Compare Workplaces

M2D2: Compare Workplaces
Name of Student
Name of Institution
M2D2: Compare Workplaces
There are learning techniques shared by Costco, United Parcel Service (UPS), JCPenny and Steelcase Inc. All these companies are affiliated with teamwork and training as a technique toward effective output [and productivity] (Hellriegel & Slocum, 2011). At Costco; all the employees, the managerial staff and even the CEO work together to ensure that all the customers are treated as expected. They are all placed on a similar pedestal; making it easier for them to respect one another as team members. Additionally, UPS also delineates that its employees learn the skill(s) and achieve productivity due to training and team work (Hoffman & Bateson, 2016). These service providers receive training as much as possible to ensure that the craft is well-understood. During training, they mingle with other service providers; therefore, showing that team work is part of their learning technique. JCPenny’s learning technique also revolves around a program through which the employees receive substantial training (Hellriegel & Slocum, 2011). There is a team of employees, under this program, who ensure that the organization(s) is up and running. Finally, it is evident that Steelcase Inc. also trains its employees and ensures that they work and thrive in teams. They are also trained visually by replicating the skills grasped during virtual training(s). Like the other three organizations, at Steelcase Inc.

, the employees are placed in teams to increase motivational initiatives; which bring about productivity.
Nonetheless, the four companies are also quite different in numerous ways. Costco surpasses all the three due to its CEO’s humility and treatment of the employees. Unlike the others- Costco’s CEO [Jim] parades as an employee in his company and even answers to the customers. Jim does not segregate himself from the employees simply because he owns the business. As a result, his organization booms with profits due to the loyalty and hard work portrayed by the employees (Hellriegel & Slocum, 2011; Hassink & Koning, 2009; Heymann, 2014). The employees at Costco are treated as crème de la crème employees as they are: offered high salaries, given respect and handled with care (Heymann, 2014). Additionally, UPS is different from the other three companies since only specific service providers are rewarded with free lunches and T-shirts (Hellriegel & Slocum, 2011). The other companies reward all their employees without a particular criterion. With Costco, for instance, all the employees receive high wages by simply working in the company. There are no qualifications [or lack thereof] for offering high compensation to Costco’s employees. Furthermore, JCPenny differs from the other companies as it has a PowerLine team strategy that works toward improving employee relations through teamwork. The other three organizations do not necessarily follow up on absentee employees or offer them any benefit(s) during this same period.
Finally, Steelcase Inc. also delineates particular differences in comparison to the other companies. It is the only one that employs cross-training techniques and emulation ones as well. Since all of them train their employees, Steelcase Inc. delineates uniqueness by making the employees grasp skills through observation. Also, unlike Costco’s protocols that only require employees to work 10 hours, employees at Steelcase Inc. often attend these trainings after their normal work shifts (Hellriegel & Slocum, 2011). They tend to overwork their employees as compared to the other companies such as JCPenny whose team work initiatives come in handy.
References
Hassink, W. H. J., & Koning, P. (2009). Do financial bonuses reduce employee absenteeism? Evidence from a lottery. Industrial and Labor Relations Review, Vol. 62, No. 3.
Hellriegel, D., & Slocum, J. W. (2011). Organizational behavior. Mason, OH: South-Western Cengage Learning.
Heymann, J. (2014). Profit at the Bottom of the Ladder: Creating Value by Investing in Your Workforce. Boston: Harvard Business Review Press.
Hoffman, K. D., & Bateson, J. E. G. (2016). Services marketing: Concepts, strategies, & cases. Boston, MA : Cengage Learning.