Lesson 13

Chapter 9

1. A large bureaucratic organization with which I have had contact with that has not responded flexibly to customer demands would be the United States Government. The US Government is very well known for its policies and “red tape” in just about any organization you can think of. It takes weeks if not months to get anything done. A large bureaucratic organization with which I have had contact with that has provided a satisfactory responsiveness would be GEICO. In my dealings with GEICO, they have been very flexible to my needs and have made many exceptions for me. I think the differences between the responsive and non-responsive organization are vast. In a responsive organization; quickness, agility, and the ability to adapt to changing demands is more vital than ever. They work more as teammates than as subordinates who take orders from the boss, thus breaking away from the traditional bureaucratic form.

2. If I were to go into business for myself, I would open up a contemporary clothing boutique. My core competencies would be customized customer service, providing opinions when asked, and allowing for customization of clothing to ensure fit of clothing. Currently, I believe I could provide customized customer service very well. I would need to develop my fashion sense in order to provide opinions when asked and I would also need to develop my skills so that I could customize clothing. My role in a network organization would be to purchase raw materials from suppliers, purchase articles of clothing from other producers/distributors, and sell final goods to customers. The competencies and roles of other firms that I would want in my network would be good craftsmanship and excellent customer service.

3. To work effectively in a learning organization you would need to be skilled at solving problems, experimenting with new approaches, learning from your own experiences, learning from other organizations, and spreading knowledge quickly and...