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.

I am a part-time program instructor at the Boys and Girls Club and am responsible for
implementing new and existing programs at the Club to earn or maintain grants.
Additionally, I support the full-time staff with creative efforts and create a safe and
exciting environment for our members.

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

There is a standard for how each club should be organized, however, there are not
effective methods available to ensure that the positions are being filled or maintained by
the best possible candidate. Each branch should have a Branch Director, Youth
Development Specialist, Teen Development Specialist, then three coordinators:
education, sports, and art. When all these roles are appropriately filled, the club is
expected to run successfully. However, when roles are unoccupied, it is assumed that the
Branch Director will step in to help organize areas of the club that need attention.

In my experience, the non-profit organizations face challenges while filling roles due to
the high expectations and low-income ratio, and historically, non-profit organizations
face a higher average turnover rate than the rest of the labor market (Davis, 2022). The
Boys and Girls branch that I am affiliated with follows a top-down organizational
structure, however, due to the lack of role clarity, staff members carry various
responsibilities leading to complexity in an environment that is designed to flow
vertically. As a result, the tension begins to build up at the bottom of the hierarchy, and

 opportunities to reach the optimal success in programs and funding are missed.
Additionally, the tension rarely reaches the top due to the absence of effective
communication channels established by upper management.

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

Hypothetically, the choice to separate the Boys and Girls Club by division and assign
CEOs to each division creates many creative opportunities. However, it is apparent that
for the organizations to flourish in this framework, high involvement from upper
management is required. The loose grip of upper management on branches leads to not
delivering results that reflect the company's mission and goals. As a non-profit
organization, the national level is very goal-bound to help young people navigate life to
become kind and responsible members of society. However, as the company grows under
many different leaders, it is unclear how all organizations meet that goal.

I would keep the same structure because I think each community faces different
challenges that require a group of diverse leaders to lead those organizations. Still, there
needs to be more role clarity and organizational goal setting. Vertical coordination is
effective when motivated leaders are in managerial positions. I believe that high turnover
rates in not determined by the low income but by the complexity that is influenced by the
lack of coordination. Prioritizing quality skills and detailed interviews for appropriate
staffing will improve the cohesion of teams and goal setting.

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

To improve the organization's overall culture, I would focus on hiring the right leaders. In
my organization, tension is created by unfilled roles and a lack of leadership. While my
first instinct is to blame my branch director because of my experiences planning projects
under his authority, the people above him who assigned him his position are also to
blame. The branch director's performance directly reflects the leaders who have prepared
him for the role he is in right now.

A complete restructuring of the organizational frame is unnecessary; however,

reallocating leaders would improve the company structure significantly. For example,
maybe CEOs for each division may lead to various inconsistencies in branch goal setting.
Not all the branches meet the expectations of the national organization and not because of
resources. Having one CEO leading the direction and establishing the clubs' goals would
guarantee more effective results. All branch directors would be expected to respond to a
state representative of the organization then each state representative can relay goals and
accomplishments at a national level to the CEO. A structure like this would eliminate

 communication channels that are not being used anyways and improve cohesion between
in-state clubs.

 References

Davis, K. (2022). Nonprofit burnout: 2022 report & statistics: Givebutter. Givebutter. Retrieved
September 4, 2022, from https://givebutter.com/blog/nonprofit-burnout-statistics

Bolman, L. G., & Deal, T. E. (2021). Reframing organizations: Artistry, choice, and leadership
(7th ed.). San
Francisco, CA: Jossey-Bass (ASU Bookstore Automatic Purchase-Perusall Version Only)