Socialization Process - Personal Statement Example

A Case Study of Socialization Process LEVEL is one of the bars that round the corner of Adams and La Salle streets just blocks away from the SchubertTheatre. It is one of the more famous bars in the Loop though not the kind one will find in tourist maps and hotel brochures. The management likes to keep it that way since the target patrons are really the literary lot who frequent the theatre district and the drowsy mid-level yuppies and business people working in some high-rises in the neighborhood. LEVEL is known for the specialty beer, brewed in-house by its own brew master. It is often full especially on Fridays. I am working at LEVEL since two years ago and I enjoy being here simply because of the atmosphere and the wide space which drowns conversations allowing me a quick browse of my books unnoticed and undisturbed before the opening time. Organizational Structure LEVEL is run personally by the owners, which are a couple, helped by four other managers who work on shifts since LEVEL is open from Mondays to Sundays. These managers divide the responsibility with one managing the kitchen while the other runs the bar in a typical day of operation. People employed are close to 50 performing various tasks and responsibilities taking the positions of servers, bartenders, cleaners, cashiers and cooks. I am one of the servers who must tend to an average of 100 customers per day. We report to the server supervisor which in turn report to the bar manager. This is roughly the same setup with regards to the bartenders only that for those in the kitchen, where there are no complex tasks, the helpers, cleaners and cooks report directly to the kitchen manager. All employees are required to fill-up a work ticket at the end of each working day for the managers to evaluate. That is because employees are given the leeway to make decisions on their own as they perform their responsibilities. The managers then report to the owners twice a month, with recommendations and other inputs culled from the workers about the needs and affairs of the bar that needs to be addressed. The rank and file employees work on a contract, renewable every six months based on the performance. Socialization Considering the number of employees and the physical space of the bar, there is an ample opportunity for socialization process to take place. I’d like to refer to how Novak defined a strong organizational culture to describe the socialization process at LEVEL. According to Novak, there are three aspects that define the strength of an organization: choice phase, introduction stage and encounter phase.1 The choice phase refers to the selection of employees – the kind of people accepted and the process by which they are accepted. Employment at LEVEL is much sought after by college students who are not only after the financial remuneration. For instance, a co-server, Linda, who is also a Journalism major at Northwestern University, articulated her reason of establishing a network of literati and writer friends among the patrons to advance her future career. LEVEL is known to hire part-timers and college students who can enhance the “atmosphere” it maintains. Of course, the case is slightly different for those who work in the kitchen. The brew master stressed that there are “recipes and trade secrets that are carefully protected” so the screening process for the kitchen and storage staff is rigorous and requires new recruits to comply to certain rules and terms specifically laid in a contract. To illustrate, Jose, the assistant chef, narrates: “When I started working at LEVEL, there are some information which I am not allowed to talk about even with my wife. We just learned to live with it since the pay is more than enough for such small sacrifice.” Training and reinforcement of the organizational values is what makes up the introduction phase. New recruits are paired with experienced employees for supervision and training. One of the trainees said that this pairing setup is very effective albeit emphasizing more pressure. A trainer is charged with a single ward and, hence, there are no other trainees to perform less or better. Each trainee is forced to perform well. However, training satisfaction among new workers varies and this aspect rests on the trainer assigned. For example, a trainee secretly complained to me that his strict trainer reprimands him all the time, which, in his view, is not a conducive training method. Eventually it breeds resentment on his part. Also, according to the bar host supervisor it should be taken into account how the management specifically encourages hosts, servers and bartenders to interact with the clients besides performing their duties. They are expected to know something about the Book-of-the-Month Club or the plays running around town or if not at least reviews about them. Gene, one of the bartenders, summed up these facts when he said that the environment itself – the bar, the location, the patrons – is a powerful cue to reinforce each and every socialization process. As it is, formal training and visual images assert roles to be taken, knowledge to be learned and values to acquire for the employees. The encounter phase is no more than the stage from the last steps of the training and the actual work. It has been repeated time and time again during our orientation sessions that at this stage, the management believes the worker has a full understanding of the company and its values, his work and their collective objectives and, therefore, knows what is expected of him. Apparently, this produces good results among the workers as Linda elaborates, “it molds a sense of belongingness since the management trusts us in our own judgments and ability to make our own decisions. Of course, in my opinion it makes us feel important and valued. So, these alone make me enjoy my work better, be extra nice to the patrons. And I do look forward to working each day.” Another important aspect of the interaction phase is the socialization involved between the workers and LEVEL’s patrons. Those who are directly involved with dealing with customers agree that they have to learn adaptability, one way or another. Let’s take Lauren’s case to explain an interesting example of this process: “It is just natural to please customers, pamper them as much as possible, especially those give generous tips. There is this patron who wants me to reserve a place near the window where he can watch people always at a particular time. So even though there is no policy here about reservations, I have learned to devise ways of making that table available whenever he needs it.” Finally, we have the interaction which takes place among the workers themselves. The environment at LEVEL does not prohibit employees from learning from each other for, after all, they came from diverse backgrounds. We have a Korean cleaner who gushed how everybody helps him with his English all the time and that he doesn’t need to spend learning ESL and all. Strengths and Weaknesses In reference to Novak’s standard, we can say that LEVEL is strong especially that it succeeded in creating an environment, which overcome specific employee behaviors to suit the company goals. I would like to give three factors how this is achieved. One, the interaction within – management to employees, employees among themselves and employees to clients – highlights the controlled socialization by which preferred identities are assumed. LEVEL’s organization is small enough and the hierarchical structure is not too tall and almost flat for a comprehensive socialization to occur. Second, we must not forget the concept of reward and punishment, which plays an important role in the process. We see this when the workers talk about their motivations like salary, tips, advancing one’s career, reprisals and being fired. And finally, it is important to note the employees’ satisfaction over how they are treated with trust and respect, which, eventually is translated into good performance. One of the weaknesses that I saw at LEVEL as an organization is that most of the employees work part-time. The workers may not see employment at LEVEL as a long-term career; hence, the future of the organization may not be incorporated in their priorities. Although most enjoy working, are satisfied and do perform well, there is a certain limit when it comes to commitment to the company. Other weaknesses, which could be negligible, may stem from individual behaviors and poor judgments of the workers. Bibliography Novak, Sharon & Fine, Charles H., Culture Clash: The Corporate Socialization Process meets Non-Congruent Organization Subcultures. January 1996, MIT, 20 Apr. 2006 Read More