Paper Of At Least 5 Pages In APA Format Excluding Title

Paper Of At Least 5 Pages In Apa Format Excluding Title And Reference

In a previous week you were introduced to the fictitious company, Creative Colors. Creative Colors sells art supplies through three retail stores in Washington as well as online, and offers art classes at its flagship store in Seattle. The owner of Creative Colors took your advice regarding restructuring and downsizing the company. The organization is now operating much more efficiently and has seen revenues begin to climb in its retail stores. With the improving economic climate in the region and the growing strength of the U.S. dollar compared to the Canadian dollar, the owner now sees an opportunity to acquire a regional competitor, Art Depot, based in Vancouver, Canada.

The Owner of Creative Colors wants to expand the retail service capacity of Creative Colors by bringing Art Depot’s two retail stores (both located in Vancouver, Canada) under the Creative Colors’ brand. Creative Colors has distinguished itself in the marketplace with high quality, personalized service, while Art Depot has focused on a low-cost business strategy. The owner of Creative Colors is anxious to create a culture within the two Art Depot stores that supports excellent customer service. She has asked you to give her advice about creating a new culture in the Art Depot stores. Identify the types of organizational values and norms that are likely to be found in the low-cost Art Depot stores prior to their acquisition by Creative Colors.

Then, identify the types of organizational values and norms that would encourage employees in the two Art Depot stores to behave in ways that produce high quality, personalized service. Discuss how you would create a culture that would help the employees of the two Art Depot stores transition from a low-cost strategy to a strategy that is differentiated by excellent customer service. Reference the four building blocks of organizational culture as you give your advice to the owner of Creative Colors about how to build a culture of excellent customer service at the Art Depot stores. Describe the challenges inherent in implementing the kinds of changes that will be necessary to achieve the desired culture at the Art Depot stores, including any challenges that may be associated with the fact that the Art Depot stores are located in Canada.

Identify ways of overcoming potential resistance to change. Please do a summary slide for Business development (Business Development Plan) Case scenario The King Saud University Medical City is pitching the below business case for potential private investors to co-invest in the development of a Bariatric Surgery Center. This Centre will function as a semi-private entity that will accept and cater to patients with either insurance coverage, private payers or sponsored patients by a third party. The Bariatric Center will be comparable with international standards for Bariatric Surgery that is capable to provide a comprehensive and complete service to these patients, utilizing the professional expertise of the staff within the Medical City of KSU, including the specialized surgical team, the social service experts, the nutrition team, psychological specialists, the physiotherapist and nursing staff who are fully trained and has that vast experience in Obesity management.

The University would like to attract these private investors to start delivering services by Q2 2017. The University’s contribution to this project is a newly built 100 bed-capacity isolated building located at its campus at King Abdulaziz University Hospital which has operative capabilities and a Day Surgery Management capacities. This newly built facility has infrastructure cost and medical staff covered by King Saud University Medical City and has an additional estimated expenditure demands of 250,000,000 SAR that will include some (30%) capital expenditure (CAPEX) and an operational expenditure (OPEX) for the first 3 years, after which, the center is expected to be running positive cash flow.

The number of beds expected to be giving a capacity performing around 8,000-9,000 cases per year. The maximum negative value is 145 million expected to break even by the second or third-year maximum and then a positive cash flow of around 40,000,000 SAR per year. The magnitude of obesity in Saudi Arabia is one of the growing concerns in the Kingdom. The high incidence of obesity is estimated to be around 30% of the 22 million total population. The waiting list for Bariatric surgery in most centers is between 3-4 years.

The estimated price tag for the operation of this study is benchmarked with other private centers like Al Habeeb and Kingdom centers in Riyadh. KSU will have an added value of having a full-time expertise manpower and is much better equipped to deal with emergency cases and difficult patients with high co-morbidities and/or high risk. The expected investment is needed in the 4th quarter of 2016 in order to be operational in 2017. The structure itself is fully completed. There are many competitors in the market, mostly private centers, but with that, there is still a large demand for Bariatric Surgery in the Kingdom.

The Ministry of Health in Saudi Arabia has requested this to be a priority in their next phase of development for privatization of services. Investors are expected to own 50% with the amount placed in and shared 50% of the total revenues. The operational manpower is readily available within the capacity of the Medical City and could be expanded rapidly as services are required. There is a potentiality for an increase in size as the service accumulates patients later on.

Paper For Above instruction

Creating a new organizational culture that emphasizes excellent customer service, especially when transitioning from a low-cost, efficiency-driven environment to a differentiated service orientation, is a complex but achievable goal. For Creative Colors, this transition involves understanding existing values and norms, establishing new cultural building blocks, managing change effectively, and addressing potential challenges across geographic boundaries.

Existing Organizational Values and Norms in Art Depot

Prior to acquisition by Creative Colors, Art Depot's organizational culture was likely characterized by values centered around cost leadership, operational efficiency, and volume-driven performance. As a low-cost retailer, its norms probably emphasized minimizing expenses, maximizing sales volume, and maintaining a streamlined, operationally efficient store environment (Kotler & Keller, 2016). Employees would be conditioned to prioritize speed, product availability, and low prices over personalized customer interaction. Norms regarding customer service might have been minimal or transactional, with a focus on quick checkouts and basic assistance rather than tailored, high-touch engagement (Schein, 2010). The company’s culture likely fostered a competitive environment among employees, driven by targets related to sales volume and cost reduction, with less emphasis on customer satisfaction or relationship building (Huang & Rust, 2021).

Organizational Values and Norms Promoting High-Quality, Personalized Service

Transitioning to a culture that values high-quality, personalized service requires embedding values such as customer-centricity, empathy, professionalism, and continuous improvement (Goffee & Jones, 2015). Norms should shift toward proactive customer engagement, active listening, and tailored solutions. Employees should feel empowered to go beyond transactional interactions to foster long-term relationships (Liao & Chuang, 2004). Such norms include demonstrating genuine concern for customer needs, recognizing individual preferences, and delivering customized attention. Developing a shared understanding that exceptional service drives loyalty and revenue growth will motivate employees to adopt behaviors consistent with a differentiated strategy (Kandampully et al., 2018). Crucially, these values must be reinforced by managerial support, appropriate incentive systems, and ongoing training, ensuring that the desired norms become ingrained in daily operations (Cameron & Quinn, 2011).

Building a Culture to Support Customer Service Excellence Using the Four Building Blocks

The four building blocks of organizational culture—artifacts, values, basic assumptions, and organizational climate—provide a framework for cultural change (Schein, 2010). To foster a culture of excellent customer service in the Art Depot stores, the owner should focus on aligning these elements coherently.

1. Artifacts: Introduce visible symbols of a service-oriented culture, such as staff uniforms emphasizing professionalism, customer service awards, and visual cues promoting helpfulness. Decor and signage should reinforce the importance of personalized service.
2. Values: Clearly articulate the new customer-centric values through mission statements, staff meetings, and internal communications. Emphasize values like empathy, respect, and commitment to customer satisfaction.
3. Basic Assumptions: Encourage a shared belief that exceptional customer service is essential for long-term success. This can be achieved through storytelling, leadership modeling, and rewarding service excellence, thus embedding this assumption into everyday practice (Schein, 2010).
4. Organizational Climate: Foster an environment that rewards proactive service behaviors, provides feedback for improvement, and supports risk-taking in customer interactions. Creating a positive, supportive climate boosts employee confidence and motivation to deliver personalized service.

Addressing the challenges associated with this cultural shift, especially considering the stores are located in Canada, involves navigating cross-cultural differences, legal regulations, and regional customer preferences. For instance, Canadian cultural norms may influence communication styles—emphasizing politeness, inclusivity, and respect—which should be integrated into training and organizational messaging (House et al., 2004).

Challenges and Overcoming Resistance

Implementing such profound cultural change often encounters resistance, stemming from employees' fears of losing job security, increased workload, or deviation from familiar routines (Kotter & Schlesinger, 2008). Resistance may also be compounded by cultural differences between American and Canadian markets, including language nuances, societal norms, and consumer expectations. Overcoming resistance requires transparent communication, involving employees in the change process, and aligning incentives with desired behaviors (Burnes, 2017). Offering training programs, providing ongoing support, and recognizing employees’ efforts in adopting new norms can facilitate smoother transitions (Armenakis & Bedeian, 1999).

Furthermore, engaging local management and employees in the change process ensures cultural sensitivity and increases ownership of the new values. Emphasizing the benefits of a customer-centric culture, such as increased employee satisfaction and loyalty, can motivate staff to embrace change despite initial challenges.

Summary

Transforming the culture of the Art Depot stores from a cost-focused, transactional environment to one centered on high-quality, personalized customer service is both vital and complex. Key steps include clearly defining and communicating new organizational values, reinforcing artifacts that symbolize service excellence, shifting basic assumptions through leadership modeling, and cultivating a supportive climate that rewards customer-focused behaviors. Recognizing the cross-cultural nuances associated with operating in Canada, management must tailor their change strategies accordingly. Overcoming resistance involves transparent dialogue, employee involvement, training, and incentive realignment. Successfully executing this cultural transformation will not only enhance customer satisfaction but also position the stores for sustainable competitive advantage within the evolving retail landscape.

References

• Armenakis, A. A., & Bedeian, A. G. (1999). Organizational change: A review of theory and research in the 1990s. Journal of Management, 25(3), 293–315.
• Burnes, B. (2017). Managing change. In G. R. Jones & J. M. George (Eds.), Contemporary management (10th ed., pp. 498–533). Pearson.
• Cameron, K. S., & Quinn, R. E. (2011). Diagnosing and changing organizational culture: Based on the competing values framework. John Wiley & Sons.
• Goffee, R., & Jones, G. (2015). Why should anyone be led by you? What it takes to become a leader people want to follow. Harvard Business Review Press.
• Huang, M. H., & Rust, R. T. (2021). Engaged to a Robot? The Role of AI in Service. Journal of Service Research, 24(1), 30-41.
• House, R. J., Hanges, P. J., Javidan, M., Dorfman, P. W., & Gupta, V. (2004). Culture, leadership, and organizations: The GLOBE study of 62 societies. Sage Publications.
• Kandampully, J., Zhang, T., & Ju, X. (2018). Customer experience management in hospitality: A literature review. International Journal of Contemporary Hospitality Management, 30(2), 776–804.
• Kotler, P., & Keller, K. L. (2016). Marketing management (15th ed.). Pearson.
• Kotter, J. P., & Schlesinger, L. A. (2008). Choosing strategies for change. Harvard Business Review, 86(7/8), 130–139.
• Liao, H., & Chuang, A. (2004). A multilevel investigation of factors influencing employee service performance and customer outcomes. Academy of Management Journal, 47(1), 41-58.