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.

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

Our team has a lot of great people, but we're missing one thing: good leaders. It
seems like our team members are more worried about their own reputation than the good
of the business. They do not want to be seen as gossipers or backstabbers. They do not
want to lose their jobs because they are not following any rules or policies set by
management. This leads to a negative environment in which employees feel trapped by
their own fear of losing their jobs if they talk negatively about someone else in fear of
retaliation. I am a shift supervisor at Starbucks. As such, I make sure that our customers
have an enjoyable experience while they are in the store. In addition to serving our
customers, I am responsible for making sure that we have enough staff on hand to
manage the flow of customers through the store. I begin my shift by setting up my area
and making sure it is clean and ready for when my team arrives. Once my team arrives,
we greet each other with a smile and get started serving our customers. During my shift I
make sure that we are running smoothly by taking a look around at how things are going
in the store. This includes watching where people are coming from and going to, making
sure that there isn't any confusion about where products are located within the store itself
or what different items look like when they're being made available for sale (this helps
prevent confusion among customers).

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

As a company, Starbucks strives to create an environment where employees can

work and feel comfortable. The company believes that “when leaders aren’t following
proper standards, it creates a very un-standard environment for co-workers” (Starbucks).
The structure of the company is structured in such a way that it allows for open
communication between employees, which leads to more efficient decision making.
When this structure is followed, employees have the ability and freedom to express
themselves without fear of being reprimanded or judged for what they say. This leads to
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 more creative solutions being created by employees as well as increased productivity
within the company.

Starbucks is a matrix organizational structure. This means that the company has
an internal structure where each level of management reports to another level of
management, and also has a top-down hierarchy that brings all levels of management
together. This structure was used by Howard Schultz and his team in order to create a
company that was organized around the idea of "community." He wanted this community
to be a place where people could come together and feel like they belonged, so he created
an organization with clear roles for everyone involved in it. The top-down hierarchy
provides clarity about who does what, but it also gives power over decisions to individual
leaders who are accountable for their own actions. The matrix structure allows for
communication between levels of management without having to go through the level
above them—they can easily talk directly with one another without having to go through
someone else.

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

I would use the matrix organizational structure to address the leading issues that
the store is facing and how it’s affecting the work environment for the rest of the leaders
and partners. The first step in addressing these issues would be to ensure that all
employees are aware of them. I would start by bringing up the issue in my weekly
meeting with all partners, then make sure it’s covered during team meetings, and if
necessary, in individual one-on-one conversations with employees who have been
affected by these issues. I would also speak with any employees who are having trouble
adjusting to their new roles within the organization.

Step two would be identifying ways that we can make changes to our systems or
processes so that we can avoid repeating these problems in the future. This could include
making changes to our hiring practices, training programs, and employee development
programs so that we better equip our employees with the skills they need to perform at
their best levels. It will also include changing our policies regarding how we handle
employee complaints so that there are more opportunities for staff members to voice
concerns without fear of reprisal from management. Finally, step three would be
implementing new practices or procedures so that there is less room for error when
dealing with situations like this one.

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

I would do things differently because I learned that Starbucks' organizational structure is

based on a matrix organization. The matrix organization is a structure that allocates

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power between people and hierarchies. It is a way of organizing work that emphasizes
cooperation, communication, and teamwork. In the matrix organization, a manager is the
one with ultimate authority over his or her team. However, they must also be able to
delegate this authority to other leaders on their team who have more experience in the
field than they do.

Leaders are also expected to be accountable for their actions and decisions by reporting
up through the chain of command until they reach upper management before any
decisions can be made about anything. This means that if someone has made a mistake or
failed at something in their role as leader, it's highly likely that they will be held
accountable for it even if it wasn't intentional or maliciously done.

As a leader, I would not have been able to follow the Starbucks missions and values if I
did not have a good understanding of what they were. The matrix organizational structure
is based on the Starbucks mission and values, which are:

-To inspire and nurture the human spirit through coffee.

-To provide a haven for all our partners to be themselves and do their best work.

-To create a positive impact on our community.

-To ensure that we support farmers and their families.

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 Reference
Bolman, L. G., & Deal, T. E. (2021). Chapter 15. In Reframing organizations: Artistry,
choice, and leadership (7th ed., pp. 63). essay, John Wiley & Sons, Inc.