I have witnessed several transformative policy changes in the workplace that aim to improve the future of work in IBM. One significant policy change is allowing employees to set their salaries. However, the lack of trust and transparency during this process sometimes makes it feel like a game instead of an important conversation. The authenticity of the process is also questionable, with most employees setting their salaries based on guessing. Additionally, employees can allocate their resources, such as skills, time, and equity towards supporting the company's intentions. Placing purpose before personal gain is challenging for many people. Another missing policy in the workforce is the potential for employees to choose their leaders. This policy ensures zero tolerance for bad leadership by empowering employees to select their managers. IBM can ensure that no employee is overlooked by closely observing each employee and taking full responsibility for their well-being. This approach can benefit the company by managing international operations and nurturing employee satisfaction.

Mini Case Study 2: Employee Satisfaction at SAS

The SAS is at the forefront of cutting-edge technology, making employee satisfaction and retention a priority. At SAS, most employees enjoy challenging tasks and are highly motivated, influencing their retention rate of less than 4% compared to the industry standard of 20%. Employee perks, such as opportunities for professional development, pay off for the company by increasing employee motivation and productivity. However, during tough economic times, this approach may not be sustainable. The SAS's production of analytic software to help businesses make better decisions and create opportunities for its workers presents several advantages for the company. Additionally, the SAS ensures regular employee satisfaction and prioritizes employee health. However, the absence of recreational facilities like swimming pools may lead to stress among employees, resulting in different health problems.

Mini Case Study 3: Green Teams at New Seasons Market

The New Seasons Market has an elaborate strategy for creating and maintaining cohesive teams. Each store has a Green Team comprising employees from different departments tasked with addressing environmental and social sustainability issues within the store and surrounding communities. These teams engage in various tasks, such as painting, weeding, wetland cleanup, and helping low-income families in gardening. By diversifying the tasks, the Green Teams can enhance teamwork and employee satisfaction.

Mini Case Study 4: Enhancing Leadership Development at Starbucks

Starbucks Coffee recognizes the significance of developing internal leadership as a crucial component of its business process. Implementing this practice ensures that the organization’s culture is maintained and sustained even with new successor CEOs. Furthermore, Starbucks aims to attract future leaders and managers who share the company's values and work ethic. Fostering these values is crucial, as the negative repercussions of having leaders who lack important management skills can lead to an organization's collapse and translate into significant losses.

To prevent this from happening, Starbucks continually reinforces the importance of leadership development by educating and monitoring all employees on the necessary leadership skills and strategies. This ensures that more employees participate in leadership development programs, which, in turn, enhances their leadership skills. Notably, Starbucks stands out from other organizations as they only employ leaders who are not only knowledgeable, but also possess the necessary skill set required to handle organizational tasks. Education then becomes a secondary property, unlike other organizations, where it plays a significant role.

Step Two: Synthesis Paper

Introduction

Nagle (n.d.) identifies several trends and changes impacting organizations that range from rapid technological advancements, ethical challenges, a flattening world, demographic trends, sustainable business practices, and the global marketplace (Dornier & Mauri, 2018). The culminating project aims to explore how these trends and changes affect the role of leaders in organizational settings. This synthesis paper describes these trends and highlights their impact on organizational growth. Leaders are trained to improve their skills and bolster their organizations’ performances to maximize profits.

Six Trends Impacting Organizations

Organizations that have adopted the trends have seen a significant improvement in performance. Leaders learn to cope with ethical challenges and are taught to deal with various ethical scenarios. In the case of Starbucks, leaders are trained to taste the various coffee flavors as part of their ethical practices, which, in turn, makes the organization more profitable and enhances its growth (Bernard et al., 2019). Technological advancements have maximized performance while saving on time and increasing efficiency. Green teams play a crucial role in safeguarding employees' health and wellness, making such teams integral in most organizations.

Ethical challenges, proper decision making, and governance, coupled with compliance consistent with organizational rules, are major challenges for entrepreneurs. Technological advancements such as modern machines have eased the workload, saved time, and enhanced efficiency in organizations. A flattening world implies that the job market is highly competitive, with even smaller organizations competing favorably with large, complex organizations with elaborate supply chains in far-flung places. Finally, sustainable business practices such as water and electricity conservation have become integral in organizations like Starbucks, where water is needed in preparation for the beverages sold.

In today's business world, factors such as trends, ethics, and global markets are crucial for the growth and success of any organization. Trends, for instance, have a significant impact on organizations as they help them generate profits and build stronger relationships with their customers. However, it is equally vital to consider ethical issues that guide leaders in making sound decisions that benefit the organization's welfare. A deep understanding of global markets also enables organizations to make informed decisions about where to invest and expand their businesses for greater returns.

Leaders must show respect for ethical principles that nurture and care for their companies. Moreover, leaders should actively search for regions with high population densities and thriving marketplaces to maximize profits. This strategic approach can help organizations deliver the right product or service to the right customers, at the right price and location.

Several studies have highlighted the importance of trends and challenges that organizations face, such as macroeconomic trends that impact acute care surgery. The tourism industry's sustainability in the Alpine region has also been examined, looking at major trends and challenges in achieving sustainable tourism. In another study, recent trends in augmented reality technology were explored through patent analysis. A further investigation analyzed the role of horseshoe crabs in the biomedical industry and the recent challenges affecting species sustainability.

In conclusion, organizations that understand the importance of trends, ethics, and global markets can establish themselves as successful entities. They must also be proactive in identifying areas with a high population and fruitful marketplaces, while maintaining respect for ethical principles that promote the organization's welfare.