Many minority members fail to understand that their career mobility can be affected by their colleagues' feelings of familiarity or closeness with them. Even those who do understand this can find building workplace relationships across racial boundaries difficult. Being one's true self, disclosing elements of one's personal life, and forming social connections are harder when attempted across a demographic boundary such as racial background. Helping workplace relationships flourish among people of differing races may require special effort. The authors suggest several strategies that organizations can use to make employees from varied demographic groups feel comfortable engaging with one another: (1) Recognize the role that structure--such as formal icebreaker games or having a leader introduce everyone at a gathering--can play in easing the discomfort of free-form socializing. (2) Adopt a learning orientation by asking open and curious questions that demonstrate that being different makes someone more valuable. (3) Consider creating a buddy system of informal mentorship, in which more-experienced employees help facilitate social relationships for new hires.
Describes the events surrounding Bain & Co.'s financial and organizational struggles between 1988 and 1991. Focuses on the role of Orit Gadiesh, then vice chairman of Bain & Co., in leading the effort to restructure the company and restore company pride.
Examines the three factors critical to this company's remarkable success in the high tech field. The first factor is the founder, Dr. Inamori's powerful leadership. The second is the strong corporate culture or philosophy of the firm. The third element in Kyocera's success is the company's management systems, i.e. the "amoeba" system of profit centers. This system is bound together by an interactive level of meetings and the strong philosophy of the company which emphasizes both creativity and working toward a higher goal for the good of the company. This philosophy of a higher common goal prevents infighting amongst profit centers and preserves a unity of purpose, while encouraging a great deal of individual autonomy and creativity through the management system. This system in conjunction with the philosophy also promotes multiple levels of leadership and individual initiative throughout the firm. Dr. Inamori's leadership communicates this philosophy to the employees.
Depicts the reformation of Nissan Motor Co.'s corporate culture and the company's subsequent turnaround in market share and profits. In 1985, Yutaka Kume became president of Nissan and thereafter, he continually emphasized the need for internal change throughout the organization. Despite the difficulty of effecting widespread change in such a large organization, Nissan's managers and employees got behind this effort. By 1990, there was a discernable difference in Nissan's image and product. The infamous "econo-boxes" of the early 1980s had been replaced by sleek new models like the Silva (240sx). This case explores many of the changes which took place throughout the organization to make such cultural change possible and effective, from the top management level, to the design department, to the assembly line. Also examines the difficulty and time needed to make lasting change in an organization.