Westco Case Study
Reid Smith
MGT291 Section E
Westco Case Study
John, Susan, and Oscar all have concerns and views about their current professional situation that are worthy of discussion. From Susan’s perspective, family is her most important obligation. Now that her son is out of the house, she has more time available for her career and feels that she is ready to take on more responsibility, but John does not seem to have any intentions of letting her move up the ladder. John’s comments about Susan sound like he is not considering her for the program because she has not played enough politics within the organization. Oscar, on the other hand, feels that he has put in a good effort and has proven that he should have the chance to join the management development program, but once again John gives less than a considerate when response when approached by Oscar. John’s comments to Kyle about Oscar seem to indicate that he is only interested in saving face for the company. He talks about Oscar’s accent and also mentions that he was only hired because John was on leave. This is a classic case of the glass ceiling, where minorities cannot move up the ladder due to ignorant managers and poor diversity management. The major organizational factor that is contributing to this problem is that there seems to be very little effort to manage diversity. Kyle is very concerned about employee satisfaction, which is good, but he needs to make a more conscious effort to make sure that all people are enabled to reach their maximum potential. For instance, according to organizational chart, there are two women in management positions, but Susan is being held back by John due to her age not her gender. John is not letting Oscar gain any responsibility simply for his accent and does not even think he should have the job he has now. Oscar and Susan have fallen victim to John’s ethnocentrism. It seems that as a whole, Westco might value diversity due to the fact that there are two female managers and
MGT291 Section E
Westco Case Study
John, Susan, and Oscar all have concerns and views about their current professional situation that are worthy of discussion. From Susan’s perspective, family is her most important obligation. Now that her son is out of the house, she has more time available for her career and feels that she is ready to take on more responsibility, but John does not seem to have any intentions of letting her move up the ladder. John’s comments about Susan sound like he is not considering her for the program because she has not played enough politics within the organization. Oscar, on the other hand, feels that he has put in a good effort and has proven that he should have the chance to join the management development program, but once again John gives less than a considerate when response when approached by Oscar. John’s comments to Kyle about Oscar seem to indicate that he is only interested in saving face for the company. He talks about Oscar’s accent and also mentions that he was only hired because John was on leave. This is a classic case of the glass ceiling, where minorities cannot move up the ladder due to ignorant managers and poor diversity management. The major organizational factor that is contributing to this problem is that there seems to be very little effort to manage diversity. Kyle is very concerned about employee satisfaction, which is good, but he needs to make a more conscious effort to make sure that all people are enabled to reach their maximum potential. For instance, according to organizational chart, there are two women in management positions, but Susan is being held back by John due to her age not her gender. John is not letting Oscar gain any responsibility simply for his accent and does not even think he should have the job he has now. Oscar and Susan have fallen victim to John’s ethnocentrism. It seems that as a whole, Westco might value diversity due to the fact that there are two female managers and