Cross Cultural Communication

Kartik's Web poster about cross-cultural communication is very relevant in a globalized business world. I liked the fact that the poster used a specific example to illustrate a larger point. I have read about collectivist vs individualistic cultures in text books, but it takes personal experience to know the smaller, more subtle differences that can have significant consequences. Communication literature has many examples of cultural mis-steps by corporations entering new markets. Euro-Disney is one example of poor cultural planning. While initially Disney expected to clone their success in Anaheim, in the French countryside, they soon found out that cultural differences can be financially costly.

Story Coach

The subject of Violet's Web poster is organizational culture. I was interested particularly in the the "Story Coach" diagram, because several years ago, the organization I work for attempted a culture change. As Violet points out, this is not an easy thing to accomplish. Our company spent many hundreds of thousands of dollars on promoting the new vision of the company. The consulting firm that was hired to structure the roll out, had a motivational speaker who told a story from past experience to inspire employees. I did think the story was useful and dramatic, and the company put a lot of effort into this change. After about a year however, the effort seemed to fade out as management no longer seemed to be quite as commited. Although I think it the program did make some positive changes, it was not as successful as the company had hoped.

Communication Climate

Looking at Crives's Web poster about the relationship between communication and job satisfaction reminded me of a related section in our text; job satisfaction does not necessarily translate to organizational effectiveness or success. It seems Crives was on the right track in expanding the "Current" section of his poster to look at job satisfaction and organizational culture. I think job satisfaction would have a definite impact on culture, which is bound to "seep out" to customers or other external constituents. Even a lack of communication can be seen as a manifestation of a company's culture that has far reaching implications for business relationships.

Transparency

I agree with the idea behind ZamoraDesign's Web poster, the public would definitely benefit from greater transparency in GO's and NGO's. I also thought that the challenges were well represented. NGO's get the benefit of being good corporate citizens if they are transparent, but at the same time they have to maintain some degree of confidentiality in a competitive market. Government organizations however should be obligated to be transparent, after all, they are in a position of public trust. I am not sure how it would work to have third party oversite, as Zamora pointed out, who would keep an eye on them, and more importantly, who would foot the bill?

Second Life

I enjoyed Anima's Web poster not only because it was informative, but also because it was a demonstration of the concept of virtual worlds. The idea of a second life holds a lot of promise in different spheres of activity. I can absolutely envision its usefulness in areas such as product development, modeling, and education. I also appreciated the acknowledgment of its limitations outlined in the text. One of my issues about technology was humorously illustrated by a TV ad: the camera pans over a reenactment of a 1950's auto show, and lingers over Jetson style "cars of the future." Meanwhile, the voice over asks: "Where are the cars we were promised?" I think of this ad as the server goes down at work, the Website I was looking for has been taken down, the FAQ's on a Web page don't address my question, and I loose my wireless connection at home computer - all things that have happened to me in the last 2 weeks. My point is that the promise of seamless, integrated technolgy has yet to be delivered in first, or second life. Message to tech companies: promise less, deliver more.

Interactive Frustration

I am well aware of the imperative to save money, especially during the current financial downturn, but would really appreciate some attention to customer service. I would think that when business is slow, companies would pay special attention to differentiating themselves from the competition by being attentive to customers. Apparently that is not the case. I recently received a bill for a purchase made four months ago. When I went on line to pay it, I was not able to access my account due to "Error code 205" - whatever that was. When I tried to contact the company, I became frustrated by endless voice mail options and long hold times. I finally tried to pay on-line one more time only to have the system take my credit card number, but then respond with another error message leaving me to wonder whether my card had been charged or not. Technology needs human support for good customer service.

Technically Speaking

I work for a nationwide company, that has offices in over 60 cities. We all perform almost identical functions, but we use four different platforms and at least that many software systems to accomplish related tasks. I remember the roll-out for one of these systems; managers had to drive to a far away facility to attend an elaborate presentation by the vendor and company executives. When the system went "live" a number of problems began to surface, as the system was sometimes unreliable and did not provide the level of detailed information that is often required. Use of the system was monitored by the corporate office, and I soon received a call asking why our facility was not using the system consistently. I explained the situation, and they responded by sending a team from the vendor to essentially make another sales pitch. I explained what the issues were and provided examples, only to be assured these were temporary issues. Five years later the problems are not entirely resolved, but with a long term contract in place the vendor does not have much incentive to improve. I think the corporate executives who make important purchasing decisions should solicit feed-back from staff member before making expensive, long-term decisions.

To Team or Not To Team

One defining aspect of contemporary organizations is teamwork. Whenever I hear about a team being formed, whether it is at school or at work, the first thing I listen for is wheter the teams will be self-constituted, or by assignment. Teams that emerge because members have a desire to work together can function extremely well - you can almost feel the excitement and energy of a group that's really "working" together. New ideas are generated spontaneously because everyone has a desire to contribute. Conversley, you know the group will not work well if your first thought is about how you are going to do the extra work to cover for the slacker s. Soon everyone in the group begins to feel resentful and begins to take a prioritary stance toward their "own" ideas. I think managers should take more than a passing interes in how assigned groups function, to head off any surprises for projects on a tight deadline.

Spin(ing) Out Of Control

The importance of organizational communication has grown over the years, and it is easy to see why, in and out of this election season. While political speech is often inflammatory to the point of being tuned out by many constituents, subtle strategies require more careful analysis. One humorous radio ad a few years illustrated the point by "deconstructing" celebrity infomercials. While a prototypical ad played in the background, the announcer/narrator provided an alternative interpretation for the hype; "media personality" became "has-been out of work actor" and the "miracle" product became "left over seconds from the Home Shopping Network." A careful reading of today's most common buzzwords: opportunity, choice, challenge, responsibility, to name a few, can provide surprising alternative meanings in alternate contexts.

ID In and Out

In the course of my readings on organizational identity, I noticed a theme: the idea that organizational identities emerge as a result of interaction between internal and external constituents. I agree with this perspective, but not to the degree hypothesized by organizational scholars. At the risk of taking an essentialist stance, I thought about my current work situation. Employees at my facility are anxiously awaiting news about its imminent take over by another company, while management's lack of communication has added fuel to the fire. Many customers have asked questions that employees cannot answer leading to vague speculation on the part of internal and external constituents. These "doubtful" interactions however are limited to personal contact and go unacknowledged on the facility website or external publications. By virtue of the fact the official versions of identity are more widely disseminated, I feel the effect of personal interaction is limited.

Communicating Change

Larkin and Larkins advice about communicating change (p. 331) made alot of sense to me. I thought about a customer service initiative carried out by my company several years ago. I remember the roll out was scheduled in a large hotel banquet room at the Los Angeles airport, 35 miles from where I worked. The room was crowded with about 200 other managers and employees, there to see a pesentation by a motivational speaker who was to change the "culture" of the organization. The long afternoon featured story telling (by th speaker), videos, and a give-away of trinkets with slogans. The roll out was followed by strongly encouraged participation in commitees at each facility, tasked with coming up with ways to incentivize participation. As you can tell by now, implementation was top-down, and enthusiasm was "mandatory." Soon thereafter, the company encountered legal and ethical problems that created large gaps between espoused values and vision. The message of the change initiative was undermined. About a year ago, the division news letter contained an article by the CEO that was prompted by an employee asking: "Are we still doing that?(initiative)." Although he assured everyne that "we never stopped," it was a defense that fell on deaf ears.

Same Old Change

I am an antique car buff and have serveral cars from the 1950's. The section on the dialectic of change and stability reminded me of an adevertising slogan used to promote '58 Chevy's, which had been completely redesigned from the previous year: "New All Over - All Over Again." I think the slogan captures the dialectic of change, as well as its institutionalization. Today, I rarely pay attention when I hear the words "new" or "change" because the novelty of change has worn off, and change has become an expectation. Although necessary if an organization is to have a long term future, some referents to existing systems must be maintained so that organizations do not destabilized to the point of ineffectiveness.

Conflict Management Styles

Following an emplyee "satisfaction" survey issues surfaced about percieved favoritism, and unfair promotional practices. The department manager who had an authoritarian, style that was percieved as cold and efficient, convened a "communication team" to address these issues. Employees were informed that they had been designated to participate by email, but had no input about agenda items, team structure or processes. At the first meeting we were presented with a list of agenda items such as improving the department morale, increasing motivation, and resolving any tensions that inhibit the smooth functioning of the department. The group would have 4 one hour sessions to devise solutions to these problems and plans to implement them. After the manager walked out, there was stunned silence. Needless to say, this dominant conflict management style (p. 291) was not conducive to resolving the overarching and fundamental issues we were tasked with. Because the outcome was a forgone conclusion, the group fell apart in a few weeks, as issued continued to simmer under the surface.

Group Conflict

During the course of my college education I have participated in several group project. Statistics for productive cooperation are about 50/50 in my experience. My first time was a very positive experience, with group members working well together. The other extreme took place a few years later, when we were asked to form teams to present a chapter from our textbook. I teamed up with one other person, and we had begun working on our presentation, when the instructor placed a third student in our group. Although we were unhappy about it, we were being graded as a team, therefore felt we could not complain. The fact that our work was already half done and that the new student had missed many classes did not help matters. On the day of our presentation our third team mate did not show up for class, nor did she attempt to contact us. She later claimed she had had a family emergency. My team mate and I felt used and angry at the other student, as well as the professor.

Conflict In the Workplace

The broad definition of conflict in our text covers a lot of territory: "interaction of interdependent people who perceive incompatible goals and interference from one another" (p. 275). I think line employees experience conflict primarily at the micro level, which can (or cannot) transition to a macro level through the ranks of organizational hierarchy. One mistake that high level stakeholders often make is to assume they can overcome micro level conflict by means of authority and control. Since low level members can seldom challenge authority overtly, conflict is expressed through subversion. One of the articles I am reading talks about the concept of "distancing" - doing no more than what is required to get by. I think of distancing as a form of subversion, in response to unresolved conflict.

Dissent Up - Side - Down

The expression of disagreement is an interesting topic for me to consider in vew of the fact that my facility is up for sale. I think of it as "waiting to exhale" as rumors fly, business declines and employees are look for other jobs, all the while waiting for "the announcement" that another operator will take over - talk about a rich communication environment. Management initially put on an up-beat facade, assuring everyone that another company will quickly step up. Four months, and one financial crisis later, assurances have tapered to quiet anxiety. Most employees blame upper mamnagement for souring the organizational climate for the patient referrals that are the bread and butter of the facility, as well as forcing out a number of dedicated staff members. Upper management are probably wise to direct mediated forms of dissent upward, in hopes of being transferred to other company locations, while line employees can only make their frustration known to each other. A few months ago 9x12 framed color hotographs were hung on the wall of the main corridor. As I walked by I heard one employee say to another..."its the hall of shame."

Organizational Control

Electronic monitoring is one of the insidious ways that organizations monitor employees. It used to be that checking the phone bill was one of the few ways that management could monitor employees - today however the options have increased significantly, with no end in sight. The short list at our facility is: phone bill, e-mail, closed cicuit camera, and key strokes. The other day I went to luch with a coworker, in a seldom used area of the building. On our way back, my coworker noticed a sign that said: "This entrance is monitored by closed circuit camera and voice recorder." I was suprised about the voice recording because I had thought we were in an area where we could have a confidential conversation.

Been There

The film Being There, discussed in the book, is a great example of the unintentional exercise of power. In a sense, you can look at the organization of society as a series of power relationships, where power is exercised deliberately, as well as unintentionally. The line between the two are frequently blurred for example by advertising...did your neighbor buy a Lexus for inferent status (an expression of power), or for quality? While overt power is laid out by the structure of organizations, covert power is often exercised throught chanels of communication (think grapevine). Ultimately, both influence the environment in which they operate.

Participation Paradox

Several paradoxes related to participation (p. 237/238) are present at the organization and government level. For example, the paradox of homogeneity was was evident in the findings by NASA, that the shuttle disaster was attributable in part to "group think," the idea that constructive questioning is tantemount to disloyalty to the group, and therefore silenced by peer pressure. The dialectic of exclusion-participation is also evident, and I think necessary, in all organizations. As Dr Coopman points out in her post, the Comm dept. at SJSU lists democratic participation among its values. The degree to which that plays out in the classroom depends to some extent on the professor, to some extent on the department, and to some extent on the university. Participation is usually not all or nothing but where the organization or team, fall on the scale

Getting a Handle On Power

After being promoted to a supervisory position at a former employer, I had the responsibility of managing two notoriously difficult employees who had previously been my co-workers. Initially I considered turning down the promotion but eventually decided to take on the challenge. In that situation, I had a limited amount of Reward and Legitimate power, but virtually no Coercive, Referent, or Expert power, because both employees had been with the company much longer than I had. I was able to make the situation work by focusing on the cooperative aspect of supervision, while building on the positive social relationships I had previously established. As the book points out, power is continually negotiated throughout changing relationships.

Team In Name Only

I have done some reading about teamwork, outside of class as well, and my definition is more closely aligned with the European democratic model, than the narrowly focused American model of productivity and profit. The book points out a few of the reasons the word "team" gets a bad rep at some employers: "increased responsibility - without...rewards...lack of stability...top down control alongside new forms of peer pressure"(p. 213). My present employer is one such case in point. Although all formal communication is addressed to the "team," prior financial irregularities, ethics violations, downsizing, and poor communication have undermined a spirit of community with organizational interests. In such a volatile climate the word team becomes a label for, rather than a description of organizational membership.

Participative Decision Making

One example of the trend toward participative decision making, is the group interview. In the past, most job interviews were conducted by a single individual who made the final decision to hire or not. Today, group interviews are often the norm. The practice has some pluses and minuses for employer and applicant alike. From the employer perspective, it takes the heat off the hiring manager in the event the employee turns out to be a poor choice. Additionally, a comparison of multiple perspectives can can lead to a more rounded impression. On the down side, choice by committee can negatively influence outcomes if people exercise hidden agendas to achieve goals. In my opinion, group interviews are generally not helpful to the applicant because they reduce the possibility of establishing a rapport with key individuals. I've had several interviews with as many as 6 people sitting around a table, taking turns to ask scripted questions - the experience felt more like community theater than an interview.

Leadership Letdown

The book discusses leadership in chapter seven and points out the difficulty of defining a "leader."
This issue was recently brought home to me in our department. Due to downsizing, the position of manager and supervisor were eliminated, leaving an inexperienced lead, and a director. Recently, a loud argument broke out between two employees in close proximity to both their offices, about a work related issue, yet neither one intervened. The lead later confided in me that he had not known what to do to diffuse the situation. The director also did nothing other than to ask the lead: "what was all that about?" Leadership is not the same as heavy handed control, but I feel it's the director's role to mentor and support less experienced staff members rather than ignore conflicts among the staff.

Organizational Relationships

Organizational co-worker relationships can become friendships that make a big difference in not only how you feel about work, but also in getting the job done. I worked in a busy Emeregency Room during the 1994 earthquake in LA. My coworker and I had already established a good rapport through previous interaction, but the pressure placed on us in the aftermath of the quake, cemented our friendship. What characterized the difference in the before and after, was the seamless way we were able to work together. Without having to talk about each issue that came up, we both knew what the other person was going to do, which allowed us to work together more smoothly than I was able to work with anyone else in the office.

Social Perception Skills

According to our text, Social Perception Skills involve "picking up on the subleties of social situations" (p. 149). I work for a diverse medium size organization, and our department reflects a wide variety of ethnicities and religious preferences. A few years ago a new manager was hired, and sent out a memo about an upcoming staff meeting. Next to his name he added the symbol: "<><" to resepresent a fish, a symbol of Christianity. At first I wondered if I had interpreted this correctly, since I work for a non-denominational organization, and our department is about 50% non-Christian. At the same time, this was a new manager, and I was hesitant to speak up about a sensetive issue. Ultimately, I did speak up to ask if I had "read" the memo correctly, but my real intent was to bring his attention to the issue of sensitivity. He said "yes," my interpretation was corerect and quickly added that he hoped I hadn't been offended."

Workplace Relationships

As the book pints out, workplace relationships serve many different functions. Currently, my company has placed our facility up for sale, after several rounds of downsizing. As you can imagine the "communication climate" is fraught with tension and anxiety, as well as anger at the management that has caused this situation (think echos of the current financial crisis). Workplace relationships can defuse some of the tension, as employees share their concerns and engage in the supportive dialog that has been absent from management. Part of that communication involves network with people who hold multiple jobs, in order to prepare for a scenario of the facility closing altogether.

Struggling to be Heard

The point about drowning in a sea of organizations attempting to stand out reminded me of the ubiquitous phone number acronyms. When companies first started using slogans as part of their telephone numbers, they really stood out. Today, businesses seem to feel the must have a number with a message - any seven letter abbreviation or acronym is fair game. The consequence of such copy cat marketing is exactly the opposite of the intent - it's hard to remember any of them. Originally most of the slogans attempted to sound professional or caring but in order to distinguish themselves some businesses make a point of using acronyms that sound corny or even amateurish.

A Violent Identity

Since my upcoming project concerns identity, I have been reading chapter 5 with interest. Several things stood out for me, starting with the discussion about identity and violence (p. 114). By and large, school shootings are an American phenomenon. Yes, I think the easy availability of guns contributes to the possibility of violence, but as gun rights advocates point out: guns don't kill, people do. I believe that identity based on the consumption of signs (consumerism), and devoid of real community, contributes to violence without conscience. After a violent event, everyone laments that "no one saw the warning signs." The larger point is: no one is watching. I don't think the answer lies in arming ourselves, but in fostering a community of positive relationships, with which we can identify.

Organizational Microclimate

Although our virtual classroom for Comm 244 is not an organization in the traditional sense it has developed a "climate" of its own through our interaction. When the course started we were all strangers, with few preconceived notions about each other based on appearance, gender, age, etc. Soon thereafter, people choose to reveal more about themselves by posting images, or selecting graphics that are suggestive of gender (pictures of men predominate). Another dimension of our communication has been the posted comments, which have served to organized informal groups. After a while, you begin to notice things: posts that cite personal experiences get more comments than the ones that talk about "theory" or, you check certain people's posts first because you enjoyed some of their earlier comments. In this way, we are creating our own organizational climate.

Socialization

The process of socialization to a new job, even within the same company poses particular challenges if you telecommute, or work independently. When taking on the position of a trainer within my company, I went through the three stages of anticipation, encounter and metamorphosis discussed in our text (p. 100). When I transferred to the position I was excited to be embarking on a new learning experience. I had only spoken briefly to my boss, who had hired me based on a phone interview, and a presentation made to subordinates. I received my training by traveling to other states and observing other trainers. I did not meet my boss for 5 months after I was hired. Having very limited interaction with my peers made me reluctant to ask questions, which extended my socialization to to more than 6 months.

Dimensions of Cultural Difference

One of the dimensions of cultural identity cited in the text is "individualism-collectivism" (p. 82). The gradient refers to the amount of authority that can be exercised over subordinates. The United States is an example of a high individualistic society, while Asian and Latin American countries are closer the collectivist end of the scale. One interesting situation to study would be what happens when one type of culture is imposed on another, by force - as happens during war. When the fighting ends, but the victors stay, how do people reconcile themselves to the new system? One example of this was WWII, when Russian troops continued to occupy Central European countries for 45 years after the war. While it's easy to start fresh with children who are in school, it's much more difficult to transition a population of adults to a new way of thinking.

Project Proposal Cont'd.

One of the articles I am reading for the upcoming project proposal to examine the communications climate, culture, and identity of an organization, introduces the term "multicommunicating" (Reisch, Turner, & Tinsley, 2008). The term refers to "the use of technology to participate in several interactions at the same time." The authors note that as communication practices drive technological innovation, the resulting products influence the practices they were designed to support. Although the term was coined to describe the enabling aspect of technology, it is a useful metaphor for the layered and complex communication environment of an organization. As with all organizations, the whole is more than the sum of the parts.

Project Idea

As we have been reading in the text, hierarchical organizations often have rigid "patterns" of communication practices (p. 440). As all of us who have worked for organizations know, informal sources of information can be more timely (and accurate), than official announcements, newsletters and memos. I believe the way these two sources of information are reconciled (or not), by members, significantly affects the communication climate, organizational culture and identity.

I recently read a research study about the "acculturation" of foreign students at an American university. The authors used a Communication Theory of Identity to measure the affect of being treated as outsiders, on the "education satisfaction" of foreign students. I think the constructs outlined in the article could be a useful way to look at the way organizational identity is impacted by the reconciliation of formal and informal communication practices.

Triangulation

According to Cheney et al, triangulation is "the strategy of employing multiple methods" (p. 455) of data analysis; it may also serve as a metaphor for communication, or other problem solving within organizations. Recently, when I needed a user id and specific passwords, for a proprietary software system that would allow me to communicate to directly with an outside company, I started with my boss. She said she would contact the appropriate person at the regional office and get back to me. A week later when I followed up, she said she hadn't been able to reach the person, and told me to email her directly. After two emails and a phone message produced no response, I was frustrated. During a trip to the regional office, the following week I spoke to the person's boss directly, and received the information I needed the next day. Although this was not triangulation in the scholarly sense, it illustrates the idea that issues need to be approached from multiple perspectives to find useful solutions.

Messages: from another dimension

Just as physical and organizational relationships can set the agenda for the communication that does take place, the absence of communication can be equally meaningful. One of the things I've observed after working at various companies is that you can usually figure out whether an executive quit, or was fired, by the communication , or lack of, that follows. If the executive gets a catered sendoff, complete with the obligatory fluff piece in the company news letter, it means he/she left on good terms (for more money). On the other hand if you only find out that a department head is gone when their name is no longer in the email directory, you know they were probably "escorted" out. Corporate etiquette gets tricky in the case of terminated executives too high on the organizational ladder, not to be acknowledged. In those cases, you get the email that says: XYZ has resigned their position "to pursue other opportunities."

A Jury of His Peers?

The concept of "interactional authority" (p. 439) was brought home to me when I served on a jury in a criminal trail. As deliberations began we introduced ourselves and briefly mentioned what kind of work we do. One well dressed white man talked about the fact that he was a tax attorney, for an accounting firm located in Pasadena (considered a prestigious location in Southern California). As deliberations began in earnest, I noticed that his opinions seemed to receive an inordinate amount of consideration, inspite of the fact that his knowledge of the tax code did not confer special insight into criminal procedings.
Although the majority of jurors were in favor of convicting the defendant, the attorney's misgivings resulted in a hung jury. When it came time to select a foreman, many jurors turned to him almost automatically. I believe this is a clear example of the way status can influence what should be a "democratic process."

Partial Inclusion

The concept of partial inclusion plays on the idea that members "have a life" beyond the boundaries of the organization. The book cites prisons and monasteries as examples of strict containment while acknowledging that most work environments have a more fluid relationship with the outside. While inclusiveness is on a continuum, it seems inversely related to hierarchy. At traditionally structured companies white collar workers are often expected to stay connected at all hours, while blue collar employees clock out after "doing their time." The democratic structure of flat organizations implies: "we are all in this together" therefore, we should all stay connected. The issue of boundaries is even more complicated in professions that primarily require emotional work, such as media performers.

Punished by Reward

One of the most frequently cited job qualifications listed is: team player. The reality, as the authors point out, is often to reward only individual achievement. Working in a sales position several years ago, the department manager announced with great fanfare that the company was sponsoring a contest. The prize was an expense paid trip to Hawaii. During the following weeks the "team" was exhorted to sell, sell, sell, as he charted our progress on a large bar graph on a bulletin board.
As time went by, team members began to question the generosity of the company, better know for cost cutting than lavish rewards. Eventually the manager revealed that only he was eligible to win the Hawaiian vacation, based on sales generated by the team. The response to this misguided effort was to make sure we would not win.

Effectiveness & Efficiency

Although it would be nice to believe that happy workers are also productive workers, as Cheney et al point out, more than 30 years of research has been unable to demonstrate a direct correlation (p. 49). Table 3.1 illustrates four combination of possibilities related to effectiveness and efficiency, while it underscores the limitations of measuring qualitative data on a quantitative scale. How happy do you have to be to be considered "happy" for the purpose of the study? Were study participants required to be happy 24/7, or were brief periods of unhappiness acceptable?
I was reminded of a staff meeting I once attended, where the "agenda item" was low morale. At one point in the discussion, our department manager said: "If someone is unhappy in their job, they should just leave." The remark was met with silence. I sat back in my chair and fantasized about walking out the front door, followed by every member of the department, at that very moment. As the authors remind us, the link between job satisfaction and productivity is impacted by a complex variety of factors.

Qualified Recommendation

In their discussion of bureaucracies, Cheney et al state that "In principle, bureaucracy is intended to promote fairness" (p. 32), and credit bona fide occupational qualifications (BFOQs) with helping women and minority groups break through the glass ceiling. I found myself to be skeptical of such a claim, especially since the authors provided no evidence to support it. The assumption that job applicants to bureaucratic organizations are selected only on the basis of their BFOQs, ignores the human factor present in all hiring decision. Although organizations frequently argue that there is a lack of qualified ....(fill in the blank)... applicants, studies have demonstarted that gender, race, ethnicity, age, and other characteristics frequently play a signficant role in the screening of job applicants. On-line applications and phone interviews do not level the playing field, as even seemingly beneign demographic information, such as an address, can carry negative or positive associations. I think the most that can be said of bureaucratic hiring practices, is that they screen for a minimum common denominator of qualification.

Dis-Organized

As professor Cyborg indicated in her post hospitals are highly bureaucratic systems, in which various components often work at odds with each other. When I was a department manager at a healthcare facility in Los Angeles, I reported to my division chief in another city. The division would periodically send out staff members to my facility to assess the effectiveness of department operations, and make recommendations to improve organizational efficiency and customer service. Recommendations often included hiring additional staff members, or the purchase of new equipment. Increases in the department budget, or capital expenditures, needed the approval of the facility CFO, who responded to each request with a resounding NO! Although the division recommendations would have made a positive impact on the department, I soon learned that making requests was a pointless exercise, since the reporting structure of the organization was a formidable roadblock to change.

Structuration

The term structuration represents the tension between enabling and constraint, that gives form to an organization . The text cites several examples of balancing these two forces, from the Burley Design Cooperative (p.25) to the Second Vatican Council (p.23) thereby, illustrating that similar tensions define all forms of social organization from systems of government to religion. The degree to which one force is percieved to predominate over the other influences public perception of corporate identity, in ways that have economic consequences. For example, Microsoft is often percieved as a brittle, hierarchical organization, that imposes its vision of personal computing through the use of monopolistic business practices. Although Apple is probably no less hierarchical, it has cultivated the image of an innovative company, responsive to the technological (and emotional?) needs of consumers. By creating an organizational culture that seems to favor enabling attributes such as responsiveness and flexibility, Apple continues to make inroads into formerly Microsoft territory.

Ethnicity and a New Type of Identity

The nature of identity as contemplated by Dr Dominique Bouchet (box 13.9) in our text , marks a departure from the demographic definition traditionally used by organizations. Rather than physical characteristics, or "country of origin," post modern identity is a selective and strategic expression of individual style (p. 400) that demonstartes particular elements of one culture, while embedded in another. Although professor Bouchet cites North African immigrants to France as her example, the same holds true for immigrants to the United States who continue to practice the unique cultural traditions of their homeland, while adopting elements of American culture. Ultimately, practices within a diverse society often become a hybrid of influences. Within the constrains of traditional business organizations however, diversity is often reduced to token expressions such as "Cinco de Mayo" day in the cafeteria.

An Impersonal Idea

According to research by scholar Joseph Walther (p. 362), a leaner communication media than personal interaction, was more conducive to idea generation. At first, I thought the idea was counterintuitive but after considering it for a while, it makes sense. Brainstorming in group sessions often layers the communication environment with personal currents that detract from the business at hand. Virtual meetings allow participants to focus on work-related tasks while mitigating concerns that critical feedback will be taken personally.
The use of emoticons is discussed in a pervious paragraph, as a way counter the absence of emotional cues. Emoticons are considered inappropriate under most circumstances of business communication, and I think of them as too cartoonish to convey deep emotions therefore, I generally avoid their use altogether.

Tech Turbulance

On my way to class Tuesday afternoon I was listening to to the business news radio program Market Place. One segment of the show was devoted to news that United Airlines stock had dropped by 75% in value, in a matter of 5 minutes, the previous day. The declined occured after a "financial news aggregate service" fed a story to The Bloomberg Report, with the headline "United Files for Bankruptcy to Slash Costs." As a result, millions of shares were sold in a matter of minutes.
Shortly thereafter, it was discovered that the electronic search of bankruptcy filings for 2008, by the news service, had pulled an undated story from 6 years ago and posted it with the current search date. The stock had recovered "most" of its value by the end of the day, but analysts were still in the process of sorting out the fallout.
Commentators on the radio briefly posted the question of how to prevent the malicious planting of stories to manupulate financial markets. Perhaps it was beyond the scope of the program to consider this serious issue, but the commentators' only response was to point out that the Bloomberg Report deflected all responsibility by stating it was not their policy to fact check news feeds, only stories by their own reporters. The question raises the issue of who takes responsibility for identifying, correcting and preventing mistakes in an interconnected world, when the reprecussions of an honest or intentional "mistake" could seriously effect the lives of millions.

The Mechanics of Technology

The healthcare provider that I work for has 65 locations throughout the country. The work environment is fast paced and high volume. Depending on the area of the country facilities use one of three "platforms" for information processing. Overlaying the various platforms are six or seven software systems for performing additional, required tasks. Each system has separate user id's and passwords that expire at different intervals, while the security system times users out after five minutes of down time. A significant amount of time is spent toggling among systems, and logging in and out of various systems. Integrated technology would streamline the process. Raising these issues to the management at local facilities results in deferring the issue to the company headquarters in Texas.

Information Inflation

Cheney at all, cite the growing value placed on information: "the slickest most futuristic ads...are those touting computers for the office...you have a striking measure of how information has risen in status" (p. 348). To understand why I started thinking about the way that information was gathered and processed prior to computer technology; long hours searching through files, poring over books, sifting through irrelevant data. The expression: "knowledge is power" meant that those who were in posession of the final product were the ones empowered, while those who did the actual work, were likely to be making minimum wage.
The fast and convenient availability of information can be said to have a democratizing effect in that anyone can have instant access to information that was formerly exclusive. In that context it is easy see why the status of information processing has risen in status. The balance of power now seems to have shifted to those who can best evaluate the importance, and manipulate, the wealth of available information.

The Triple Bottom Line

The concept of a triple bottom line encourages organizations to consider: "profits and growth...responsibility to employees...(as well as) its role in the wider community and environment"(p.434). While concern with profit is a familiar perspective for employees of public corporations, the record is decidedly mixed in the area of social responsibility.
Companies that foreground egalitarian social or economic principles at their inception, such as The Body Shop (p. 433) or Ben and Jerry's Ice Cream, frequently devolve to a traditional, economically driven, business model in the face of growth and competition.
The phrase "publicly held corporation" reinforces the notion of companies as people, that in turn implies a level of social responsibility. The public performance of corporations in crises with an ethical dimension can often be characterized more by excuses and justification, than righteous conduct.

Ethics, Public and Private

Our text points to several influences that dilute the moral imperative of ethical organizational behavior. One of the factors cited was a "breakdown of traditional bonds as many societies have experienced a public-private 'split'" (p. 421). I believe ethics are a value system of behavior that is enacted in relationship to other people. As responsibility for ethical behavior becomes increasingly diffuse in the public sphere, accountability in the private sphere, also suffers. Moral issues that are played out in the public (media) can act as models to reinforce private behavior. Although lapses may be considered more newsworthy than good citizenship, I feel showcasing ethical behavior could be a worthwhile contribution to society for its own sake.

The Value of Ethics

In Cheney et all, Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) is described as "the desireability of managing business practices in consonance with larger societal issues and to contribute to the well-being of cultures and communities in which they are embedded" (p. 413). The definition resonates for me in the context of current financial downturn in the home loan market. American consumers are bombarded with subliminal and overt messages that exhorting them to live the upscale lifestyle depicted, in the media, as being the middle class norm. Uneducated consumers may respond to such marketing by taking out credit cards and easy mortgage loans, to finance the lifestyle they are told they "deserve". Once in trouble, consumers are blamed entirely for not taking "responsibility" for their spending. Similary, fast food companies market large quantities of unhealthy food at very low prices, only to insist they bear no responsibility for contributing to the obesity epidemic.
Ethical corporate behavior dictates that products (financial and otherwise) be marketed in a transparent manner, so that risks can be assessed by producers and consumers alike; both have a responsibility to each other as well as the community at large.

The Medium is ......

Section 13.7 of the text features a discussion of Marshall McLuhan's claim that 'the medium is the message' (p. 394). The idea speaks to the increasingly savvy use of electronic media by governments to manipulate perceptions of international events. One recent example was the Russian / Georgian conflict. The government of Russia has not been renown for its sophisticated use of public relations in the past, so I listened with interest to radio interviews with various officials during the recent conflict.
Some of the things I noted were; Russian military personell and officials, regardless of rank, role, or position were remarkably consistent in their vocabulary and characterization of events. Russian troops were described as "peace keepers" defending citizens against "genocide" by Georgian troops. All interviewees spoke at least spoke English at least moderately well - none used translators. Although the overall effect was much less sophisticated than Western media "events" it was an obvious attempt to demonstrate that Russia is a force to be reckoned with on and off the battlefield.

Globalized

The relationship between the two definitions of globalization offered in the text: "a social process in which the constraints of geography on social and cultural arrangements recede, and in which people become increasingly aware that they are receeding" (p. 380) and "the process through which the global economy becomes increasingly interconnected..." (p.381), highlights the social reprecussions of technological change, Just as the Industrial Revolution in the 19th century fundamentally changed people's relationship to work, created a class of wealthy entrepreneurs, and began a massive migration to indistrial centers (cities), globalization has had a parallel impact on people's relationship to work, the accumulation of capital, and migration patterns.

The full effects of globalization will only be assessed in retrospect, but significant changes, such as outsourcing, have reconfigured the working lives of millions by accelerating the growing income disparaty of disenfranchised workers. Change is difficult, especially at warp speed.

The Business Ethic

Although there is only a brief discussion of the evolution of corporations to the status of individuals, in the eyes of the law (p. 9), it is a thought provoking topic. The incremental corporate rights and authority appears to provide legal protection for controversial practices, such as "negative speech" while shielding corporate management from personal accountability. High profile corporate corruption trials from Enron to WorldComm underscored the negative implications of such a system, as one high profile executive after another claimed they knew nothing of the wrongdoing by subordinates, associates or colleagues.
The changing legal status of corporations raises ethical questions. Although most large businesses have such standards in writing, enforcement at the highest levels has been lax, at some of the companies I have worked for.

Cubicle in Cyberspace

During the past year I was a corporate trainer for a healthcare provider. The department I worked for was headquartered in Dallas, my boss was in Florida, and I worked part of the time from my home in Santa Cruz. Communicating primarily via phone, email and Internet with my boss, as well as some of the employees I was training was definitely a learning experience for me. I came away with mixed feelings about the effects of such a heavily mediated environment.

I enjoy personal interaction, which is one of the reasons I had accepted the trainer position, but corporate budget cuts were channeling an increasing amount of training to electronic media. Although on line training is definitely cheaper, my feeling was that employees were often reluctant to ask questions because they were concerned about how they would sound to strangers in another city in the "electronic classroom." Training assessments were focused on being able to reproduce tasks, rather than understanding "how things worked," which limited their effectiveness.

On a personal level, mediated communication with my boss made for an awkward relationship and frequent miscommunication. Occassional personal contact would have made a significant positive difference in how I felt about my boss, and my job.