The company can be discussed as an ideal place to work when leaders develop the effective corporate culture and focus on the successful principles of the organizational behavior. In this context, it is necessary to provide employees with the appropriate working conditions that are better than in the rival companies; to provide the adequate compensation; and to guarantee the opportunity for the career development (Nelson & Quick, 2015, p. 26). Referring to these aspects, the Boston Consulting Group (BCG) can be considered as the actively developed U.S. company which culture and approach to the organizational behavior attract employees and contribute to the competitive advantage. The BCG is the best place to work because the company addresses diversity in the organization, provides significant benefits, pays attention to the employees’ needs, and stimulates their professional growth while responding to the changes in the global market.
Fundamental Driving Forces That Shape the Organizational Environment
To support the idea that the BCG develops the positive organizational environment, it is necessary to discuss fundamental driving forces that can influence the organizational behavior. These forces are changes in competition, the necessity to address diversity, principles of ethics and sustainability, and changes associated with innovation (Nelson & Quick, 2015, p. 27). Thus, the driving forces affect the development of the organization significantly because leaders need to adapt the organizational culture to the changes in the spheres and to minimize possible pressures. The changes in the global market influenced the competition strategy followed by the BCG significantly. To compete effectively in a global marketplace, the leaders of the organization chose to predict global economic changes, analyze possible effects, develop response strategies, and test those strategies in the BCG’s organization that are later recommended to the clients (Norton, 2010, p. 15). As a result, the BCG increased their global competitive potential, demonstrated their flexibility, and left the rivals behind.
The similar approach is followed regarding the issue of workforce diversity. The BCG leaders state that globalization requires the workforce diversity to attract more talents and create the value because BGC consultants work in many countries and in different environments. Moreover, the organization’s focus on ethics is associated with the idea of diversity supported with the concept of justice. The BCG implemented strict policies regarding conflict of interests, and it focused on the idea of social responsibility (Manget, Roche, & Munnich, 2009, p. 4). Technological innovation is one more area where the BCG can demonstrate its balanced approach to the organizational culture and administration. The BCG operates in many countries and in various environments to address the needs of different clients (Boston Consulting Group, 2007, p. 5). Thus, the company actively uses telecommuting in order to guarantee flexible working hours and part-time job opportunities for the diverse workforce, with references to the work-life balance principles and employees’ preferences.
The BCG Practices and Policies
It is possible to state that the BCG, as the company which specializes in providing consultancies and assistance regarding the choice of managerial practices, achieved the significant results in developing practices to guarantee positive individual and organizational outcomes. In order to make the company a supportive place to work and to develop the team with the sense of partnership, the leaders adopted the policy according to which employees can choose the schedule to follow and the technology to use in order to collaborate with partners in a team and be actively engaged in the process (Boston Consulting Group, 2007, p. 6). As a result, flexible working hours, part-time job, and telecommuting are discussed as effective strategies to improve performance and increase productivity in case of women or consultants in different countries.
The other practice is the system of ‘red zone’ reports. Managers of the company work to stimulate the collaboration and productivity of the employees who work individually and in teams. That is why, if employees spend too much time for completing certain tasks or the work-life balance is violated, reports are sent to managers who control the situation and work to adapt the conditions or motivate the employees to decrease the number of hours spent on working at the project (Vaiman, Scullion, & Collings, 2012, p. 926). The main focus is on the engagement of the employees and on the presentation of the best and timely result. The outcomes of this practice are the employees’ commitment to the work, high-quality performance, and the use of advanced schedules and plans.
The next policy is associated with benefits provided by the company. Following the principle of the distributive justice, employees receive the expected and adequate compensation. However, they also receive the full health care premiums and paid sabbaticals. As a result, the employees are satisfied; they discuss their working environment as supportive and safe; and they are ready to spend more efforts and power in order to achieve the corporate and project goals (Norton, 2010, p. 16). Therefore, the discussed practices implemented in the BCG are rather effective because they address the corporate needs while responding to the interests of the individuals as the part of the organizational culture.
Practices That Are Affected by Diversity
Such work attitudes as the employees’ satisfaction related to the job and organizational commitment can be discussed as significantly influenced by the issue of diversity because it is difficult to address the needs and interests of the diverse workforce. In this context, the discussed work-life balance practices, flexibility practices, and team working are the most affected by diversity (Nelson & Quick, 2015, p. 34). Although the BCG solves the associated issues effectively while proposing unique approaches, it is important to focus on these practices in detail and suggest the possible strategy to address the negative effects.
In the BCG, about 50% of employees are women who prefer part-time working and working at home. Furthermore, the company attracts talents depending on their expertise, rather than age. As a result, it is necessary to make the schedule and administration of the work more flexible (Vaiman et al., 2012, p. 926). In addition, the problem is in the cultural diversity because representatives of different races and cultures can experience difficulties while working in teams and while negotiating. However, the BCG discusses this issue as the advantage because more opinions and cultures create the more effective background for the successful problem-solving. Referring to the experience of the BCG, it is possible to state that strategies to address the issue of diversity are flexible schedules, the use of technologies for telecommuting and meetings, effective team building, and training on aspects of cultural diversity in order to balance the focus of cultures on individualism and collectivism.
Conclusion
The BCG is a company that is discussed by potential and current employees as one of the most attractive places for working in the United States. The reason is that the organization pays much attention to creating conditions and developing practices that stimulate the work of employees and form their positive work attitudes. As a result, the approach to the organizational behavior can be discussed as efficient and contributing to adding the value to the organization as the market leader.
References
Boston Consulting Group. (2007). The future of HR: Key challenges through 2015. Dusseldorf: The Boston Consulting Group.
Manget, J., Roche, C., & Munnich, F. (2009). Capturing the green advantage for consumer companies. Boston, MA: The Boston Consulting Group.
Nelson, D. L., & Quick, J. C. (2015). Organizational behavior. Mason, OH: Cengage.
Norton, J. (2010). Interview with David Rhodes and Daniel Stelter, authors of Accelerating out of the Great Recession. Strategic Direction, 26(6), 15-17.
Vaiman, V., Scullion, H., & Collings, D. (2012). Talent management decision making. Management Decision, 50(5), 925-941.