Organizational Pressures

Activity Description:

Purpose:

To consider all the various pressures organizations and key management face in decision making. Initial group discussion followed by a larger class discussion.

Steps:

  1. Divide the class into groups of five people. Each group represents the top management team of a prominent organization.
  2. Each group needs to identify pressures their organization faces as a result of being prominent in society (i.e. be kind to the environment, treat employees well, give back to the community, etc.).
  3. Further, each group should identify the stakeholders associated with each pressure (i.e. investors, employees, etc.).
  4. Reconvene as a class for a short time period to ensure all students have identified the appropriate pressures.
  5. Return to the groups, or if preferable, discuss as a class, how these pressures and stakeholder influences affect the firm’s decision to adopt a work-life policy.
  6. As a research tie-in, discuss the results of Arthur’s (2003) findings that announcements of work-life initiatives increased firm share price (likely contrary to what students may think).

Activity Source:

Content contributed by Alison Cook as a Suggested Work and Family Class Activity