Case Analysis: Leading Culture Change at Seagram Essay

In the mid-nineties, Seagram’s core market, the spirits and wine business, had stalled. At the

Training for employees on key areas are the foundation for well-prepared workforce and will lead to a stable structured organization. The main objective of this type of training is to help to illustrate the importance of training and why achieving the proposed goals is so important for the success not only of the employee but of the entire company.

The understanding of the goal to be envisioned at Seagram moving forward is to become, remain, and develop an outside reputation as the top beverage company with 15% growth each year (Jick & Peiperl, 2011). The vision must effectively be passed to the 200 senior managers to make it a shared goal to be given and embraced company wide. The hope is that the top managed beverage company will be efficient and customer-centered, recognizing employees, while not micro-managing. The old model, based on decades old vision, needs to be replaced with a quasi-tried vision that has helped Seagram remain as one of the top, well-known companies. The new vision has seen success and is moving the company alongvtowards being the top managed beverage company. There are yet and still steps that will provide some right now actions that may help Seagram reach this goal of being the top managed company in the near future.

Upon review of the information provided, it is clear that a vision set forth by Upper management, President and CEO Edgar Bronfman, Jr. had not been implemented and there is much work that needs to be completed to fulfill his legacy. Bronfman’s statement was clear and concise with a vision to be sought after no matter the cost. His vision, according to Jick & Peiperl, 2011 is for Seagram’s to be the “best managed beverage company” (p. 255). Bronfman had an idea/image of how he wanted Seagram’s to be viewed by the world and its employees. His vision offered a baseline for all employees to follow which in turn offers a one company initiative. Offering this baseline for the corporation leaves no chance for deviation from the cause. This company with deep roots in diversity and was losing ground due to changes in the new ideas of sobriety, increases in taxes on liquor, the 1990s recession, increased government regulation and social criticism (Jick & Peiperl, 2011). To define this project is to give direction and purpose to Bronfman’s word by backing them with actual progress towards his vision. This vision for Seagram’s is to not be confused with the need of the newly acquired MCA Corporation. This company should have its own visions and values.

The long term goal for Seagram is to refocus and create values to reflect the company in a bright but effective way. The in depth understanding is there and active , but it’s a concern to the company to re-evaluate each step in moving forward. Seagram beverage company succumb to challenges and it is important to each individual to implement the right change. “ The new processes required numerous changes in how people behaved and interacted with each other-indeed, a new culture” (Jick & Peiperl, 2011, p.257). A new culture is the goal and change is needed to help individuals to reach each milestone, moving

Organizational analysis “involves determining the appropriateness of training, given the company’s business strategy, its resources available for training, and support by managers and peers for training activities” (Noe, 2013, p. 114). Organizational analysis has determined that retraining needs to occur in several key areas. Training will be given to managers, on improving communication, motivating and retaining employees through coaching and individual pathway development, with a

Effective managers will create trust through engagement, commitment, and communication. The role of the manger is to interact supportively with the employees without creating additional confusion and fear. Encouraging involvement is the best way to raise morale and

“In order to develop required human resource competencies, organizational leaders need to align the selection, training, development, and removal of employees with the behavioral requirements of the desired change” (Spector, 2010, p. 102). Having a focus on training can be an important part of helping employees understand how their competitive environment is changing. Along with the importance of changing their behaviors.

Seagram has enjoyed a long history of success from its inception in 1924 with a single distillery in Canada to a world-wise company. During this timeframe, global recognition has afforded Seagram the opportunity to grow to 14,000 employees as well as creatively diversify in a manner than many companies could not imagine. Unique purchases of oil companies as well as what some might argue to be more logical partnerships like fruit juices such as Dole Food Company, Inc. created continued accomplishments that would shore up the company and create a secure future. In addition calculated investments with DuPont, MCA Inc., which includes Universal Studios and them parks as well as electric companies build an impressive portfolio for Seagram as well. We know that highly diversified organizations are more successful, “firms whose business units are highly related to each other, such as in a focused company, are outperformed by those whose business units are moderately unrelated to each other” (Graham, 2012, p.14). Although this argument makes little sense, Seagram has, for years, experienced the benefits of being highly diversified.

As more companies enter the marketplace, the need to attract and retain customers will not only increase but also be necessary for survival. The Seagram Company has undergone numerous changes to maintain market share. Again, the company in the midst of major change and is in need of a current diagnosis of the situation and recommendations on how to advance these ambitious goals. The project needed to implement the change is necessary as today’s organizations face a number of challenges resulting from demographics, competition, new technologies, and economic variables (Peus, Frey, Gerkhardt, Fischer, & Traut-Mattausch, 2009). The following proposal will include a diagnosis of the

Understanding employee values is extremely important for management as many companies consider employee’s to be their greatest asset. To create value it is important that employees’ values are congruent with organizational values (Pohlman, 1997). Decision makers have to recognize what each employee values and determine ways in which they can be incorporated into the organization to create the most success. Once firms find employees with values congruent to the organization it is a continuous process to ensure employee, customer and the organization’s cultural value remain harmonious. With this continuous

Brown-Forman is a leading producer, marketer and importer of wines and distilled spirits. The company was the fifth-largest distiller in the United States. However, the company's success will largely due to the massive amounts of advertising expenditures on their premium brands. The company spent significantly less on low profit brands and as a result the whiskey market declined. Their response was to move into faster growing product lines to alcoholic beverages and this analysis considers a horizontal acquisition of the Southern Comfort brand.

The image of the company is a lot dependent on how everyone will interpret and implement the message of the Statement of Vison and Values. Clients now view O&M people as “uninvolved, distant, and reserved”. Beers needs a way to reach all employees as effectively as she has done with the few key people: challenging them to be more creative, to toss aside the old rules and really embrace the new Vison.

Putting together an effective employee training program can be a monumental task if not planned properly. There are four steps, repeating to produce a continuously better program that is best for both employer and employee. The process steps include needs assessment, design, implementation, and evaluation. Once it is evaluated, it should then show some weakness that should begin the cycle again with needs assessment and

A training program that is well-designed is proven to achieve maximum results and meet the training needs identified during a training needs analysis. A well-executed training program will increase overall productivity and provide the knowledge, skills, and attitudes the employees need to perform successfully. This paper presents considerations for the design of a two-phase training program for existing employees – a two (2) day program, which covers the training needs to move the company in the right direction.