1. Name a leader whom you think manages his/her organization's culture well. How does the leader so this? Use Schein's description of how leaders reinforce culture to analyze the leader's behavior.
2. CASE SOLUTION: CarMax, the Used Car Superstore: Learning for Performance Improvement
Linkage of Case to Chapter Material
This case focuses on CarMax, the nation's largest retailer of used cars. The operations of CarMax are guided by a multi-point business concept that stresses product availability, no-haggle pricing, product quality, willingness to purchase vehicles from a customer even if the same customer does not purchase vehicles from CarMax, and service availability. Not only do these points guide CarMax's operations, they also help to set forth CarMax as a business model for other used car dealers to emulate. Indeed, Casey Thormahlen and George Van Horn, writing in The RMA Journal, suggest that new car dealers that also sell used cars can learn a great deal from CarMax regarding how to operate successfully.
CarMax's operations are firmly based on a foundation of 10 values, one of which is continuous improvement. The CarMax Web site states: "We will never stop improving our systems, our processes, and our policies." CarMax's commitment to continuous improvement relies heavily upon learning. This emphasis on learning is implemented through the company's talent management process and the use of learning loops. Talent management involves programs designed to help associates develop the competencies they must have in order to excel at their roles and to contribute to the company's achievement of its short-range and long-range goals. Learning loops involve a five-step process that is integral to continuous improvement and which "can be implemented anywhere in the organization to accelerate the pace of change."
The case provides the opportunity for exploring the linkage between continuous improvement and organizational change, as well as how external forces and internal forces for change impact organizational change efforts. The case also provides an opportunity to apply the concepts of incremental change, strategic change, and transformational change
What is one external force for change that is likely to influence CarMax's commitment to continuous improvement? State in 1 sentence only. What is one internal force for change that is likely to influence CarMax's commitment to continuous improvement? State in 1 sentence only.