Diversifying Culture in the Workplace and Its Limitations to Progress

                                 Diversifying Culture in the workplace and its Limitations to Progress – A Unicomer ( Trinidad ) Limited   Case Study        

By

Reuben Mitchell

Student ID: I029733

MBA

                           Date:

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

My supportive wife (Janine), kids and family, friends, co-workers for their time and patience.

I would like to thank the staff at Unicomer in Trinidad and Tobago for affording me the opportunity to study for this dissertation and assisting me with pertinent information and research questionnaires.

ABSTRACT

Courts Plc was a leading retail company based in the UK and wider part of the Caribbean and Europe. The company was family owned and they specialized in electrical and furniture retails. The employees at all locations were treated very well, given a substantial amount of peaks, such as bonus incentives every month based on sales, company vehicles based on location and positions, entertainment and travel allowance, and working back of any hours which were missed during the normal work week.

The employees and upper management enjoyed the overall results and performance of the company so much that even though profits were falling behind over the previous years, no cut back of any peaks were done. The company’s management structure was one of democratic, allowing all employees to have a say in the decision-making. A lot was good for Courts Plc, until they filed for bankruptcy in early 2001. This affected more than 7000 people worldwide as the company now faced being closed down and the process of retrenchment would follow. However, later on that same year, the courts decided to sell over all company assets to a holding company based in El Salvador, by the name of Regal Forest. This company belonging to another family considered the purchase of the Caribbean operations and changed all the policies, perks, culture experience that was once enjoyed by the former staff. While some people were retained and others left, it was at the sole decision to abide by the new laws, practices and polices that the Latin American Culture now had to offer to bring back profitability in the company. Employees were asked to work on weekends and holidays (if need be) and management persons were all given a pay cut with longer hours of operations. New management strategies were put in place to hold people accountable and increase profits with an extremely tight budget.

This research paper will examine how the change management process strategy was employed and how it affected those within who could not cope with change. It will also evaluate the current state of the overall employee satisfaction and retention rate of the employees over the past 5 years since Regal Forest had taken over..

TABLE OF CONTENTS

DECLARATION

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

ABSTRACT

TABLE OF CONTENTS

CHAPTER 1 : SCOPE OF THE RESEARCH

1.          INTRODUCTION AND BACKGROUND
2.           THE RESEARCH PROCESS
3.          BACKGROUND TO THE RESEARCH PROBLEM

1. Research problem statement / Research Question
2. Investigative questions

1.          THE RESEARCH DESIGN AND METHODOLOGY
2.          RESEARCH ASSUMPTIONS
3.          RESEARCH CONSTRAINTS

1. Limitations
2. De-Limitations

1.          AN OVERVIEW OF THE DISSERTATION STRUCTURE
2.          CHAPTER AND CONTENT ANALYSIS
3.          KEY RESEARCH OBJECTIVE
4. CONCLUSION

CHAPTER 2: UNICOMER TRINIDAD LTD – A HOLISTIC PERSPECTIVE

2.1         INTRODUCTION AND BACKGROUND