OGL 481 Pro-Seminar I:

PCA-Choosing an Organization Worksheet

1) Name and describe your organization.

The organization I have chosen for this exercise is H&R Block. H&R Block is a
tax preparation company based out in Kansas City, Missouri that focuses on tax expertise
and the human connection, by putting people and their refunds first (H&R Block, 2023).
This company offers a variety of services ranging from the do-it-yourselfer to individuals
or corporations that require more assistance through understanding the tax code and
regulations set by the Internal Revenue Service. At H&R Block, you also get to
experience our outstanding level of expertise from well-rounded tax professionals who on
average have about ten years of experience. Our goal is to live by our purpose—to
provide help and inspire confidence in our clients and communities everywhere (H&R
Block, 2023).

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

My current role at H&R Block is a Senior Tax Analyst, which basically translates
to a senior tax preparer, and have now had ten years of experience in this position. This
internal role requires that I prepare tax returns at the highest level, on average I prepare
200-350 tax returns per tax season. When I am not preparing taxes, I am also helping
with tax audit services meaning I help taxpayers get through to the Internal Revenue
Service or I am offering tax planning services for individuals or small businesses.

3) Describe the situation, including information you think will help the reader
understand the most important elements of the situation. (This will require
selectivity: part of the art of case writing is separating the essential facts from the
mass of information that might be included).

In my role at H&R Block, there was a moment when a former manager of mine,
Judy, was blaming the problems of missing bank deposits on us employees and
threatened that we were all at risk of losing our jobs. At our team meeting joined by our
District General Manager (DGM), we were put through a series of interviews to see what
was going on with the deposits. Judy pulled me aside and asked me how I could get my
coworkers to comply with her story to find the culprit because she knew that I would be
more forthcoming. She implied that I would be rewarded for lying to our DGM but what
she didn’t know was that I was already on to her and made a point to document for future
use as proof. I made her believe that the initial reports of the missing cash I made were
not connected to her and I would always offer to recount the deposits with her, but she

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 would always decline. Judy’s way of managerial thinking always came across in a
rational and passive-aggressive manner making it extremely difficult to communicate
with her. This made my DGM more suspicious, so he kept a detailed log of my
interactions with my manager for weeks and explained to my DGM why Judy was
behaving this way going on. Judy was later fired and arrested for stealing from the
company.

References

Bolman, L. G., & Deal, T. E. (2022). Reframing organizations: Artistry, choice, and

leadership (7th ed.). Jossey-Bass

H&R Block. (2022). Our H&R Block company is always moving forward. Retrieved
May 20, 2023, from https://www.hrblock.com/corporate/our-company/