Melanie Pendleton XXXXXXXXXXYesterday Aug 19 at 6:07pm Take a minute to remember months back before COVID at the last time you visited a McDonald’s or any fast food restaurant. What were the employees...

Melanie Pendleton

Take a minute to remember months back before COVID at the last time you visited a McDonald’s or any fast food restaurant. What were the employees doing when you walked in? Were the employees prompt in greeting you, or were the employees all standing around interacting with each other, both employees and management? When we take the bus to the local Walmart or when mom has a doctor's appt, we would have a quick lunch at the McDonald’s right by the bus stop. Upon entering the location, there were always several employees standing around visiting either behind the counter or the one who was supposed to be cleaning the dining room would be up at the counter talking to the cashier.

McDonald's in the past have been known for a party type organizational culture where the leaders and staff spend more time socializing on the job. The previous CEO was known for partying with employees, being flirting with female employees. After having a consensual relationship with a female employee, which is against the organization's fraternization policy, he was fired (Lucas and Rogers, 2020).

When an organization has this type of culture, there will need to be changed brought on with a massive sense of urgency. The leaders must be looking for red flags, which the leaders of McDonald’s saw were that leaders partying with subordinates on company time and after hours. The sense of urgency was that the change needed happen and happen quickly. Implementing an organizational culture change with a sense of urgency before the employees became complacent with partying with leaders, thinking it was typical for all businesses (Kotter, 2008).

McDonald's brought on a new CEO in November named Chris Kempczinski and is currently attempting to change the organizational culture from a party culture to a professional culture. The CEO has gathered surveys and feedback from stores and stakeholders and making changes within the core values across the board. The new CEO has conducted studies for feedback receiving responses from over 1,000 employees. In the new year, the CEO has implemented the new culture, which will show the values of creating opportunity, community, and solutions (Lucas and Rogers, 2020).

Kotter, J. P. (2008).A sense of urgency. Boston, MA: Harvard Business School Publishing.

William Yaw Adufutse

Thank you Marcus for the discussion. Indeed rewards, and incentives propel employees to reach their heights in productivity and other areas of performance, of which McDonald's employees are no different.

Marcus, and Class, I am not sure if McDonald's incentive program you speak of embodies the whole work force. If so does it include the cashiers, the servers, and all the frontline workers? Then again why the agitation for higher wages?

Thanks,

Brenda Gantt

Walt Disney's organizational culture is one of the most distingue cultures in the world. This culture promotes happiness among all age rage you are never too young or old to enjoy Disney. The Disney organizational culture has a set of principles and customs that will influence employees’ behaviors. Anyone would probably love to work for Disney. The organization’s culture ensures that the employees reflect ideals that support the target customers. Disney’s culture promotes a unique way of seeing the world with fantasies and stimulations. Leaders can overlook how the culture of an organization can affect the communication and behavior of the employees. I have wittiness firsthand the change of Disney. I was in Disney August 25-30- 2020 and it is very different than when I went a few years back. They are doing a great job complying with the covid19 changes and policies. Everyone had to have masks and temperature checks to enter the parks there were social distancing at all times. They have changed many aspects of the parks to meet the cultures for everyone. They have also added more cultural based rides. They have also changed some of the foods that are more culture-based. Walt Disney is a place that makes everyone happy. Disney’s innovative idea is to keep their audience entertained. The changes that Disney made based on culture which will keep the organization successful. Disney is a multinational organization they have had to make a cultural change according to the country. Shanghai was the first to make a cultural change by making changes for china which was very successful. According to the article by Mason, R. (2004) stated “Organizational change can serve as a powerful engine that can stimulate organizational evolution. Some organizations change reluctantly and adapt only when they are forced to do so. Other organizations seek change as a means of creative reinvention.” (p. 59). Leaders can overlook how the culture of an organization can affect the communication and behavior of the employees. Organizational leadership in culture change should be authentic and proactive, when developing an environment that will support culture changes the idea is to cultivate the workplace.

References

Mason, R. (2004).
Organizational Change Model.Futurics,28(3), 59-82. https://search-proquest-com.proxy-library.ashford.edu/docview/219810848?accountid=32521

Catina Artenantmartin

Starbucks has been a complacent and status quo organization for many years as their sales and popularity have been steady. They had been steady establishing their culture of inclusive comfort and a space of comfort and cozy while sharing coffee, conversation or doing work using their free internet, this was also called café culture where you can hang out as long as you needed to and were made to feel comfortable (Poole, 2002). Yet brewing within their organization culture has been something a bit more bitter than their dark roast from a far-off country. Starbucks has been complacent in their actions by not responding to complaints and inquiries as they should have (Kotter, 2008).

It wasn’t until a video recording of the treatment a customer received from a manager at one of the Philadelphia, PA locations that drew attention to their cultured problem of systemic racial bias. Due to the media attention and the backlash of negative attention from around the globe, threats of a boycott and protest-Starbucks was forced to shut down all 8000 stores to provide bias training to 175,000 workers in addition to agreeing to additional sensitivity training and hiring more managers of color (Olson & Pisani, 2018).

Starbucks has been working on their organization culture as it relates to race within their organization as well as race relationships with their customers continually and recently failed again with their initial opposition to the Black Live Matter attire, they sent an internal memo that no employees are to adorn in any attire or other forms of wearable expressions. This time instead of complacency, they pivoted very rapidly to retrack their memo and even ordered company sponsored attire supporting Black Lives Matter. Money and the potential loss of money drives change more than anything else within organizations.

This is a large organization that needs to continue to work on their culture continuously and not attempt to get complacent.

References

Kotter, J.P. (2008).A sense of urgency. Boston, MA: Harvard Business School Publishing.

OLSON, A., & PISANI, J. (2018, April 18). Starbucks to Close Stores For an Afternoon for Bias Training: More than than 8,000 stores will close May 29 after protests and calls for a boycott after arrest.Skanner (Seattle, WA & Portland, OR Combined Edition),40(29), 11–14.

Poole, B. (2002). Café Culture.Whole Earth,108, 10.