Television Workplace Paper: Walmart, Labor, and Management

TELEVISION WORKPLACE ESSAY: 3-4 PAGE PAPER, 15% OF GRADE
Television programs often focus on the workplace. Watch one episode from a current or past fictional or non-fictional (Reality TV or documentary) television program that is set in an organization. The workplace chosen must have enough employees to constitute an organization and not be a small group or ‘mom and pop’ workplace. The assignment is designed to help you learn about the world of work and its centrality to social life. Before you start writing, review sociological and organizational concepts covered in the class thus far. In an assignment such as this, remember not to get so caught up in the show, entertaining as it may be, that you fail to pay attention to the task at hand--answering the below questions in a meaningful way. Plan to watch episode more than once. The assignment is an exercise in content analysis and visual sociology methods and well as the sociology of work and organizations. As you watch the episode, take notes, looking for answers and examples. Outside sources are not needed for this assignment, other than to provide information about the series (answer #1 below).
Answer the below questions using class lectures, readings, and PowerPoints. Websites such as IMDB.com or ones devoted to the series will assist with questions about the program itself. Refer to the Handel textbook authors, as necessary. Organize your paper, by using the subheadings below 1-6 (though not numbered in your paper, which is a formal piece of writing).
1. Introduction and Background (no more than a paragraph)
What is the title of the TV program?
Is it a current or past series? List years in production. Is it in re-runs? Available on DVD or Internet forums like Hulu?
Did the series win any awards or was it nominated for awards? If so, which ones?
Around what workplace is the series organized?
Describe the organization’s function. What services or products are being produced?
Who owns the organization? Manages it? What are the major workplace positions?
2. The Episode (no more than a paragraph)
What is the formal name of the episode you are analyzing?
Briefly summarize the plot of the episode, emphasizing workplace dynamics.
Who are the 3-5 major characters who appear in this episode? Are they regular or guest actors?
What are their workplace positions?
Are other employee positions depicted in the episode?
3. Workplace Authority and Structure
Describe the hierarchy of authority among the 3-5 characters you have selected. Who reports to whom?
Using Weber’s model of legitimate authority, explain how authority is distributed. Legal-rational? Traditionally? Charismatically?
Using Pugh, is the organization ‘flat’ or ‘tall’?
How does communication flow?
4. Labor
What motivates the workers to work?
Do they work hard or not? Why or why not?
What kinds of skills are required for their positions? Is labor skilled, unskilled, or deskilled?
Is there evidence of alienation? False consciousness?
Describe the self-presentation of employees (Goffman) and the ways in which employees manage their feelings as part of their workplace performance (Hochschild).
5. Management and Leadership
What kinds of strategies does management use to optimize worker productivity? Scientific Management? Human Relations? Humanistic Management? Explain the effectiveness or not of each management strategy used and give examples.
Are there conflicts within management?
Are there conflicts between workers and management?
Discuss leadership style. Use materials you learned from your Ginsberg, “Being Boss is Hard,” and Chapter 14, The World of Corporate Managers, to analyze leadership style and concerns.
6. Conclusion
What did you learn about organizations from this series?
Would you want to work there? Why or why not?
What workplace positions would you most or least likely want to occupy? Why?
D. Analytical Writing
Before you start writing, review sociological and organizational concepts covered thus far in the class. Circle them or write them down and make a conscious effort to apply them as you write about the experiences you are interpreting. One way to organize your response conceptually is to reframe the questions asked in an assignment in your paper. For example, to answer one of the questions under #3, you might say/write: “In The West Wing, Weber’s concepts of charismatic and legal rational legitimate authority are particularly useful for analyzing Martin Sheen’s portrayal of Josiah Bartlet, President of the United States….” (and then explain exactly how it is so that his legitimate authority is not only charismatic but bureaucratic—how does he exercise influence?). I recommend that you underline or bold highlight any course concepts and theories you use, to make certain you are in fact using concepts and theories from the class and are not simply describing the program.
E. Format
-Your essay must be 750-1000 words in length (3-4 pages), excluding title page and bibliography. Number your pages. Standard 10-12 point font such as Times New Roman or Arial.
-Use APA style, although you do not need an abstract.
-Use APA for parenthetical citations and to construct your bibliography.
-Write in the third person, as an objective observer.
-Do not use direct quotes in this paper, unless you are quoting a character in the series. Paraphrase material and cite all sociological and series material.
-Proofread your essay for spelling and grammatical errors before submitting.
-Your essay will be analyzed through SafeAssign and must be an original work, written by you.