PLEASE RESPOND TO CLASSMATE DISCUSSION WHETHER YOU AGREE OR NOT & A DETAILED WHY: On the reasons for the dysfunction of the teams in this case, Jack would likely say this was caused by lack of communication, teamwork and of a clear mission. Partially due to Barker’s method of withholding proprietary ideas, communication amongst teams was not highly idealized, leading to further issues with teamwork. This was shown time and time again, but especially with the Finance team when they did not disclose a deficit to the Sales department on a specific product or tell the executive team about the payment dates of bonuses (2). Even in important meetings, important topics were left unresolved because no one felt comfortable speaking up to share opinions that went against the status quo (2). Not only were these problems occurring internally, but externally as well with not communicating properly to customers on the shipment of their products (2). Teams cannot thrive in such environments. in order to build up those relationships, basic communication has to be in place to ensure that one does not drop the ball.

The lack of a clear mission or goal was another reason for the dysfunction. While Barker was concerned with margin and revenue, his goal was tied to enticing employees with a 5% bonus (2). The means of identifying if a bonus would be paid out depended on skewed performance reviews that generally related to a high payout (2). As we learned from Jack Welch,” your company will not reach anywhere near its full potential if all that is guiding it is a list of pleasant platitudes hanging on the lobby wall” (1). A clear mission and values amongst employees that support such are necessary to truly measure the success of an organizational goal.

PLEASE RESPOND TO CLASSMATE DISCUSSION WHETHER YOU AGREE OR NOT & A DETAILED WHY: The dysfunctions that you spoke of are definitely relevant to this case. In singularity, these issues are major but stacked together are detrimental for the future success of the organization as a whole. Lack of trust is a major issue within this company. We learned in an article by John Hamm, that,” when employees don’t trust leaders, their creative energy will be spent on protecting themselves rather than on the organization” (3). This parallels what the company culture at Blake Sports Apparel became throughout time of the same repeated behaviors amongst leaders and their teams.

How would you work to overcome some of these issues, if not all?