OGL 481 Pro-Seminar I:

PCA-Ethical Communities Worksheet

Worksheet Objectives:

1. Describe the four ethical communities

2. Apply the ethical communities 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 (BGC) 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. While the Boys and Girls Club is a national

organization, clubs are separated into districts, and each district has its CEO. The

challenge with the Boys and Girls Club seems to be its ability to retain employees who

can consistently administer their mission enable all young people, especially

underprivileged youth, to reach their true potential.

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

The Boys and Girls Club has grown significantly from its starting point, and the energy

and hard work of the people in each club enables the organization's mission. Similar to

the philosophy that drives Ben & Jerry's Homemade Holdings, the amount of love and

 commitment to the culture each club enters reflects the amount of success they have.

(Bolman, 2021) The branch I work for has seen a significantly high turnover rate, making

it challenging to remain consistent in community impact and growth. The national

organization has demonstrated success in developing a unique format for each structural

frame; however, the leadership contribution in each frame significantly impacts the

effective implementation of these frames. No extreme ethical challenges arise from only

one of these frameworks at BGC. Still, it is a combination of many missed opportunities

that lead to the loss of employees and missed goals.

From a structural view, the expectation would be for leaders in the clubs to be driven and

goal-focused so that employees feel like they are striving towards something bigger than

them. In a successful case, employees would be inspired by leaders to take the initiative

to start new programs and get creative with their roles. However, when leaders are not

demonstrating behavior that inspires others, no one feels comfortable developing their

role in the organization. In the Human Resource Frame, if leaders within clubs do not

desire to serve their teams, then they cannot build a team culture that strives to deliver

love and passion in every task. For the BGC, this causes intentionally crafted programs to

lose their full potential. The political frame is also highly impactful in the club because

members must believe in the leaders they follow. If a leader's words, actions, and visions

are not reflective of the mission that attracted employees to the organization, they are

more likely to leave and find something more fulfilling. Finally, the symbolic frame has a

lot of potential in the clubs. People are no longer attracted to the traditional nine-to-five

work structure and seek opportunities that align with their values. Therefore, investing in

 creating rituals and ceremonies for employees would effectively keep the team engaged.

However, due to staff shortages, at BGC, building traditions becomes another task that

isn't prioritized, and when the staff does not feel valued, their performance begins to

decrease.

3) Recommend how you would apply one of the ethical communities for an alternative
course of action regarding your case.

Many variations and solutions are available for implementing ethical communities for

success in the Boys and Girls Club. However, I think the most impact would result from

reframing the structural organization of the club. From basic knowledge, we know that

factories have systems in place for products to be produced. Additionally, we understand

that each person and their role is valuable to the outcome of the service the organization

is trying to provide. Therefore, by promoting passionate leaders, role clarity, and visions

for success to the BGC team, it is guaranteed that other frameworks will align with the

values established in the structural frame.

Authorship is essential in this case because it implies responsibility for the roles in the

organization. (IMCJE, 2020) Also, members are beginning to take accountability and see

the result of their work in the club's success. One of the advantages of BGC is that, as a

non-profit organization, BGC provides its employees the freedom to be creative while

delivering the national organization's mission. Tim Denning says, “Real work is not a

dream job. It’s about freedom.” Therefore, if employees knew more about how their

success is determined by how much they own their roles, they would be more inclined to

 stay. This trend starts by hiring the right leaders who will set the example and

expectations for the team.

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

Anytime I’ve gained new knowledge in this course, I have discovered different opportunities or

weaknesses in the BGC. However, the difference between diving into ethics versus the previous

chapters is that I am motivated to reach the club's full potential. I was so focused on only one

framework of the organization that it made me look over its opportunities. This led me to view

the challenges that the Boys and Girls Club was enduring as things that were wrong with it.

Another thing I gained from this module is that ethics is more about what is right or wrong. To

analyze the organization's ethical communities, you must first understand each framework.

One principle that stood out to me is how focused each frame is grounded by the heart of the

people in the company. Many organizations can become successful; however, companies continue

to grow because of the deeper meaning behind the work. Employees need work to be an

environment for them to grow and learn more about themselves. The average person spends

90,000 hours at work. (FreshBooks, 2020) That said, work should be an environment where

people feel a sense of purpose and value so that everything they are responsible for is done with

love.

 References

FreshBooks. (2021). How many hours does the average person work per week? FreshBooks.

Retrieved October 2, 2022, from https://www.freshbooks.com/hub/productivity/how-

many-hours-does-the-average-person-work

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

Jossey-Bass.

ICMJE. (2020). De ning the role of authors and contributors. ICMJE. Retrieved October 2,

2022, from https://www.icmje.org/recommendations/browse/roles-and-responsibilities/

de ning-the-role-of-authors-and-contributors.html

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