OGL 481 Pro-Seminar I:

PCA-Symbolic Frame Worksheet

Worksheet Objectives:
1. Describe the symbolic frame
2. Apply the symbolic 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 role with Salad and Go was Assistant Store Manager. Some of my responsibilities were

to lead shifts, ensure goals regarding speed, labor, and accuracy were being met, and develop

team members into more experienced roles. The situation that I would like to discuss was how I

navigated the transition from working with one Store Manager to a different one. The person

who was replacing the current Store Manager was an external hire which was rare for the

company at the time. This was a challenge for me because I had to get accustomed to this

person’s style of leadership while also training him how to properly follow store operations.

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

The symbols of the organization had an impact on this situation. For example, the vision of

this organization is described as, “to make fresh, nutritious food convenient and affordable for

all” (Salad and Go, 2022). This vision links members of the organization together and it is

important that everyone is invested in bringing it to life. When the new Store Manager joined the

team, he did not seem to take the organization’s vision seriously. He would treat his role as just a

job and would not do his part in encouraging the team to work towards achieving the mission.

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This created a negative atmosphere in the store, and I would hear things from team members like

“If the Store Manager is not putting in effort, why should I?”. This is an example of how if even

one member is not aligned with the organization’s vision, it can affect the whole team.

Another way that organizational symbols influenced the situation is the rituals that are in

place. The typical onboarding process for new hires was that they had to pass a test showing that

they know how to make each salad on the menu. The new hire also had to complete three days of

training before they were officially certified. Because the organization started hiring externally

for management positions, the onboarding process was updated. Those who were hired for a

management role had to complete six weeks of training so that they could learn everything that

was needed to be successful in their role. This was a learning curve because current store

managers were not used to completing these trainings. Because of that, the onboarding

experience for the new Store Manager was not as efficient as the usual process.

3) Recommend how you would use organizational symbols for an alternative course of

action regarding your case.

For an alternative course of action, I would use stories to help train the new Store Manager.

As described in the text, stories can be useful tools to communicate messages to others: “It is

through stories that we can see into each other’s souls, and see into the soul of the organization”

(Bolman & Deal, 2021, p. 261). Stories create vulnerable moments between people which help

strengthen their commitment to the organization. I think that if I would have opened up about my

experience with the organization, it could have created a stronger bond between me and the new

Store Manager which would have allowed us to lead together more effectively. Along with that,

sharing stories could have created a more pleasant onboarding experience for the Store Manager

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as it could have made him feel more welcome as well as given him a better understanding of the

importance of the company’s values.

Another way that I would use the organizational symbols for an alternative course of action

is by implementing an area tour for management new hires on their first day. I think that it would

be beneficial for Store Manager trainees to get the opportunity to go around the district with the

District Manager to meet other store managers that they will be working closely with.

Experienced managers can share any advice or knowledge through stories in order to help the

store manager feel welcomed to the company. Along with that, this provides a visual of the

company’s vision and values in action and shows the new hire what is special about working for

the organization. I believe that implementing this type of practice for management new hires

would improve the onboarding process and create a more positive experience.

4) Reflect on what you would do or not do differently given what you have learned

about this frame.

After learning about the symbolic frame, I have new insight to the situation. There are many

factors that contributed to the outcome some being due to the actions of the organization and

others being due to the actions of the new Store Manager and myself. I believe that the

organization could put more effort into showcasing their symbols when management new hires

join the organization so they can understand the meaning and importance behind the

organizational values. I think that this would improve the onboarding experience. If the company

had taken an approach like this to introduce new employees to the organization, then

transitioning to a new store manager may have been a better experience for me and my team. For

my part of the situation, I could have used symbols to improve the situation as well. In difficult

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situations, symbols can be beneficial for bringing people together. I felt very disconnected from

the new Store Manager, and I think that I could have used stories to improve this situation. I also

think that I could have worked with him to create our own rituals for our store to make him feel a

part of team. This is what I would do differently given what I have learned about the symbolic

frame.

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 References

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

(7th ed.). San Francisco, CA: Jossey-Bass

Salad And Go. (2022). About us. Retrieved from https://www.saladandgo.com/about-us/