you are assuming the role of a human resources consultant, hired by Patagonia to analyze their employees' level of motivation.
CASE APPLICATION 1 Passion for the Outdoors and for People
At
its headquarters in Ventura, California, Patagonia’s office space feels
more like a national park lodge than the main office of a $400 million
retailer. It has a Douglas fir staircase and a portrait of Yosemite’s El
Capitan. The company’s café serves organic food and drinks. There’s an
infant and toddler child-care room for employees’ children. An easy
one-block walk from the Pacific Ocean, employees’ surfboards are lined
up by the cafeteria, ready at a moment’s notice to catch some waves.
(Current wave reports are noted on a whiteboard in the lobby.) After
surfing or jogging or biking, employees can freshen up in the showers in
the restrooms. And no one has a private office. If an employee doesn’t
want to be disturbed, he or she wears headphones. Visitors are evident
by the business attire they wear. The company encourages celebrations to
boost employee morale. For instance, at the Reno store, the “Fun
Patrol” organizes parties throughout the year. Attracting
people who share its strong passion for the outdoors and the
environment, Patagonia motivates its loyal employees by giving them
responsibility for the outcomes of their work and a high level of task
significance that their work is meaningful because it contributes to the
purpose of protecting and preserving the environment.
Patagonia
has long been recognized as a great workplace for mothers. And it’s
also earned a reputation for loyal employees, something that many
retailers struggle with. Its combined voluntary and involuntary turnover
in its retail stores was around 25 percent, while it was only 7 percent
at headquarters. (The industry average for retail is around 44
percent.) Patagonia’s CEO Casey Sheahan says the company’s culture,
camaraderie, and way of doing business is very meaningful to employees
and they know that “what they do each day is contributing toward a
higher purpose—protecting and preserving the areas that most of them
love spending time in.” Managers are coached to define expectations,
communicate deadlines, and then let employees figure out the best way to
meet those.
Founded
by Yvon Chouinard, Patagonia’s first and strongest passion is for the
outdoors and the environment. And that attracts employees who are also
passionate about those things. But Patagonia’s executives do realize
that they are first and foremost a business and, even though they’re
committed to doing the right thing, the company needs to remain
profitable to be able to continue to do the things it’s passionate
about. But that hasn’t seemed to be an issue since the recession in the
early 1990s when the company had to make its only large-scale layoffs in
its history.
After reading the case details, prepare your report for Patagonia managers by answering the following questions:
- According to Maslow's hierarchy, which basic needs does the Patagonia culture meet? What would it be like to work at Patagonia? (Hint: Go to Patagonia’s website and find the section on jobs.) What’s your assessment of the company’s work environment? (20 points)
- Use the expectancy theory and/or the equity theory of motivation to explain how feeling underpaid might affect the work of a Patagonia associate and what a manager can do to increase the employee's motivation. (20 points)
- What do you think might be Patagonia’s biggest challenge in keeping employees motivated? If you were managing a team of Patagonia employees in the retail stores, how would you keep them motivated? (20 points)
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