Introduction

The organizational behavior of an organization is a great determinant of its success. Different organizations have different organizational structures and behave differently. In this paper, the main aim is to examine the actual organizational behavior of  The Country’s Best Yogurt (TCBY). In this analysis, we will analyze the impact that individuals, groups, and structure have on behavior within the organization TCBY.

TCBY is the largest frozen yogurt franchisor in the world. The acronym stands for The Country’s Best Yogurt. It was started in 1981 in U.S. and has now spread to a number of countries in the world. As per the name of the organization indicates, it is very much dedicated to offering quality services to all its customers. The organization offers products, which offer great satisfaction to the customers, and this has made it to be a preferred choice by many customers. The properties are also of a variety of flavors, which makes the customers feel the need to come back to the company for more and never get bored by the services they get from this company.

The choice of TCBY organization is because the organization has a great success story that can be attributed to its strong management and organizational behavior. Management is one of the greatest elements of organizational behavior. TCBY has an organizational behavior, which is consistent of philosophy of doing things, a vision, a mission and set goals to achieve. Thus, this is why this organization is chosen.

The main goal of choosing TCBY organization is to determine how it is organized in all its different sectors. Analyzing the organizational behavior is the main target in this case. This would add some knowledge and also help in understanding how organizational behavior can be very important to an organization.

In relation to the organizational behavior of this organization, there are some findings that are highly anticipated. One of these findings is that, TCBY has structured roles, which will facilitates the organizations efficiency. Organizational structure is very important in an organization as it defines how smooth and operative the organization handles it’s tasks. It is anticipated that there is one employee assigned to one specific task and one to another, thus creating a lot of harmony in the company.

Another anticipated finding would be that, TCBY has a structure of a hierarchy chain of command. A chain of command arranges a company’s positions of authority and decision making power. Chain of command structures are common within franchises, which often have a supervisor overseeing the employees, the franchise owners managing the supervisors, and an even higher corporate level administering the whole organization.

Organizational behavior is a very important aspect to the growth of any company. An organization like TCBY has become very successful in the last few years, becoming the best franchise in its industry. About the organizational behavior of this organization, a number of findings are anticipated including a good management team, a clear vision and goals and also strong organizational culture.

Methodology

In our examination of the TCBY organization, we believed it paramount that we went to the source in order to determine our findings.  When evaluating a company’s organizational structure, the most effective way is also the most straightforward: interviewing employees.  While you can find lots of theoretical information online about companies business structure and methods, the only way to really tell how a business operates is to talk to people that are part of the structure.  With this in mind, we decided to interview 3 employees from TCBY’s Coral Gables location.  Our interviews were conducted using a common guideline (which we will examine later), but were relatively personal.  We believed that this environment would stimulate a more comfortable atmosphere and would allow the employees to really share quality opinions with us.  We interviewed 3 employees who, for the sake of anonymity, will remain nameless.  The interviewees participated in the study voluntarily and operated under complete anonymity and confidentiality.  We will share that 1 employee was a manager, while the other employees were first level employees or employees that actually operated the store on a day to day basis.  These 3 interviewees varied in age and background, giving us a broad range of opinions.  It must be noted that a sample size of 3 is not ideal, but because of the limited resources and scope of this study, it will have to suffice.  We created the interview questions ourselves, tailoring them to our specific curiosities and questions.   Now we will examine the interview guideline and shed some insight on what the purposes of these questions are.

Questionnaire

• What is your ratio of supervisors to associates on an average day?   Here we mean to look into TCBY’s stance on span of control.  Additionally, this ratio can lead to insights on how autonomous the employees are allowed to be.  These things coupled together will give us a clue on what type of organization TCBY is in terms of formality and chain of command.
• What are a couple core qualities you look for when interviewing associate-level candidates?   This question speaks more to the culture of TCBY, rather than the organization.  Organizations like to higher those people that reflect the culture of the company.  By asking this narrow question regarding employees, we really gain a much broader understanding of what type of culture TCBY has and also what core values are important to them as a company.
• What types of conflict resolution plans are in place?  Conflict resolution plans are usually indicative of the structure of the organization and, again, the culture that the company has.  We want to see if TCBY places emphasis on valuing its stakeholders and what type of procedures they have in place to resolve problems that may occur.
• Why do tasks get accomplished at TCBY?   This is a really important question.  We want to see how things get done.  Though basic in its literal meaning, the answers can lead to insights of a much broader scope.  Are the employees encouraged to problem solve or are they expected to report to superior and wait for directions?  This type of question sheds light on how centralized a company is.  It might be said that 3 lower level employees do not reflect the methods of a whole company, but employees often do mirror the attitude of the company as a whole.
• How is the teamwork between employees?  Again, this question is asked to determine the culture of the company.  This will let us know if a helpful, team-oriented atmosphere is encouraged.
• Who makes the decisions in the company?  Here we will glean information about the decision making process.  We can learn if there is a strictly top down structure, or if it is a more horizontal, organic structure.
• Are you rewarded for certain work? (commission, merit based programs)  This question focuses on the motivation methods used by TCBY.
• How could you make it better?  Capping the interview off with this question allows opportunity for the employee to express any ideas they have about the organization or any shortcomings they may have.  This question is extremely important because it allows those people that are directly involved with TCBY to divulge their opinions and is a great gauge of their satisfaction.

This was our approach to the interviewing process; we basically wanted to have a soft framework of questions, but also put the interviewees in a position where they were free to share any thoughts they had.  We also knew that we could learn a lot of from observing the TCBY workplace.  Observations were made at 4 pm on a Wednesday, 11 pm on a Saturday, and 5:30 on a Friday.  In our observations we focused on employees body language, interaction with each other, interaction with customers, enthusiasm, and the general atmosphere of the TCBY store.  This might seem trivial, but such observations can lead to more discerning conclusions about a company’s culture.  This concludes the methodology of our study.Observations and Analysis

Overview of TCBY Corporate Structure

Before we analyze our local TCBY and its organizational behavior, we need to take the time look into the corporate structure of TCBY.  Recently TCBY has undergone an operation change.  Traditionally TCBY has been a normal ice cream shop where the employee served the customer, but with the rise in self-serve ice cream they have remodeled many of their outlets to expand their share in the market.

The interior of the stores is now trendy and comfortable to encourage the customers to stay in the store, and make it a “hangout” spot. A quote from their corporate website, “incorporating a contemporary layout and decor, providing a fun and friendly atmosphere and environment appealing to today’s consumer.” We can see the direction that they wish to go as a business.  Since the in store employee no longer has to worry about serving the customers directly, they have different responsibilities.  Once again their corporate website reads, “your employees can give their full attention to the cleanliness of the dining area and your customers’ happiness. Yogurt flavors and toppings are switched out regularly, giving a constant variety for your customers.”  So now their roles at the job include:

• Refilling the machines
• Refilling the toppings (candy, sauce, whip cream, etc)
• Cashier
• Cleaning

Observation and Analysis of Store

In our methodology section we described the surveys that we gave to the employees of our local TCBY.  We were able to survey three employees at the store.  In this section we will review the surveys that were given.

The first question we asked was about the supervisors that were present on a daily basis.  The answers that we got were very interesting.  Only one of the employees said that there was a supervisor present during the day.  The rest talked about a camera that was in the store.  They said that this is where the boss was able to watch what was going on during the day without being the office.  The employees voiced that this was uncomfortable because the boss would call when times were busy.  They did not seem to like the idea of a “big brother” boss.

Looking at these answers we can get insight into the chain of command.  Since the store is relatively small the chain of command goes from employee, (occasional) supervisor, to boss.  While the boss is not always in the office the camera allows him to always be watching.  This does seem to hurt the morale of the employees since they are not comfortable at the store.  A small store like this does not need a large chain of command, but a more hands on supervisor or boss would be beneficial to the entry-level employees.

Two questions that go together on the survey were questioning the core qualities of that were looked for in the employees and how important was teamwork.  Regarding key qualities for the employees the answered ranged from friendly, easygoing, patient, to kind.  All were very basic answers which fit with the position and job description.  Since these employees needed to be dealing with customers at all times they need to represent TCBY in the best possible light.  They are the customer’s first contact with the company.  The description of the core values and the employee responsibilities is quoted below:

“’Customer comes first, everything else waits’ by providing exceptional customer service with a sense of urgency and energy. Have a vibrant and outgoing personality and love to make people smile!

Be a brand ambassador- have genuine love for our product and be willing to step out of the store, interact with customers, enthusiastically offering product samples to drive sales on a daily basis.”

From this quote we can really see why the employees must be out going and friendly to the customer because TCBY prides itself on customer satisfaction and creating a good environment.  By hiring employees with a similar attitude they will cultivate a dominant culture of friendly staff and an enjoyable environment.  To go alone with this, all of the employees who we interviewed agreed that there was good teamwork within the store, which means that there is a positive culture within the franchise.

We then were able to look at who made the decisions at store.  This would tell us what type of structure the company had regarding decisions.  We found that it was a top down process, where the management made the decisions and the employees had to follow suit.  This is not surprising given that TCBY is a franchise and this store is a small factor in the larger company, and the management for the store may be receiving information directly from corporate.  With minor changes and decision making it could be beneficial for the company to decentralize the decision making process and allow for the entry level workers to make some suggestions as to the direction of the company.   When asked about how problems are solved, all of the employees said naturally.  This is a good sign for the company since they do not need to rely solely on the supervisors and are given the liberty to solve problems on their own.

One question asked in the survey was how the employees were rewarded for their work.  All of them said that tips from customers were the only way.  Since the employees play less of a role in actually serving the customers this seems like it could be troublesome since many customers may not choose to tip.  Some sort of compensation is important for the company to decrease employee turnover and incentivizing the employees to work harder and increase productivity.  We will discuss this in out recommendations section.

The final question we asked the employees was an open ended one on what they would like to change in the company.  We received a wide array of answers. One employee said that they would like more toppings to choose from.  Another said that TCBY should cater to men more.  The final employee said that they would like to have a better selection in for bottom tier positions.  All of these speak to different issues within the organization spanning from the individual store to TCBY in general.  Catering to men is an important aspect that TCBY corporate should address.  The stores are bright colors and the focus on yogurt could alienate some men.  With their recent rebranding and change to self-serve they could also use this time to gain market share with men.  The employee who asked for better selecting in bottom tier positions speaks to the organization of the company.  Perhaps an applicant does not want to work the cash register, but would like to work on the machines or with the toppings.  By catering to employees needs the franchise could gain productivity.

Summary

From our surveys were able to gain insight into the organization and the culture of TCBY and the specific store. Below is a chart that shows the flow from employees to the top.

This chart represents the interaction between employees and the higher-ups.  The three base level employees all said that team work and problem solving were great, so the two way arrows represent that.  The flow up the chart shows how the supervisor reports to the franchise owner.  Sometimes the supervisor is merely a camera that sees what the employees are doing.  The store is doing many things right, and the employees seem to be generally pleased with their jobs.  With a few recommendations the culture and organization of the store could be vastly improved.

References

Daft L. Richard. Organizational Theory and Design. (10th Ed). Mason, OH: Cengage Learning, 2009.

Clark, D. (1998). Organizational behavior survey. In Big Dog, Little Dog. Retrieved from http://www.nwlink.com/~donclark/leader/obsurvey.html

Malica, J. (2012, November 16). Organizational behavior questions to ask a company. Retrieved from http://answers.yahoo.com/question/index?qid=20121014080116AAggkB8

TCBY. (n.d.). Retrieved from http://tcby.com/

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