Inspiring Employees: The Turkey Entitlement

Every year, the hospital provided free turkeys to employees during the Thanksgiving holiday. Eventually, the tradition became an entitlement and a significant financial obligation. Rather than perpetuate the entitlement mentality, the executive team transformed this time-honored tradition into a meaningful and purposeful event.

Instead of distributing gift coupons for staff to cash in at the local grocery store, the organization arranged for a refrigerated semi to be parked in front of the hospital during Thanksgiving week. Wearing freezer mitts and warm jackets, each member of the executive team personally participated by handing a frozen turkey to each employee. In return, to impress on staff the importance of gratitude, employees had to write down something they were thankful for before receiving a turkey. Not only was this perceived as a cherished interaction and discussion between employee and executive during the distribution, but the activity was used as a tracking process to ensure that only one turkey was distributed per employee.

A tense moment occurred one year when a belligerent employee arrived at the table in front of the turkey truck. She was not going to write down what she was thankful for and demanded her “damn” turkey. The CEO was covering that shift and graciously refused to give her a turkey, inviting her to head on home. She was stunned. So were the other employees gathered around. But the word quickly spread throughout the organization that this activity represented the season of gratitude and was not an entitlement. To be sure, the CEO smiled and was kind, but the message was clear.

As a result, many employees who had previously skipped the Thanksgiving tradition requested that their free turkeys be donated to a local food bank. A table was set up and their turkeys were set aside with a note of gratitude from the food bank.

After the event, the expressions of gratitude were stapled onto the wall adjacent to the cafeteria. The expressions were priceless, giving thanks for parents, children, servicemen and -women, bosses, teammates, faith, friends, and so on. Soon, the area became a congregating point and a source of inspiration and appreciation.

What had evolved into an entitlement for employees was transformed into an expression of gratitude and an inspiration to do more for others

Case Studies:

The student will complete each case study scenario and answer questions from the case studies outlined in the assignment using the guide below. One reference (within the last four years). Address all five areas below.

1. Introduction

• Present an overview of the key problems and issues in the case.
• Provide a thesis statement that summarizes your analysis in one or two sentences.
• Background, key facts, and issues

• Provide background information, relevant facts, and the most important issues.
• Tie to class materials, making sure to include how these issues impact the organization and individuals in the organization.
• Alternatives

• Outline two possible alternatives.
• Discuss the critical constraints.
• Explain the strengths and weaknesses of the alternatives.
• Proposed solution

• Recommend one solution.
• Explain why this solution was chosen.
• Support this solution with facts and class materials.
• Provide personal experiences, if applicable.
• Recommendations

• Determine and discuss the specific strategies needed to accomplish the proposed solution.
• If applicable, define what further information is needed.