5 Symbolic Frame Worksheet

OGL 481 Pro-Seminar I:
PCA-Symbolic Frame Worksheet

Worksheet Objectives:
1. Describe the symbolic frame
2. Apply the symbolic frame to your personal case situation
Complete the following making sure to support your ideas and cite from the textbook and other
course materials per APA guidelines. After the peer review, you have a chance to update this and
format for your Electronic Portfolio due in Module 6.
1) Briefly restate your situation from Module 1 and your role.
When our Director, R, was leaving our organization, our unit decided to throw her
a going-away party. It was just supposed to be our unit of six people, but instead, it was
attended by the people in our whole division, which was about 25 people total. One of
our Clerks, T, was friends with R and asked if she could do the decorations and get the
cake. We all agreed and gave her money for supplies. On the day of the party, T
decorated the conference room, and when the party started, those in our unit laughed at
the decorations because they said, "bye Felicia, " a favorite quote that R used a lot. The
cake said, "bye traitor," which got some nervous chuckles, but R laughed, and we went
on with the party.
The following Monday, which was her last day, R came into the office and did
not say a word to anyone. Instead, she slammed shut the door to her office and stayed in
there for a couple of hours. When she finally did come out, we all knew she was angry. R
then proceeded to yell at us about how insulted she was by the decorations and cake and
how humiliated she felt in front of her boss. During her yelling, she used profanity and
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insults, which were heard by a different unit on the other side of the floor. Afterward, R
went into her office, slammed the door, and stayed in there until the end of the day.
As the Administrative Services Assistant III in the Personnel Unit, I am
considered middle-management, and after our Director left, I took on a more supervisory
role. I assign tasks to the four Clerks in the unit and am also the go-between of the Office
of the Sheriff and Contra Costa County's Human Resources Department.
2) Describe how the symbols of the organization influenced the situation.
Parties are usually seen as a celebration of something, whether that is a person,
event, or a job well done. In this case, we wanted to throw a party for our boss, who was
moving on to greener pastures. "Events and processes are often more important for what
they express or signal than for their intent or outcomes" (Bolman & Deal, 2017, pg. 243).
We (meaning T) tried to fill the party with inside jokes and references we knew made R
laugh. Unfortunately, the outcome dictated how the party would always be remembered.
When teamwork breaks down in a unit or when the leadership becomes more of a
dictatorship, there is more chance of a disaster happening, which is what happened in our
case. We should have worked together as a team and communicated more, which would
have helped us plan an appropriate going away party instead of a party filled with inside
jokes. If we had had the courage to face R after she verbally assaulted us, there might
have been a better chance at mending the fragile relationship we all had.
3) Recommend how you would use organizational symbols for an alternative course of
action regarding your case.
Being a law enforcement organization, we feel that we are held to a different
standard, even those of us who do not carry a gun and go out and arrest people.
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Sometimes those standards can cause strain in the office, especially when you have
people who forget the principles of our organization. The Office of the Sheriff is an
organization built on five core values, and those values do not stop with just the sworn
staff. The core values that are instilled in the organization's employees are Honor,
Courage, Commitment, Leadership, and Teamwork (Contra Costa Sheriff, n.d.).
Knowing that we work in this type of environment, we should have been more
cognizant of what was expected of us. Instead of making the party more fun and personal,
the better option would have been to work together to develop a more formal and
understated party where everyone who showed up would appreciate it. “Some rituals
become ceremonial occasions to recognize momentous accomplishments” (Bolman &
Deal, 2017, pg. 254). Even though she was leaving our organization, it was still a
momentous accomplishment for R to be promoted to a better position outside of our
organization.
4) Reflect on what you would do or not do differently given what you have learned
about this frame.
One of the main things I would have done differently was remembered what a
celebration of someone symbolically means. Yes, a party is supposed to be a time to
celebrate an accomplishment, but it is also a time to make memories. “Every organization
has its moments of achievement and atonement. Expressive events provide order and
meaning and bind an organization or society together” (Bolman & Deal, 2017, pg. 257).
It would have been a good idea for at least one of us to convey to R our intentions with
the party. Maybe explaining that we were trying to express our thanks to her in a funny
way would have given her a better understanding instead of making her think we were
trying to insult her.
3
When it comes down to it, there was not much we could have done after the fact
to alleviate the problems that ended up happening. However, by not communicating with
R during or right after the party, we created a story that will be told around the office for
years to come. “In high-performing organizations and groups, stories keep traditions alive
and provide examples to channel everyday behavior” (Bolman & Deal, 2017, pg. 272).
Though this might not be considered a good story, it is definitely on its way to becoming
a myth around the office.
4
Reference or References
Bolman, L. G. & Deal, T. E. (2017). Reframing organizations: Artistry, choice, and leadership
(6th ed.). Hoboken, NJ: Jossey-Bass
Contra Costa Sheriff, CA. Core Values | Contra Costa Sheriff, CA. (n.d.). Retrieved February 13,
2022, from https://www.cocosheriff.org/about-us/core-values

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OGL 481 Pro-Seminar I:

PCA-Symbolic Frame Worksheet

1) Briefly restate your situation from Module 1 and your role.

on with the party.

As the Administrative Services Assistant III in the Personnel Unit, I am

of the Sheriff and Contra Costa County's Human Resources Department.

2) Describe how the symbols of the organization influenced the situation.

Parties are usually seen as a celebration of something, whether that is a person,

Being a law enforcement organization, we feel that we are held to a different

Courage, Commitment, Leadership, and Teamwork (Contra Costa Sheriff, n.d.).

become ceremonial occasions to recognize momentous accomplishments” (Bolman &

momentous accomplishment for R to be promoted to a better position outside of our

celebration of someone symbolically means. Yes, a party is supposed to be a time to

celebrate an accomplishment, but it is also a time to make memories. “Every organization

trying to insult her.

a myth around the office.

Bolman, L. G. & Deal, T. E. (2017). Reframing organizations: Artistry, choice, and leadership

(6th ed.). Hoboken, NJ: Jossey-Bass

2022, from https://www.cocosheriff.org/about-us/core-values

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