Benchmarking: Global Communication

Running head BENCHMARKING: GLOBAL COMMUNICATION

Benchmarking: Global Communications

TEAM A-MBA 500

University of Phoenix

JANUARY 2007

Benchmarking: Global Communications

Introduction

For the MBA - 500 Foundations of Problem- Based Learning at the University of Phoenix, the class was divided into two teams. The following students represent Team A: Jeff Rentfrow, Karen Buck, Greg Davis, Wayne Hepburn, Casey Hensley, and Gui Gasser. This assignment required each team member to research two companies that have faced similarities issues as Global Communications' scenario. We also determined how they are connected with the course concept.

Global Communications company is a telecommunication company that were facing dilemmas and crisis due to the fact that the telecommunication field was very competitive. They company saw more than at 50% decrease in their stocks. It's important that Global Communications take difference approaches to help the company so that it can stay competitive in the telecommunication field.

In the past, Global Communications has had a reputation of taken care of their employees, but with the new approaches and directions they will be "going against the grain". Prior to these directions, they cut health and education benefits 20%. Now, employees will lose their jobs and be laid off while others will take a 10% pay cut. Ultimately, Global Communications do not have any choice and it need to act quickly to stop the downward spiral, which could lead the company into bankruptcy.

As a group, Team A was identify issues that both the researched companies and Global Communications were similarly faced with, discuss how the companies responded to the issues, and report the outcomes of their implemented solution.

The twelve companies that we researched were: Wal-Mart; Time-Warner Cable; Boeing; IBM; United States Army; Bay State Gas; Liberty Children's Clothing; Ogihara America Corporation; Telefonica; The United Postal Services; Exxon; and BP Amoco.

Identifying Course Concepts Between other Companies and Global Communications

After conducting our research, as a team, we identified several courses concepts and correlated between the information we gathered from using the benchmarking technique and that of Global Communications.

One of the course concepts we discussed was the Contingency Model for Selecting Communication Media. Global Communications took a very ineffective method of communication media by announcing the decision to downsize via e-mail. This issue should have been done personally, either through town hall style meeting or small group settings. Kinicki and Krieter stated, "there are three zones of communication effectiveness. Effective communication occurs when the richness of the medium is matched appropriately with the complexity of the problem or situation. Media low in richness-impersonal static and personal static-are better suited for simple problems; media high in richness-interactive media face-to-face-are appropriate for complex problems or situations" (Kinicki & Kreitner, 2003, p. 539).

Hewlett Packard chose an acceptable medium-based on their unique circumstance. This was an excellent medium to use because it was anonymous and gave the employees a sense of security with voicing their true opinions. Alro Steel's management style was to go directly to the line operators and discuss face-to-face possible process enhancements. As a team, we agreed that choosing the correct media to deploy a message is crucial in keeping employees engaged.

Another simulate Global Communications can learn from Telefonica by analyzing potential competition in their own market. Careful consideration must be made with business alliances for sector biddings and competitive market challenges. Telefonica pitted two bidding companies against each other to ensure a better bargain for the company. Global Communications can learn from this endeavor by establishing an evaluation process when shopping for a suitable partner. This can reduce company risks when considering forming a company partnership.

INDIVIDUAL COMPANY SYNOPSES

Benchmarking Company: IBM Topic: Change Management / Transformational Leadership

By: Gui

In the 1990s, IBM nearly collapsed, as consumer needs and industry changed. IBM underwent a major shift from providing information technology products to providing hardware, software and service. The company had to reinvent itself. One of the main factors that helped leaders implement new strategies and directions was an intranet communication system. IBM expended much effort to provide a means of clear communication throughout the many entities of the company. In the late 1990s IBM's human resources department researched perceptions throughout the company. Research showed that employees valued the intranet communication as a more trusted channel than their coworkers or managers (Enabling Collaboration, 2005). As the intranet gained integrity, management chose to use this system to create opportunities for all employees to be a part of visioning for the company. This has led to the opportunity to involve employees in corporate culture changes.

The first brainstorming intranet exercise was called WorldJam. All employees were invited to respond to 10 specific issues. Over three days participants formulated and loosely moderated questions. Many of the company's leaders were involved with WorldJam, interacting and facilitating intranet discussion. This exercise set a new precedence for cultural change. In 2002, Sam Palmisano became the new CEO for IBM. Palmisano took this communication network a step further by creating ValuesJam. Employees were encouraged to help define IBM's core values, rather than just have values handed down to them from top management. Again, this process was facilitated with a set of questions. Over 70,000 employees participated. After the contributions were analyzed top executives were surprised to see that even though the company's employees were split in different entities, in several countries, the core topics and values were all very similar. This process has shaped the vision and direction of the company and has led to follow-up Jams, which have