OGL 481 Pro-Seminar I:

PCA-Structural Frame Worksheet

My Nguyen

Worksheet Objectives:
1. Describe the structural frame
2. Apply the structural 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.

My current position title is Shift Supervisor at one of Starbucks’s many locations.

Every shift, I am responsible for leading partners in achieving corporate goals. I am
responsible for guiding and coaching baristas in deliver customer service that meet
company standards and highlights Starbucks’s culture. With COVID-19, shift supervisor
expectations are changing.
I am in a position to meet and deliver company expectations while maintaining a
positive working climate. Looking at my resources, I would like to closely examine the
changes in structure, human resources, politics, symbolism, and ethics. I would like to
evaluate how organizational structure has been impacted by the pandemic as well as its
effect on fellow Starbucks partners. By further understanding internal issues and cultural
conflicts, I believe I can grasp a better understanding of our current level of operational
excellence.

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

Looking at organizational structure, I would have to say that roles are the same,
but responsibilities and rules have changed. Responsibilities are now defined as layers of
expectations with each role and a strict regulation of formal rules are to be enforced.
From a more loose environment, it seems that the workplace has become more rigid.
Bolman and Deal have identified this as a significant change in organizational structure
that can hinder flexibility (2017, p. 75). A high-function team at Starbucks requires a
certain degree of flexibility to adapt to unexpected customer service problems and
equipment malfunctions.

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 Aside from an issue of flexibility, a larger amount of information is being
transmitted and a vagueness has been created around roles, responsibilities, and rules. In
the long-run, this hinders partners’ abilities to perform efficiently while in their roles.
However, the company’s mission and store’s vision remains the same. This helps in
maintain alignment with company culture and customer experience has not been
drastically affected. Overall, it is not a difficult task for me to communicate expectations
and maintain alignment.

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

With mission statements and purpose being well-defined, I do not see an issue
approaching alignment or sustaining company culture. However, I would take a closer
look at the current standard operating procedures (SOPs) and company rules. As Bolman
and Deal have highlighted (2017, p. 56), focusing on these areas can help with predicting
barista behaviors and help me understand how to guide behaviors in the workplace. As
our business operates by completing routine tasks while delivering great customer
experience, I can achieve corporate goals by coaching my team on following SOPs.
Performance may be enhanced because margin of error reduces with the presence of
SOPs (Bolman & Deal, 2017, p. 57).

Bolman and Deal have identified several principles that help leaders successfully
deal with structural change (2017, p. 92). Drawing from their principles, I would take a
closer look at my store’s existing structure and process in order to gain a better
understanding of how our store operates (2017, p. 92). I can work with my store manager
to create a strategy that aligns with our store’s environment because that will support any
new structural change (2017, p. 92). Although I understand the need for all the structural
changes, I do not think that the well-being of the workforce should be overlooked.

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

Looking at the structural framework of my organization, I understand the

importance of considering the environment, workforce, and resources (Bolman & Deal,
2017, p. 60). As each café is equipped with different resources, I need to work with my
manager on defining realistic expectations so to not overwhelm baristas at our store.
Corporate expectations do not realistic take into account each café’s capabilities and tend
to set expectations outside of actual deliverables. Therefore, in reiterating our café’s
capabilities with the consideration of multiple variables, I believe that my manager and I
can develop structures that work better for our work environment.

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 Overall, I would try to maintain a moderate to high level of flexibility by
communicating with my staff about our store’s ability to meet goals. I would enlist
everyone’s help in maintain company policies and culture. I will highlight how formal
structure is beneficial and emphasize specific structural changes that will occur in our
store. I will not rigidly follow company guidelines that is not relevant to my café and
push baristas to deliver unrealistic goals. However, I will keep our store’s performance in
mind when working to create or maintain high-functioning behaviors. I will describe
specific strategies and how they are linked to structure and company goals. In doing so, I
believe I will provide baristas with clarity on how to meet daily goals.

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 References

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

(6th ed.). San Francisco, CA: Jossey-Bass (Perusall Version Only)