Do You Believe That Whole Foods Emphasis on Teamwork Is Appropriate for the Grocery Store Industry? Why or Why Not?
- Do you believe that Whole Foods emphasis on teamwork is appropriate for the grocery store industry? Why or Why not?
Establishing teams for every department is a great idea as this will lead to increased focus, team members feel empowered, make decisions at their own level, feel they have more control over their jobs and area. This will most likely improve the quality of the specific section. While the flat hierarchy of teams and dynamics established by Whole Foods is a novel idea I believe it will lead to great improvements for customer satisfaction as individuals will work closer together, they will collaborate towards the same common goal and will strive to be the best among the other teams and peers at their level. Also, most times some of the best ideas for change and improvement come from the front lines. Employees at all levels are encouraged to contribute and bring their ideas forward. The fact that there is no ranking during team meetings will encourage employees to speak up, share ideas and feel valued. The ability to bring ideas forward that will be valued and potentially implemented by management will definitely increase employee morale and satisfaction.
I also believe that involving team members in deciding whether new employees become full time after a 30 day trial is a great idea as this will result in the new members being a good fit for the team and therefore lead to improved team performance. Existing team members will be motivated to help new members to integrate easier, get up to speed quicker, collaborate and support each other knowing that they will have a vote into the final decision of retaining new employees. Employees feel they have control over their jobs. I believe this will increase the performance of the team, yielding better customer satisfaction in the highly competitive grocery industry.
The team approach model that Whole Foods is fostering is appropriate for the grocery store industry as the performance of the teams has a direct impact on each grocery stores' department. Empowering employees to make decisions and promoting a strong sense of belonging as well as everybody's ideas and input matters will benefit all areas of the grocery stores, and the overall performance . Employee morale and satisfaction will be very high as a result of direct involvement and vote into the hiring process. The team approach that Whole Foods is promoting is conducive to employee engagement and retention. This approach will also have a positive impact on employee turnover. Satisfied employees are loyal to the company. It is my opinion that customers will benefit tremendously from this democratic and innovative team approach in the grocery industry.