UNICOR - Analysis of Going Global & Inclusion

The Wolf Pack

College of Integrative Sciences and Arts, Arizona State University

OGL 355: Leading Organizational Innovation and Change

Dr. Tammy Campbell

September 26, 2021

 UNICOR - Analysis of Going Global & Inclusion

Under its current configuration, Federal Prison Industries, Inc., more commonly known as

UNICOR, operates solely within the confines of the United States. Over the course of this paper, we will

make a case as to why we believe that it would be in UNICOR's best interest to expand operations outside

of U.S. borders into new international markets, and will outline our plan for implementing such an

expansion. We will begin by addressing what county in specific we intend to expand into and providing

the rationale for doing so. Following that, we will discuss our chosen mode of entry to employ in our

global expansion, as well as political and social issues and cultural differences between relevant countries

to be aware of. Before concluding our discussion of our plans for expansion, we will also cover key

information relating to our plans pertaining to actions for inclusion and activities and attitudes for trust.

UNICOR Federal Prisons Inc. Expanding to Mexico

UNICOR has taken interest in working with federal prisons in Mexico. Since we are part of a

community that believes in positive changes and good investments, we believe that expanding our

operations to Mexico will provide inmates with more adequate treatment and better job opportunities. Our

operations will include an industrial diversity that would be more conducive to issuing unlimited inmate

employment, this way overcrowding and idleness can be reduced and it is evident that Latin American

governments would agree. Said governments believe that, “Prison expansion will reduce overcrowding,

corruption, and horrendous conditions,” (UKEssays, para. 6, 2020). With the expansion of our sales team

in Mexico, we strive to implement change in the Federal system to ensure that all inmates have fair

treatment and the proper training to maintain employment. Our expansion will allow us to continue to not

only increase sales but develop new programs and products that will continue to contribute to the success

of our organization and theirs as well. UNICOR is the perfect paradigm of a successful corporation and

this expansion will not only be cost effective since it’s near the U.S. border, but it will develop new

business relationships.
 Mode of Entry

Our chosen method of entry is a strategic alliance with the National Security Commission in

Mexico. A strategic alliance is a contractual agreement between two or more enterprises. All parties

involved will come to an agreement on how the partnership will operate in order to meet their shared

goals (Mariadoss, n.d.). One of the advantages to a strategic alliance is it helps the company enter a

foreign market with a partner that is familiar with the culture and business climate. Working with a local

partner can be beneficial for an outside company because they may already have resources and existing

relationships in the industry. Another advantage is that costs can be shared between all parties involved

(Mariadoss, n.d.). One of the disadvantages of entering into a strategic alliance is giving up full control of

the operation. This is a partnership which will require the foreign company to work with the local

enterprise and adjust their operations to meet the needs of the alliance.

UNICOR has chosen the National Security Commission (NSC) as the local partner in Mexico for

this strategic alliance. The mission statement for the NSC is to “Implement national penitentiary policy to

prevent the commission of the crime, readapt those sentenced and give treatment to juvenile offenders,

through suitable systems that allow their readjustment to society…” (Comisión Nacional de Seguridad,

n.d.). We believe that both UNICOR and NSC are aligned in their goal to prevent inmate recidivism and

prepare them for their reintroduction to society. Implementing the UNICOR model in Mexico can help

them to create programs that will allow inmates to gain training and practical work skills. We believe that

giving inmates the opportunity to earn wages will further contribute to the mission of minimizing crime

and we can create similar success in their prison system as we have at UNICOR. Additionally, this will

help UNICOR to gain market share in a foreign country and increase revenue. A strategic alliance with

the NSC in Mexico is the best mode of entry to ensure that we can help them create a program that aligns

with their mission and not just sell them our products through licensing.
 Political and Economic Issues

UNICOR's interest in expanding its organization globally with Mexico comes with some political

and economic challenges that may affect the entry of the new territory. The two countries have had past

tension over trade policy, tariffs, border security issues and drug trafficking affairs (Seelke, C.R. 2021,

Pg. 2, P. 2). Corruption and crime have long been an issue at multiple levels for the Mexican government

and political parties, which has made doing business in Mexico complex. The Mexican economy in GDP

has been affected by this as much as nine percent annually and has led to a new political reform by the

new President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrado (AMLO) (O'Neil, K. 2019). Mexico has also entered into

an agreement with the United States and Canada on July 1st, 2020, called The United States-Mexico-

Canada Agreement (USMCA), geared to address the economy's needs between the three countries in

environmental cooperation. The agreement supports the mutual agreement to benefit the trade market for

more accessible, fairer and robust economic growth for North America. The agreement hopes to generate

job opportunities, improve worker protections, and increase agricultural trade that will set a standard

across the three countries (U.S. Department of State. 2021).

The political standing between Mexico and the U.S. have become balanced with the United States

as both countries have managed bilateral relationships with the agreements they have created together for

economic opportunities and relationship backing. The USMCA brings the political and economic ties of

the U.S and Mexico together in creating a free-trade agreement with new market access. This creates a

stronger bond between the North American countries to improve pricing, product standards and worker

protection. The leverage and backing of this agreement should provide a sustainable and more

competitive market for both the U.S. and Mexico countries. Looking at the future, we see the political

issues between the U.S. and Mexico will remain solid and vital while also bringing economic

revitalization to businesses in the countries.

 Key Cultural Differences Between the U.S. and Mexico

Some major cultural differences between the United States and Mexico include those relating to

the justice systems and human rights violations. In the United States, the legal system has not improved at

all. Potential explanations for this lack of improvement include the prevalence of police brutality and the

underfunded and under focused nature of many American prisons (UKEssays, para. 12-13, 2020). The

United States provides inmates job opportunities whereas Mexico inmates are deprived from work

therefore, leaving them without the possibility of earning wages to buy the necessary essentials to provide

for themselves. Unfortunately, inmates are abused and treated poorly in Mexico, especially women, who

are mostly affected by the situation and mistreated entirely. Simply put, “The prison system is not

structured to accommodate the basic needs of women,” (Carroll & et, pg. 12, 2018). UNICOR’s goal is to

change that and implement innovative ways that would improve the conditions of the Federal prisons in

Mexico. In order to achieve this, we expect supervisors and upper management to go through extensive

training so they can gain the proper knowledge of our products and help inmates with job assignments.

Additionally, it is important to understand that, “For prison guards who have been in their role since

before the reforms, there may need to be heightened scrutiny to ensure that they are approaching their

jobs with an understanding of prisoners as subjects, not objects,” (Carroll & et, pg. 47, 2018).

By providing women with jobs, it would help them earn wages so they can purchase their

personal supplies since most of them don’t receive commissary or do not ever see their families due to

being disowned, abandoned, or forgotten. The women in Mexico are treated more harshly than those

women in the U.S. since they still receive some kind of support from their families after being

incarcerated. “As stated previously, women in prisons in Mexico are not supplied with the necessities that

they need. Women are not granted free feminine hygiene products and may even become shackled,”

(UKEssays, para. 15, 2020). Therefore, with UNICOR’s partnership, Federal prisons in Mexico will have

the opportunity to alleviate the brutal conditions that these inmates have been experiencing because

“Public defenders are less interested in zealously defending women because of the cultural stigma. In a
system where a prisoner needs an advocate to successfully assert her rights, women prisoners in Mexico

find themselves completely disempowered,” (Carroll & et, pg. 12, 2018). UNICOR believes that through

marketing centers it would relieve the systemic abuse of prisoners. We have different programs such as

vocational training, education (GED), construction, and computer systems just to name a few that would

help inmates not only behind bars but also when they’re released.

Actions for Inclusion

There are currently little to no job opportunities for inmates in Mexican prisons. In fact, only

2.9% of inmates have formal jobs regulated by the government (Penal Reform International, 2017). On

the other hand, 65% of Mexican inmates do make money while incarcerated but these are informal means

of work that the government and prison system does not regulate or employ. In this section, we will

examine actions for inclusion of UNICOR within the Mexican prison system to not only enhance prison

life but also provide opportunities for inmates to abandon a life of crime upon reentry to society.

DO NOT DO

Provide meaningful work opportunities Fail to offer real world working skills

Ensure safe working conditions Undermine inmate labor rights

Offer adequate wages Underpay

Provide tools & material at no cost to inmates Rely on inmates to fund work programs

For UNICOR to expand to Mexico successfully, it would be crucial for the organization to offer

meaningful work programs that are similar to those in the United States. These programs would need to

provide Mexican inmates with access to training for jobs that they could explore beyond prison. Not all,

but most of the current employment opportunities within Mexican prisons do not provide transferable

skills that inmates can put to use in the work world once they are released. In doing so, UNICOR would

be not only educating and preparing inmates for a life free of crime, but giving workers a sense of dignity

that most are stripped of within the Mexican prison system (Penal Reform International, 2017). Providing
valuable work skills increases personal achievement and, if employed enough, can change the “university

of crime” stigma that Mexican prisons are sanctioned with.

UNICOR would take on a big task of providing safe working conditions, but this is an imperative

aspect to establishing domicile within these prisons. At least 65% of Mexican prisons are controlled by

criminal gangs. With numbers this high, the Mexican government faces a huge obstacle in providing

proper safety for inmates. According to Mexico News Daily, the Chamber of Deputies found that on

average, there is one murder every day in these gang controlled institutions (Mexico News Daily, 2017).

Knowing that they can work safely free of violence and corrupt staff, inmates would be more inclined to

participate in proper work programs leaving behind informal means of prison employment. It would be

most reasonable for UNICOR to bring in outside staff to operate inmate work programs, rather than

relying on Mexican prison staff as a large number are part of the gang control.

UNICOR is known for paying inmates low wages in the United States, but with expanding into

Mexico where inmates have additional financial responsibilities, it would not be beneficial or ethical for

the organization to pay their typical wages. Along with basic necessities, Mexican inmates pay for things

such as protection and being counted on attendance, to only name a few. They must pay prison guards

and other inmates for these services which can cost as much as $300 each month to simply survive their

sentences (Penal Reform International, 2017). With very limited work opportunities, these expenses

usually fall on the shoulders of the inmates' families. Those who are employed through government jobs

are only paid 45 pesos per day, which is equivalent to just over 2 dollars. This low wage is not enough to

cover Mexican inmates' basic financial needs to survive. UNICOR executives should carefully review the

monthly costs that inmates face in Mexico to avoid underpaying workers to such a degree that they are

not able to finance protection for the durations of their sentences.

To be successful and encourage inmates to work for UNICOR’s programs, the organization

should not rely on inmates to financially fund the necessary tools and materials for production. The work
programs that are already in place within Mexican prisons are typically funded by inmates. As much as a

third of their earnings can be deducted for prison administration and work program funding (Prison Legal

News, 2003). This practice is one of the many reasons that some inmates choose to work for the

“informal economy” in prison (Penal Reform International, 2017). UNICOR would not be more

successful in Mexico than the existing work opportunities if the organization continued to use inmate

funds to purchase the tools and materials needed to complete the jobs of work programs.

Attitudes or Activities for Trust

UNICOR is an organization that has history, tradition and in more recent years, controversy. One

of the biggest ways to change the controversial image is to participate in philanthropy and make the world

a better place. Mexico obviously is a country with close proximity, and does not have the history of

workplace programs for prisoners. In this section, we will look at how we can make the two sides trust

each other as they work together in a long term relationship.

DO’s DON'Ts

Learn about the Mexican Culture Force cultural assimilation

Learn about current work practices Immediately enforce own work practices

Joint country-person team build Avoid intros or ice breakers

Common communication and understanding Alienate host culture and ideas

In the 1960’s and 1970’s Chevrolet had the extremely popular car the Nova. They tried to market

this same vehicle into Spanish speaking countries without doing their own research. In Spanish, Nova

translates to “doesn’t go or move.” This is now the classic case study of what not to do. Before members

of UNICOR go to Mexico, they need to research and understand the common tendencies of the region of
Mexico they’re going to. The last thing they should do is assume that they know the culture and go off the

stereotyped perception they see in the United States.

There are many ways UNICOR can present their service and product to the Mexican prison

system. Being that there are cultural differences, the best way for UNICOR to handle this relationship is

to use an consultative approach. They need to initially see what is currently in place and what is working

and not working for their prison system. The worst thing that can happen is to correct the Mexican

Government’s system before understanding all pieces and having developed relationships. After final

inspections of the process, then UNICOR can then correct tailor what will and will not work in

implementation of a new prison workplace system.

In the workplace how do you learn about those you work with and create the seed of trust with

them? The two organizations need to do introductions to humanize each individual. This helps the

individual to feel valued that everyone can see them as an equal, the group can see human nature and

learn more about the individual. Team Builds and Ice Breakers are designed to make everyone in each

group interact with one another. By working with one another in a more relaxed setting like this, it creates

trust for team members when the situation is more difficult. The more analytical employee would see

these activities as a waste of time, but in actuality it speeds up the process to become one working team.

When reading the final DO for this section, it is easy for one to think that The United States and

Mexico do not have the same native language. This is correct. Communication is much more than using

the same language, people can communicate visually and with gesticulation. When the two sides have

common communication, it leads to having a common understanding. The overall goal for UNICOR to

work with the Mexican Government’s Prison System to work as one cohesive unit. All of the activities in

this section are in place to specifically help to make this happen. Is this process going to be easy,

obviously no, but all of this is in place to make it easier.

 Conclusion

To summarize, we believe that UNICOR should expand its global reach by working with prisons

in Mexico, as our services could help improve issues facing Mexican prisons such as overcrowding and

idle inmates, while providing our organization with new sources of revenue. Additionally, Mexico’s close

proximity, and shared border with Federal Prison Industries, Inc.’s home country, the United States,

allows for greater convenience and easier communication between countries. With regards to the impact

of social and political issues, as well as that of cultural differences between the U.S. and Mexico on the

implementation of global expansion, we believe that attitudes towards female inmates as well as more

general issues with the respective prison systems are important to keep in mind. Lastly, it is important to

make sure that efforts for global expansion are executed with diligence and intention. When providing

jobs to inmates in our new affiliated prisons in Mexico, we must make sure to do so in a way that is

meaningful and impactful if we wish to have the success of our international outreach reflect the success

of our current domestic prison work programs.

APPROVAL: (sign off with initials by 12pm AZ time 9/25/2021) - plan to submit by 11:59pm
9/26/2021

Wendy Haley Davis Nicole Barrera Cassandra Declan Sperry Sean Bousfield
Santana - WS HD - NB Atalig- CA - SB
- DS
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