Gap Analysis: Global Communications

Gap Analysis: Global Communications

"On Wall Street, confidence in the telecommunications industry is waning. Stockholders are bemoaning diminishing returns and speculating about the industry's ability to rebound. Understandably, telecommunications companies are under tremendous economic pressure and Global Communications is no exception. Three years ago, its stock traded at $28 per share; today, the stock is valued at $11, more than a 50 percent depreciation," (UOP, 2006). Global Communications' Senior Leadership Team proposed a plan that is sure to get the company on track and to the top of the communications industry. There were many flaws in the process that the team took in getting the proposal approved. Within this analysis, key issues and opportunities will be discussed in-depth. The plan will also have its number of conflicts along the way and these are thoroughly defined and discussed. Finally, the end-state vision of Global Communications' plan, and the analysis of the gap from now until plan success are reviewed in detail.

Situation Analysis

Issue and Opportunity Identification

Many events within Global Communications' history have lead to many issues facing the company. With these issues are opportunities for the company to grow and increase their profitability. Global Communications' Senior Leadership Team did not carefully identify the consequences of its plan to outsource, expand the company globally, and communicate with the Technologies Workers Union.

Global Communications' goal by outsourcing was to realize its growth through the introduction of new services. Those employees that will be able to be relocated to the consumer call centers will incur a 10% decrease in salary, as for the other employees, they will loss their jobs. Global Communications' Senior Leadership Team did not carefully identify the consequences of its plan for global expansion.

Global Communications' goal through expanding the company on a global basis was to increase profitability. Through this expansion Global Communications will have to close some of its offices in the United States. This will cause many of its employees to either relocate overseas or loose their jobs.

Global Communications' Senior Leadership Team had a lack of communication with the Technologies Workers Union about their plan to outsource. This will cause numerous employees to loose their jobs, and ultimately lead to conflict between the two companies. The Senior Leadership Team was more concerned with moving fast to get the proposal approved by Global Communications' Board than contacting the liaison between them and the Union. This communication would allow the two companies to identify and negotiate the plan in terms of its employees.

Stakeholder Perspectives/Ethical Dilemmas

The three main stakeholder groups involved with Global Communications are the Senior Leadership Team, current Global Communications employees, and the Technologies Workers Union. These three groups each have different interests, rights and values. "Make no mistake about it. Conflict is an unavoidable aspect of organizational life. These major trends conspire to make organizational conflict inevitable: constant change, greater employee diversity, more teams (virtual and self-managed), less face-to-face communication (more electronic interaction), a global economy with increased cross-cultural dealings," (Kreitner & Kinicki, 2003, p. 485).

Global Communications' Senior Leadership Team's main interest is the success of Global Communications. They are willing to take whatever measures necessary to ensure this success. They also have a commitment to the speedy implementation of their proposal to ensure they stay abreast with the competition within the communications industry. The team also feels a personal obligation to be honest to its employees and the Union of the effects of their plan. With certain outcomes that are inevitable, the team is also interested in keeping fairness to its employees.

Global Communications' current employees are also major stakeholders within the company. They hold a level of loyalty to Global Communications and as with all good employees have a tolerance of change. With this loyalty comes an inherent trust of the senior leadership within Global Communications. The employees also strive to achieve customer satisfaction.

The Technologies Workers Union main interest is with the treatment of Global Communications' employees. They are there to ensure that equality and fairness is ensured to each and every employee regardless of their standing. The Union's most immediate interest is in the preservation and communication of the current employees of Global Communications.

These variances of interest amongst the stakeholders of Global Communications will inevitably lead to conflict. "Conflict is a complex subject for several reasons. Primary among them is the reality that conflict often carries a lot of emotional luggage. Fear of losing or fear of change quickly raises the emotional stakes in a conflict," (Kinicki & Kreitner, 2003, p. 486). There are types of conflict that could occur within the near future of Global Communications: task, and process conflict.

Task conflict could occur when the Senior Leadership Team outlines the process of the plan to its employees and sets individual tasks to each employee. With these two groups interests in the future and their position at Global Communications being different, conflict is almost certain. "Differences in vision, intentions and quality expectations often lead to task conflict. Employee relationships may initially appear to survive task conflict but an important project may not. It is essential to channel task conflict so that these differences become collaborative and improve the way the team thinks about accomplishing current and future tasks," (Graves, 2006).

The fact that the Senior Leadership Team did not discuss the employees' future with them before their plan to change Global Communications was approved