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.

The situation that I have chosen for this PCA is one that I am currently in now. I am a store
manager that plans to continue to develop and learn from other experiences. I have recently taken
a new store to help with development and put me in a position to continue to grow within the
company. I have now taken a challenging store in every metric and aspect you can think of. My
store now is the second busiest store in the area and not to mention the fastest drive thru
experience in the country. I have the challenging job of going into this store and changing things
to become more efficient and continue the success they have had before me.

This store has several expectations I must meet. I must join a new team that is already adjusted to
the previous manager that was there for three years and running an effective store. I am
challenged with finding new ways and adjusting processes to make the store better within certain
metrics and experience for customers and employees.

The main point to my situation is to navigate through different challenges and realizing
opportunities to continue to grow the business. I am also tasked with making sure that everyone
in the store feels supported with the changes and adaptations for the continued growth. Learning
from each other’s mistakes willing to continue to put in the work even though it might be
difficult at times adjusting to the changes.

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

The structure of the organization is based on results within metrics. It’s very similar to every
other company in which you continue to grow and get better with results and because of that you
continue to develop and gain status within your company. With the situation that I am currently
in, I have the challenge of maintaining what is working within the store and what needs to be
improved on, all while collectively strategizing with the staff that was currently there with the
previous manager. Within the readings there a quote from Jeff Bezos where it says, “its structure
is not for everyone and not the only way to organize” (Bolman & Deal, 2021), speaking on the
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structure within Amazon. I find similarities here based off what I am trying to accomplish and
what has already been accomplished in the past.

To continue to develop and learn you must be in uncomfortable situations that challenge you
personally and professionally. I was chosen to be in this store where they didn’t have a store
manager there for two weeks before I was placed. This team had seen a lot of positive over the
years which included being number one in drive-thru times. My plan was to go in and continue
to keep that metric going while making the others better as well. When I walked into the store, I
noticed there were many opportunities within the operations of the business. I was challenged by
my District Manager who must answer to the Director of Operations as it relates to our area road
map plan. The area road map plan goes through the Regional VP> Director of Operations>
District Manager> Store Manger> Shift Supervisor> Barista. The structure is very easy to follow,
however there are some opportunities when it comes to the communication and how we are
presented the information.

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

When I first started at the store there had been at least two weeks with a store manager in place.
Furthermore, this opportunity for me is considered a Temporary Learning Assignment (TLA).
There are different factors that go into having this as a title for the store. Some of the employees
are given the idea that the past manager will come back and continue to run the store. Currently
this is not the case, and it seems as if though I will remain the store manager for the foreseeable
future. I would have made sure that the staff was informed that the past store manager will not be
back just in case those that resist change will have no option with my current approach. The
information from the District Manager (DM) and Director of Operations (DOO) should have
backed me in joining the store with the opportunity to stay. I would have communicated this
situation a differently to the staff so that they would anticipate change and adaptations their
current operation.

Another alternative course of action would be to introduce me the new Store Manager in an
assimilation where the team got to know me before I went in and started making some
adjustments. There should have been more of a lateral structure to hold some meetings before I
really got started on making the adjustments in the store. The other concern that I would have
done different is how we communicate when things aren’t going the way that the team wanted.
For instance, if they don’t feel like this is the right work, they can go directly to the District
Manager to file a complaint on what they find challenging. Because of this I am left trying to
build a rapport with the team while they can go around me and voice their concerns without me
being present. This resistance to the change is detrimental to the operation and culture. The
approach that was taken could have been smoother of a transition within the structure of the
business.

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

After the readings and putting this together I strongly feel that the approach could have been
different to see all the aspects of resistance. As people we already struggle with change and
adapting, now we introduce a new manager that has the right idea but lacks some support in
being introduced to the team. There are a lot of key points that I took away from the readings that
make sense when trying to adapt into a new structure and culture within an operation. “Groups
choose among a range of options to develop a structure that maximizing individuals’
contributions while minimizing the chronic problems that plague small groups” (Bolman & Deal,
2021). This quote from the readings makes a lot of sense in the situation that I am in. The intent
behind the changes needs to be communicated and well addressed from everyone within the
structure for a good result.

There are infinite amounts of approaches you can take when it comes to this specific situation. In
terms of development this is a good place to be to test your skills and build the capability within
each person in the store. However, if you are looking at information that given and how that was
approached you find some flaws and can identify the challenges that come with the change.
What I would have done differently is having an assimilation where everyone gets to know each
other so that we remain on the same page. Also, utilizing my Shift Supervisors to be my voice
with their direction on some the changes should have been better adapted. For me it’s the
understanding of all the aspects that go into creating a new structure within the store and leaders
should have been differently considering the people, challenges, goals, and environment to be
successful.

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 Reference

Bolman, L. G., & Deal, T. E. (2021). Reframing organizations: Artistry, choice, and leadership.

Jossey-Bass.