Gap Analysis

Gap Analysis: Global Communications

Upon reading the Global Communications scenario, it is obvious that several issues and opportunities exist within this scenario. Some of these problems are clear while others may not be quite as apparent. In order to ascertain where the company needs to go, it is best to describe how the situation arose in the first place. With the background information describing how the situation came about, it will benefit further analysis of the issue. This analysis will start with creating a vision statement of where the company needs to be. With a vision statement at the ready, the process of bridging gaps can begin. So what are the issues that the stakeholders are confronted with?

In the case of the union talks with Global Communications, it is clear that the union representative becomes upset. Maria's distress is understandable as cuts to benefits had just been made. This was certainly not the only reason for her dismay. Another reason for her emotional response was when benefits were cut; the union was informed that it was necessary for the company to grow. The defensive stance taken by Maria was not the only emotionally charged reply to the decision; the union president also sent a hastily written email to the CEO. Emotional intelligence is defined as, "The ability to perceive and express emotion, assimilate emotion in thought, understand and reason with emotion, and regulate emotion in oneself and others." (Von Glinow & McShane, 2005, p. 119) Both Andre and Maria had trouble keeping their emotional intelligence levels in check.

Another issue present is that some of the senior leadership team considered themselves to be in charge of the decision. The team is comprised of two groups; one is comprised of members new to the company (Katrina and Nancy) and the other is contains members who have been with the company for 20+ years (Sy and Joel). While length of employment is not always an issue, the people with longevity seemed to have a better understanding of what reaction to expect. Katrina is not new to business situations or settings, however, she apparently did not anticipate the union to react in the way they did. This illusion of control may be due to lack of being firmly invested in the employees that the decision affects.

Making decisions without having a complete list of the facts is detrimental enough, making a decision based on the first good idea presented can be even worse. In an effort to make a decision expeditiously the senior leadership team took the first good idea and ran with it, or at least that is how it appears. The team was ready for a quick fix and found part of that solution in outsourcing and layoffs. Outside pressure can place tremendous strain to get answers quickly, and if the board was demanding answers, satisficing would be the most likely scenario.

It is wise to keep your board of directors happy. If the people who are ultimately responsible for your company are happy, it will have a trickledown effect. Of course, the reverse of this is true as well and it is exemplified in this scenario. Unhappy stockholders can easily place pressure on the company to perform better, and they will. In this case, GC stockholders are upset over the 60% loss in stock value over the last three years.

In the GC scenario, the interests and values of all of the stakeholders are conflicting. All key groups involved end up moving against one another in some fashion. The potential conflicts are vast and all of them could be detrimental to either the groups involved or Global Communications as a whole.

The stockholders are at odds with the leadership of GC. As it is a declining business, financial backers want to see results yesterday not tomorrow. While this can be a strong motivator, it can also infringe upon responsibility of GC to all of its employees. Forcing the leadership to make a decision quickly has resulted in tarnishing the image that GC once had. As a result of the quick decision making process, they can no longer be seen as being loyal to their employees.

Another outcome of the quick decision making process imposed on the leadership is now they are at odds with the union. In the distant past, the company was seen as a loyal employer, with the implementation of outsourcing, the union will see the company as only looking out for the bottom line. Following through with the layoffs, the company will be seen as hypocritical and unethical. If the company does not go through with its decision, it will be seen as fickle and a push over. If the union caves in to the mandate, how difficult would it be to bully them on other issues?

There are also issues between the stockholders and the union. The decline of stock prices drives the owners to resort to any means necessary to get prices backup. The direct conflicts that exist between the stockholders and the union are not very obvious, but they are one of the driving forces behind the situation overall.

In short, the stockholders want action, and the company wants the stockholders to be happy. The company needs employees, and the union members need jobs. The union needs a company to work for, and the stockholders need a company to support. All of the stakeholders rely on one another; if one fails, they can all fail.

There are several opportunities that come with the individual stakeholder issues, and they can all learn from one another. In order for future situations to be resolved, an end state vision should be constructed. The following is an example of end state visions that are applicable to all the people involved.

Global Communications and all of its individual constituents (stockholders, leadership, and employees) need to work as a team and learn more effective communication techniques. In order to be competitive, GC must also harness the learned communication to make more effective decisions. Decisions made by GC should be thought out thoroughly in an effort to make the best judgment for everyone involved. Not only the decisions, but actions taken by all levels within the company should be ethical and fair to all that are affected.

A gap exists between what GC is and what this vision states, but there is time yet to build a bridge. There are myriad tools that can be utilized for this. In the case of the dysfunctional conflict, it would be best for all involved to know the antecedents that can lead to conflict. "By knowing the antecedents of conflict, managers are better able to anticipate it and take steps to resolve it if it becomes dysfunctional" (Kreitner & Kinicki, 2004, p.489). Another useful tool using groups of everyone involved. "When employee acceptance of a decision is important, it is usually necessary to involve a group of employees