Case 2.1 The Consolidated Life Case: Caught Between Corporate Cultures
A manager such as Jack could have an impact on the culture of a workplace, but it is more likely to be a negative impact than a positive one, due to his oppressive management style. Demanding improvement without facilitating it via a better work environment, adequate training, and the building of good work relationships results in anxious employees who are not empowered to do what they have been directed to do. The companyÆs morale was already very low under JackÆs management when Mike returned, and many employees were looking for jobs. The Forum was organized as a means of improving the work environment. Jack perceived the Forum as a forming ôunionö and a threat to his unquestioned authority, viewing Mike as a dangerous upstart who might be trying to take over the reins (ôChapter 2: Organizational Culture,ö 71).
Although MikeÆs intentions were good, he violated the norms of expected behavior. First, he violated the chain of command, failing to ôunderstand the order of authority and the method of communicating with managementö (ôChain of Commandö). The proper approach would have been to present his idea about the Forum to Rick and have Rick present it to Jack. This would have allowed Jack to retain control of the situation and not feel as threatened. Second, banding together with the group while excluding Jack was a serious faux pas. Even though Rick okayed the Forum, MikeÆs independent action appeared to be insubordinate.
Mike would have obtained better results by taking time to diagnose the new culture at Consolidated Life before acting. His identifying solely with the workers and not Jack may have improved morale and performance, but it mitigated against JackÆs authority, and Jack was an authoritarian leader. Furthermore, his confiding in Rick without realizing that Rick was in JackÆs camp was a serious political error. Mike cou...