide a short explanation about why you chose this level of change. Be explicit.  

1. Design and include a plan for addressing resistance to change.

1. Explain the lessons that you want learned from your story of how your organization needs to change. Tell them why.

1. Explain the image of change management that you are using and why.

1. Using Kotter’s 8 Step plan as a model, create an implementation plan. Be specific by giving dates, timelines, accountable parties, champions, and anything else that will help your plan be completed as you intend for it to be completed. Spell your plan out with steps and graphics. Do NOT give a generic description of what you wish will happen. Instead, give the reader a well-developed set of action steps and dates to guide the organization through the change. 

1. Design a communication plan for this change initiative. Be very specific about how this will be handled.

1. Design an evaluation plan. How will you evaluate your plan? That is, how will you know that your initiative is successful? What are the specific markers that will indicate the success of your change plan? Higher revenues? More transfer of training? Fewer complaints. You must be specific about what your measures of success will be.

1. Format, format, format. Make your paper easy to read by including subheadings for each new piece. Without formatting, your case is just a jumble of words that lose meaning and context. Use color. Use graphics. Use figures. Use tables. Use whatever it takes to keep your reader engaged and wanting to read more. If the reader looks at a page that is all words and more words on the next page, your reader will get lost and disengage from the presentation.

1. Write a conclusion to this piece.