OGL 481 Pro-Seminar I:

PCA-Choosing an Organization Worksheet

My Nguyen

Worksheet Objectives:
1. Identify an organization and situation you want to study over the remainder of the course.
2. Describe the organization and 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) Describe your organization.

Starbucks is a global coffee chain that recognizes the importance of leadership. It serves
millions of customers a day and has become a known brand. It strives to ethically source
coffee from different regions and serve its customer an experience rather than just coffee.
The organization is not only dedicated to developing leaders but it is also putting in effort
to make coffee the first sustainable agriculture product. In achieving its goals, developing
future leaders is part of its strategy. In 2014, the organization partnered up with Arizona
State University to create an educational opportunity for future leaders to expand their
knowledge.

2) Describe how your role in the organization (it can be internal or external).

My current position is Shift Supervisor for one of Starbucks’s many locations. Starbucks
employees are considered “partners” and my overall goal is to maintain staff efficiency
while delivering the Starbucks experience to all customers. Every shift, I manage and
lead a team toward achieving corporate expectations. I set daily action plans, inform
partners of any company changes, and communicate plans for achieving company goals
for the day. I develop partners through coaching and work with other supervisors to
improve store performance. While working part-time, I am attending ASU through
Starbucks’ College Achievement plan. Overall, my role is to assist my store manager in
maintain business operations and promoting Starbucks culture.

3) Describe the situation. (see the Canvas instructions for details, especially about how
your situation will be analyzed from five different perspectives over the next five
modules)

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 As Starbucks works to develop future leaders, the pandemic has created new challenges
for the organization. The company is suffering a loss in revenue due to the COVID-19
pandemic and financial constraints have impacted leadership development within the
company. Many readjustments have been made and the company culture seems to be
shifting away from developing leaders. However, the organization’s culture is strong and
I do not believe the company will make any major shifts. From my current observations,
leaders within the organization are negatively impacted by the organization’s financial
constraints. Therefore, leading a team to successful meet company expectations have
become a challenge.

I would like to see whether the company still has the same priorities even after the impact
of the pandemic. I want to evaluate the company’s approach to leadership development
from five different perspectives and evaluate for any changes. In understanding the
company’s current position, I will also be in a better position to lead my team daily.
Evaluation from five different frames will also provide objectivity and reduce the effect
of personal bias on my end. Overall, the pandemic has created many difficulties for the
organization and I want to study its effects. Along the way, I am hoping to assess the
organization’s current performance in order to anticipate environmental changes.

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 Reference or References

Starbucks Company Profile. (n.d.). Retrieved October 18, 2020, from

https://www.starbucks.com/about-us/company-information/starbucks-company-profile