Introduction
Chewse is a developer of a web-based service that coordinates and manages the delivery of catered meals to large gatherings of people. It can be done through the company’s online platform, including a virtual meal manager, local restaurants, in-house drivers, and on-site meal hosts. Employees can browse catering options tailored to their preferences and budgets, make online payments, and have food delivered directly to their desks. The case of Chewse provides a robust perspective on various aspects of management, leadership, and human resources. The structures of leadership and management have a significant influence on an enterprise’s operational culture, its progressive development, and the character of the organization at the organizational level.
Primary Values of Chewse and Supporting Examples
Doing the right thing honestly and transparently is at the heart of integrity and ethics. Trust among employees, stakeholders, and customers is more likely to be earned by a company built on honesty and integrity. In Chewse’s context, integrity is characterized by management and employees sharing information and resources freely, with fair and equally distributed salary payments. Respect and diversity are essential in eradicating all forms of discrimination based on an employee’s race, ethnicity, nationality, gender, or physical disability. Respecting all employees means respecting their unique human rights and privacy (Judge & Robbins, 2017).
Influences on the Development of a Relationship-Focused Culture
Chewse’s managerial structure advocates for respect, as the privacy of every employee is upheld, and more than half of the employees are women. Employees are expected to treat one another with the same care and consideration that they would extend to family members in many businesses worldwide. Motivation is the desire to continually improve, achieved by never being content. At Chewse, there is motivation through tips and salary increments. Companies that share this viewpoint make a great effort to provide employees with a stimulating environment that fosters personal and professional growth.
The Impact of Values on Performance and Growth
Despite its flaws, the love culture enabled the company to accelerate its expansion. After Chewse began implementing its “love culture,” the company’s sales tripled in just 16 months, and its profit margins increased by a whopping 50 % during that period (Kotter, 2017). Because Chewse did not provide its employees with a culture preparation program, the company experienced relatively slow growth.
The company’s culture emphasizes salary transparency for its employees. Although this was initially viewed as a negative aspect of the company, it ultimately proved to be a positive aspect because employees benefited from the openness with which the company handled its financial matters (Hill, 2007). A person’s actions, thoughts, and feelings are all windows into their personality that can be seen from the outside (Judge & Robbins, 2018). The supportive and uplifting emotions exchanged between Chewse contribute to developing a sense of community and offering social support.
Character Strength Represented by the Love Culture
When Tracy Lawrence was at school, and she had a bad case of social anxiety, she would eat her lunch in the bathroom. Tracy Lawrence has set one of her primary goals to reduce or eliminate the social isolation from eating lunch alone. Her positive personal experiences communicating with investors inspired the “Love Company” culture she fostered at her startup. In addition, the “Love and Excellence” philosophy is applied to Chewse’s proprietary operating system in the same manner as it is applied to the company’s customer base (Kotter, 2017). Although the idea of “love” may seem unusual in the context of one’s professional life, Tracy Lawrence argues that it is essential for success.
Challenges in Designing and Implementing Chewse’s Love Culture
Within the framework of Chewse, love represents a character’s psychological fortitude. It concerns the individual relationship and the approach taken toward the various operations at different levels. Love is connected to the power that creates a character characterized by motivation and commitment despite difficult circumstances. As a result, it produces an atmosphere that benefits the staff members working there individually.
The small pool of qualified candidates and the slow hiring process limit their growth. Maintaining its “love culture” becomes more challenging as the company grows. The Chewse team had to advocate for the kind of company they wanted to build, not what their investors wanted.
Chewse has been a “love company” for three or four years. Cheese and its team want to expand into new international markets. It is hard to find new employees with the right skills and personalities (Judge & Robbins, 2017). A less qualified and incompetent applicant pool, a lengthy hiring process, and the difficulty of cultivating the company’s culture of love limit its expansion potential.
Market Expansion: Seattle or Los Angeles?
Seattle may be better for Chewse than L.A. Chewse would face more competition in Los Angeles, where many companies deliver meals. Since there are more tech workers in Seattle, Chewse can attract more customers. Chewse collects orders from local businesses, places them with nearby restaurants, and then delivers the prepared meals. According to the case study, Chewse has a better chance of success in Seattle than in Los Angeles.
Seattle would be a better choice for Chewse than Los Angeles because DoorDash and Postmates are already established there (Kotter, 2017). Seattle has a higher concentration of IT workers, so Chewse may find more customers there. The large population of Los Angeles can help the company quickly capture a new market. The company aims to establish itself in a prosperous region of Los Angeles, where there are numerous food delivery services, unlike Seattle’s information technology sector.
Conclusion
To sum up, it is imperative that for a business entity to realize success in internal operations and expansions, management and leadership play integral roles. Psychological and emotional aspects, such as love, influence the type of environment and culture, and ultimately determine how individual employees are effective. A company should consider several factors before expanding, including the cultural background, for effective employee management. The proprietary structure influences the clientele’s attitude. Therefore, proper leadership and management approaches, incorporating aspects such as a conducive culture and a positive environment, are necessary for the progressive success of a business setting.
References
Hill, L. A. (2007). Becoming the Boss. Harvard business review, 85(1), 1-10.
Judge, T. A., & Robbins, S. P. (2017). Essentials of organizational behavior. Pearson Education (us).
Kotter, J. P. (2017). What leaders really do. In Leadership Perspectives (pp. 7-15). Routledge.
Taylor, B. (2012). On Valentine’s Day, an Ode to Leadership and Love. Havard Business Review, 10, 1-4.