OGL 481 Pro-Seminar I:

PCA-Political Frame Worksheet

Worksheet Objectives:
1. Describe the political frame
2. Apply the political frame to your personal case situation

Complete the following making sure to support your ideas and cite from the textbook and other
course materials per APA guidelines. After the peer review, you have a chance to update this and
format for your Electronic Portfolio due in Module 6.

1) Briefly restate your situation from Module 1 and your role.

I am the owner of my online e-commerce business. At the present moment, I am

selling handmade face masks. I initially priced them low because I didn’t want to

capitalize on the pandemic and was selling them through word of mouth. I ended up

getting more and more orders. I decided to sell them online and raised the prices. I told

people to buy off the site to streamline the process a little better as they were just texting

or calling me before. Since I also use my phone for work, it ended up being a lot to

handle. When they would go to the website, they felt they should have gotten the same

price they had before when I was just starting out. I was actually losing money with

where I had them priced before because I wasn’t factoring in my labor. This ended up

being an issue and I lost some sales because of it. I was selling to friends and family so

this also presented a problem as they wanted the “friends and family” discount (free) or

pennies on the dollar. It started to cause a rift in my relationships.

2) Describe how the politics of the organization influenced the situation.

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 I feel in the beginning of the pandemic, there was a personal power such as

scarcity. We put a higher value on something that is scarce or about to become

unavailable (Bolman & Deal, 2017, pg. 194). Everyone was required to wear a face mask

and are still mandatory to this day but couldn’t find one. Now they are readily available

everywhere. Some may offer more protection than others but still does the job.

Organizations are coalitions of different individuals and interest groups (Bolman & Deal,

2017, pg. 184). Members have enduring differences in values, beliefs, information,

interests, and perceptions of reality (Bolman & Deal, 2017, pg. 184).

What is interesting about how the politics of the organization influenced my

situation is that everyone has varying opinions, beliefs, and information about how face

masks should be made in general to help them during the pandemic. I really started to see

the ugly side of people as they offered their insights and told me how I should make my

product. I would tell them it would cost me more to do it their way so then the prices of

the masks would reflect the same and no one seemed to understand that and scoffed at

me. Who knew there was a political side to something as simple as making face masks. I

had to turn people down because they wanted products that were trademarked and would

be upset if I couldn’t make it for them. I didn’t want to be hit with a fine for making a

profit on licensed material.

3) Recommend how you would use organizational politics for an alternative course of
action regarding your case.

What did help me stand out was that my face masks were scarce in the world of

face masks. I seem to make mine slightly different than others. I also have the ability to

add images via heat transfer or sublimation instead of just sewing already printed fabric

and turning it into a face mask. Because I am able to personalize my face masks, they

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 became a hit and I sell many a day. A personal power I am able to capitalize on is liking

and social proof. I offer face masks that are trending therefore, people like them and buy.

I will research what is popular and put those sayings or images on a mask as long

as long as it is not trademarked. I put my own personal spin on phrases or images to make

them unique and that is a power move. I have to be careful not to make offensive

products but have learned that not everything I do will please everyone. At the end of the

day, they don’t have to buy from my shop and are free to buy anywhere they please. I

have learned to use organizational politics to my advantage to increase profitability and

exposure to my store.

4) Reflect on what you would do or not do differently given what you have learned
about this frame.

I learned about personal power and how to use that to work in my favor instead of

against me. I am a people pleaser so I learned that I can always please everyone. I started

to look at situations objectively if I want to get ahead in my business. Owning a small

business is hard work and takes a certain amount of delicacy to appeal to a certain

audience. I still struggle with how to price products for non profit organizations and

schools as I know it is important for them to want to stay safe but they also don’t have the

resources (funds) to spend on such items.

I learned that if I want to grow my business, I have to set an amount of how much

I am willing to donate and write that amount off at the end of the year during tax season

and decide what is fair to charge without me losing profit in the end as well. I try to make

it where it is a win-win situation for both parties. I have done this for several nonprofits

and schools and it seems to be working out well. This model I haven’t changed since it

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seems to be working. If it ain’t broke, don’t fix it. I have learned to use my resources to

get the word out and that has helped my business.

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 Reference or References

Bolman, L. G., & Deal, T. E. (2017). ​Reframing organizations: Artistry, choice, and leadership

(6th ed.).​ San Francisco, CA: Jossey-Bass.