OGL 481 Pro-Seminar I:

PCA-Human Resource Frame Worksheet

Worksheet Objectives:
1. Describe the human resource frame
2. Apply the human resource 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. (Insert Restatement Here)

The situation I will be analyzing here is the strategic decision to change the name of the
company from Facebook Inc. to Meta Platforms, Inc. and rebrand the company with an
emphasis on the Metaverse. The company has presented this decision as more than just a
name change and re-branding exercise. It has been presented as a major strategic shift for
the company that includes a grand vision that will affect other parts of the technology
industry and society in general. But is this decision to change the company name just
about publicly acknowledging the future direction of the company?

The metaverse concept of a virtual world is not new. So why all the fanfare from Meta?
The company experienced a string of controversies over the years preceding the
announcement of this name change. The effect of these controversies was negative for the
company's users, advertisers, employees and potential regulators. Analyzing the decision
to re-brand Facebook as Meta by using the four frames, will provide different
perspectives on the problems faced by the company’s management and how this
rebranding could be crucial to improve how the company is perceived by these
constituencies.

My role is external to the company Meta. For this project my role will be an external
analyst who is evaluating the strategic decision to rename the company and focus on the
metaverse.

2) Describe how the human resources of the organization influenced the situation.
(Insert 2 Long Paragraph Description Here to Earn Excellent)

According to a CNBC report, Meta Platforms, Inc. (formerly known as Facebook) was
ranked as one of the best one hundred companies to work for 12-years prior to 2023
(Feiner, 2022). “Glassdoor said employees spoke highly of the company for granting

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 them autonomy in their work, providing extensive benefits, and giving them the chance
to work on a product with great reach and with coworkers they enjoyed” (Feiner, 2022).
In fact Meta had been ranked the number one best company to work for 3 years in a row
2015, 2016, and 2017 (Cain, 2017). But by January 2023, Meta was no longer ranked in
the top one hundred places to work (Kay & Hoff, 2023). Their Human Resource policies
do not appear to have changed during this period. Before 2021, the relationship between
Facebook and its employees was outstanding. They were investing in people, and
employees were highly motivated which was producing successful results for the
company. Prior to 2020, they found satisfaction in their work, were proud of what they
accomplished, and felt empowered (Smith, 2013). Employees felt there was an open and
collaborative environment that encouraged teamwork.

In 2021, the Wall Street Journal published the Facebook Files disclosing details
surrounding the company’s controversies (Dow Jones & Company, 2021) and in 2022,
the company had significant layoffs. The details behind the controversies that came out in
the Facebook files resulted in a lot of bad press, causing employees to question the
meaning of their work. Widespread coverage of the Facebook Files also created a social
environment where employees were no longer proud of where they worked. Layoffs in
2022, undercut employee loyalty to the company and added to the negative impact of the
news from the Facebook Files. The name change in 2021 did not change the employees
and public perception of the organization.

3) Recommend how you would use the human resources for an alternative course of
action regarding your case. (Insert 2 Long Paragraph Recommendation Here to Earn
Excellent)

Facebook seemed to be doing everything right from a Human Resource perspective,

employees used to feel proud to say they worked for Facebook, until something changed
and then they weren’t. Employees’ understanding of the negative social consequences of
Meta policies and products, and being confronted with society’s reaction to this news
changed the way they felt about their work. Before the news, employees loved working at
Meta, according to Glassdoor CEO Robert Hohman, “What we really see them appreciate
most is the company’s mission-driven culture, transparent leadership and the fact that
their work literally impacts the lives of billions of people worldwide” (Mangalindan,
2017).

The news from the Facebook Files and the negative reaction from society undermined
employees' faith in company leadership and their alignment with the company mission.
From a Human Resources perspective, Meta needs to restore its employees' trust and
leadership’s transparency. Honesty about what is going on in the company can restore
confidence in employees so that they can address the problems. They need to help
employees regain belief that they are working on something worthwhile and good for

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 society. Rather than change the name of the company, a more appropriate solution would
have been to be open with employees about the problems facing the company long before
the Facebook Files came out. Then leadership could get employees involved with
strategies and plans to fix the problems. This would be more consistent with how people
viewed the culture of the company.

4) Reflect on what you would do or not do differently given what you have learned
about this frame. (Insert 2 Long Paragraph Reflection Here to Earn Excellent)

Based on what I have learned about the frame, Meta and their employees are misaligned.
Employees are looking for “satisfaction and meaning” (Bolman & Deal, 2021) in their
work while Meta is looking for growth and product. Before the Facebook Files,
employees thought their needs aligned with the company’s. After, the employees learned
that the company had not been completely open with the problems and how they were
dealing with it. The way the company handled the problems was a disappointment to the
employees. The public perception of the company also shifted from a positive one to a
negative one. When people’s perception outside of the company changed, it also affected
the employees' social standing outside of work in a negative way.

I would make significant leadership changes. Make changes in executive leadership (of
the company) with a focus on bringing in one or more people with a reputation for being
honest, trustworthy and transparent. Communications with employees should be truly
transparent in the sense that they share the good and the bad of what the company is
working on and the problems the company is facing. Communicating with the public also
needs to be more open and transparent in addressing the good and the bad, and how the
company is dealing with it. The company also needs to figure out how to balance growth
and profits against negative social impacts. Finally, the company needs to make sure that
they do not change the good policies while trying to fix the bad. I would highlight
policies and practices that have made employees happy and successful, and make sure
they are preserved. I would not change too many of their Human Resources policies.
They are progressive and have been successful in the past.

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 References
Bolman, L. G. & Deal, T. E. (2021) Reframing organizations: Artistry, choice, and leadership
(7th ed.). Hoboken, NJ: Jossey-Bass

Cain, Á. (2017, December 8). This Is What It’s Like to Work at Facebook, Named the Best Place
to Work 3 Years in a RowApparently, there is no such thing as a “typical day” at
Facebook. Inc. https://www.inc.com/business-insider/what-it-is-like-to-work-at-
facebook.html

Dow Jones & Company. (2021, October 1). The Facebook Files. The Wall Street Journal.
https://www.wsj.com/articles/the-facebook-files-11631713039

Feiner, L. (2022, January 12). Facebook drops 36 spots on Glassdoor’s annual Best places to
work list after a year of PR crises. CNBC. https://www.cnbc.com/2022/01/11/facebook-
owner-meta-falls-on-glassdoor-annual-best-places-to-work-list.html

Kay, G., & Hoff, M. (2023, January 11). Meta and Apple are no longer among the best places to
work, according to a new Glassdoor ranking. Business Insider.
https://www.businessinsider.com/meta-apple-no-longer-best-places-tech-companies-
work-glassdoor-2023-1

Mangalindan, J. (2017, December 6). Facebook named the no. 1 place to work in the US. Yahoo!
News. https://www.yahoo.com/news/facebook-named-no-1-place-work-us-
153511527.html

Smith, K. (2013, April 18). This is what life is actually like working for Facebook. Business
Insider. https://www.businessinsider.com/what-its-like-to-work-at-facebook-2013-4