Online Custom «Whole Foods III» Essay Sample

Question 1

John Mackey is a transformational leader as he managed to make his organization grow effectively and on a consistent basis. He achieved it by making conscious decisions that positively impacted the organization. For instance, he first borrowed funds in 1978 to start a natural food store and later developed a partnership with Craig Weller, which enhanced further growth (Hitt, Colella & Miller, 2015). Moreover, John Mackey fairly treats his employees by considering their personal talents and levels of knowledge. In fact, at Whole Foods, associates are referred to as team members, while every team is responsible for a particular product or service area. The management of the company also uses skills and abilities of every employee in training the associates to be highly knowledgeable in their respective job areas. Moreover, John Mackey acknowledged that business operations should go beyond making profits for its shareholders. In fact, much of the company’s success can be attributed to John’s transformational leadership approach.

Question 2

The degree of open communication can also work in other companies considering that most organizations look forward to empowering staff members and making them feel like business owners. In addition, open-book policy can help employees create a sense of purpose through their inclusion in ownership and development of company’s visions and values. However, the biggest problem of open-book management is not the presentation of numbers but providing information in a manner that is understandable to all employees (Hitt, Colella & Miller, 2015).

The degree of transparency improves the morale of all Whole Foods’ associates as they know they can speak to a manager or an executive at any time and it improves their overall perception of the company. Similarly, sharing strategies and financials through open communication encourages employees to develop new ideas, thus improving profitability. Moreover, Whole Foods associates can easily receive information on how the company is moving towards its goals. It makes them understand the dynamics of the organization and can help develop strategies that may positively impact the company’s performance.

Question 3

The major decision-making pitfall within Whole Foods is aggressive monopolization, which involves the acquisition of upcoming food stores, such as Bread of Life and Harry’s Farmer’s Market (Hitt, Colella & Miller, 2015). The essence of such acquisitions is to make profit. However, the best alternative would be to encourage the instigation of other food stores in order to increase competition. It is caused by the fact that competition is considered to be healthy only when firms become price competitive and focus on the improvement of individual value perception, thus encouraging innovation. The other pitfall is supporting the principle of anti-union and not giving its employees the prerogative of trying to organize one. One of the ways to counter this technique is to encourage unions, which ensure job security to workers and more access to perks, such as medical benefits.

Question 4

Whole Foods policy is putting the customers and team members first, thus ensuring that they are satisfied and happy. Similarly, the company has invested in personal and professional growth as it acknowledges the importance of health and happiness of its team members (Hitt, Colella & Miller, 2015). It is clear that a successful team cannot be formed without happy associates, which, in its turn, reduces employee turnover raye. In addition, Whole Foods has embraced open-door policy, which allows for open communication among team members and other associates regardless of their rank. In addition, it ensures openness, which allows the employees to understand each other and learn to encourage other team members.

Moreover, the company creates an environment of continual learning and teamwork, which encourages the employees to grow and empower others to do their best. It also stimulates the team members to seek for opportunities that can fulfill their deeper purpose, thus celebrating individual creativity and innovation. The company also offers various forms of assistance for those team members who want to reach their potential. An example is allowing the team members to apply for open positions in the facility, thus giving them a platform to expound their skills and explore their full potential. The team members and associates are also allowed to dress how they like and operate casually.

Question 5

The top management of Whole Foods opposes unionization as it rewards its workers well and treats them with dignity and respect. However, associates in Madison and Wisconsin became unionized due to power struggles. In fact, the power struggles revolve around constantly changing policies that were implemented ineffectively. Inconsistent scheduling has become a problem as schedules had been released weekly and changed constantly (Hitt, Colella & Miller, 2015). The management had also imposed a dress code that prohibited studs and visible ear piercings. In addition, the team members were demanding for a comprehensive health plan that would encapsulate affordable premiums and deductibles. As a result, the workers had pledged to take ‘job actions’ in the event that their demands would not be met. Other workers had complained of high turnover rates, low wages, and the management failing to acknowledge the well-being of its employees.

The other issue of conflict was that the employees were demanding higher wages, as well as a right to collective bargaining without being reprimanded by the management. The conflicts and power struggles stem from the fact that Whole Foods inculcated a perception that unions are greedy third parties that interfere with the dynamics of employer-employee relationship. In fact, there had been a mandatory all-employee meeting prior to the voting that aimed at convincing workers to vote against the union. Therefore, the company discourages its workers from joining unions and then takes advantage of the situation by providing mediocre policies and remuneration for its employees.