OGL 481 Pro-Seminar I:

PCA-Structural Frame Worksheet

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.
• Briefly restate your situation from Module 1 and your role.
The situation selected for my personal case analysis revolves around an overly ambitious
founder and CEO, Trevor Milton, and the fraudulent actions taken that led to Federal
Fraud charges and his personal demise. My role with the organization is an external
investor.
• Describe how the structure of the organization influenced the situation.
As the founder and CEO of Nikola Motor, Milton had complete control over the initial
structure of the organization. Relying on a vertical structure eliminated the possibility of
individuals to have a voice in major decisions being made behind closed doors which led
to a major public scandal and Milton no longer having the public perrception needed to
be the leader of the organization. The initial top-down structure of the organization
granted unilateral communication for Milton as he built the false narratives that poisoned
the organization. As Bolman and Deal (2021) state "Lateral communications work best
for complex or creative tasks performed in a turbulent environment. Every organization
must find a design that works for its circumstances." One can see how the structure
initially created by Milton influenced decisons leading to the fallout.
• Recommend how you would use structure for an alternative course of action
regarding your case.
Creating a tighter structure would be the top priority for one looking to fix the culture left
behind by the scandal and Milton. The loose strucure was fueled by too much autonomy
with little collaboration between marketing, engineering and production as pushing a
vehcile out before it was ready due to a promised deadline that was impossible to reach.
A strucuture that offer more interdependence among departments would have allowed
Milton the ability to delegate more efficiently and could have led to a bettter outcome for
the organization as a whole. The description offered by Bolman and Deal (2021) of the
impulsive firm is a fairly accurate desription of the state Nikola was in when in the
control of the Milton. However, Nikola failed to flourish due to broken promises and
misleading stakeholders. The early decisions made by the organization seemed to have a
domino effect and the lie continued to grow with each false vehicle specification
released.
 • Reflect on what you would do or not do differently given what you have learned
about this frame.
As a stakeholder in the organization I would have requested more specific information on
how decisons were being made internally. More specifically, the checks and balances
system in place to keep all individuals involved with the inital stages honest. After
learning more about the strucutre of the organiztion there is a high possibility that without
a restructure I would request a vote for a change in leadership. The pressure was felt
mainly due to gaps in the structure leading to a breakdown in communiation. Therefore,
creating a more efficient system that allowed for more collaboration between there
multiple departments involved in creating a produt video to spark excitement for
investors. The amount of misleading information released goes back to the integrity of
the company and the culture created by the founder.

Reference or References Bolman, L. G., & Deal, T. E. (2021). Reframing organizations:

Artistry, choice, and leadership (7th ed.). San Francisco, CA: Jossey-Bass