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.

CONFIDENTIAL

1) Briefly restate your situation from Module 1 and your role.

As a shift supervisor with my organization, I transferred to a new location. The location

had several other shift supervisors with long tenure, but the store manager position was
vacant. This position was overseen by a temporary proxy until the company filled it with
an external hire new to the organization. This location struggled to meet all performance
measure targets and morale was suffering. I attempted to streamline operations and make
the store more efficient using existing company standards and structures.

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

While this organization is typically highly structured, much of the corporate structure was
not in place at this particular store. The company has clearly defined roles, expectations,
and even applications that suggest how the shift supervisors deploy their teams for
optimal success. When utilized, these tools are very useful for training and development.
However, most of these innovations are recent and have been implemented over the past
few years. The veteran shift supervisors at this location predate the technical enterprise
tools and therefore do not think they need them to do their jobs effectively.

The hierarchy of authority also contributed to the situation. While most of the
organizational authority is centralized away in corporate headquarters, at the store level
the store manager has ultimate authority and coordinates vertically between his or her
district manager and supervisor team. The shift supervisor team must then coordinate
laterally to meet performance goals as we are held collectively accountable. The
company also grants annual pay increases to everyone, regardless of individual
performance. “If members of a team share rewards equally…there is an incentive for
‘free riders’ to let someone else do most of the work” (Bolman & Deal, 2021, p.80).

1
 I tried to lead by example, following the company-provided Guide to Excellence for my
role. I also encouraged my peers to utilize the tools our organization had in place to help
us allocate and integrate work efforts. According to Bolman & Deal, “division of labor is
the keystone of structure” (2021, p.57). Nevertheless, the other shift supervisors on my
team seemed to only be interested in getting through their individual shifts and going
home. There was no real motivation to improve or to change.

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

The experiences I have had trying to be a part of positive change in this location have
been limited in success and highly frustrating. One way I could have used structure
would have been to apply for the store manager position when I transferred. I have
extensive experience in service operations management as well as experience with the
organization. I would have used the hierarchical structure to hold individual shift
supervisors accountable for results during the shifts they were responsible for. If they
could not improve performance in target areas, I would first have coaching conversations
with them leading up to corrective action. This would ensure each supervisor is pulling
their own weight in terms of achieving our common store goals.

I would also require my supervisor team to utilize the company tools in place which were
created to help them do their job. I would regularly verify their compliance, and address
noncompliance through coaching and then corrective action, as company procedure
dictates. “Formal structure enhances morale if it helps us get our work done” (Bolman &
Deal, 2021, p.56). Requiring the supervisors to use station cards that allocate work and
the playbuilder application which tells them how to deploy their team may be
uncomfortable at first, as change often is. However, as operations become smoother and
performance measures are met more consistently, I believe the supervisor team would
become more accepting and understanding of the structures in place to facilitate success.

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

I would not work so hard to affect change without the necessary vertical coordination of a
strong store manager who holds authority over the shift supervisor team. I put a great
deal of effort into instilling and enforcing organizational structure at this location.
However, without a store manager acting to enforce the policy, much of my work was in
vain. I would still continue to use the existing structural elements for success during my
shifts in an effort to model successful execution of my role. Perhaps my peers would
have been more accepting and curious about the keys to my success if I only
demonstrated correct behavior rather than attempting to influence theirs.

2
 I would also work harder to find motivation for each of the supervisors to meet
performance targets. “A machine-like operation is efficient and effective. A key
challenge is to motivate and satisfy workers in the operating core. People quickly tire of
repetitive work and standardized procedures” (Bolman & Deal, 2021, p.83). One idea
would be to make up a game or a contest in order to get everyone interested in goals and
have fun trying to meet them. Perhaps the long tenure of our supervisor team is precisely
what has led to boredom, apathy, and decreased morale. Finally, I would try to
demonstrate how utilizing the organizational structure benefits every team member. I
could do this coordinating with the store manager to run shifts where other shift
supervisors and even the store manager could observe and see how beneficial the
structural elements such as station cards can be. We could then have a group discussion
during our weekly shift meetings about what structural elements were the most helpful
and how we could maximize their benefits.

3
 References

Bolman, L., & Deal, T. (2021). Reframing Organizations: Artistry, Choice, and

Leadership (7th ed.). Jossey-Bass.

4
 Reference or References