Book review 2

Case: Birkenshire corporation

The pink towels

A case write-up

Cross Cultural Management

Dr. Sandy

Defne Yucel, 500725261

IL4A

2019-03-17

Case: Birkenshire corporation

The pink towels

Author

Defne Yucel

department

International Business and Languages

Date

17 march 2019

project type

Case write-up

Version

1

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Table of contents

1.        Executive summary        4

2.        Problem statement        5

3.        Data analysis        5

4.        Generating alternatives        6

5.        Key decision criteria        6

6.        Evaluation of alternatives        7

7.        Recommendations        7

8.        Action and implementation plan        7

1. Executive summary

This case write up is about the company Birkenshire, and their act of sending a gift consisting of a pink towel set to all female employees of the corporation, in celebration of International Women’s Day (IWD). This email sparked a very lively discussion among the female staff about various issues: gender issues and cultural customs, and not everyone appreciated the gift. Rather, some female employees felt offended by the gift. And others, appreciated and accepted the gift in the free spirit they felt it was meant. The decision faced by management was whether to respond to the issues raised in the staff email thread, and how. Three possible solutions were developed, of which the first was chosen. This solution takes into account all 4 decision criteria. By choosing this solution, management shows its regret by apologizing to any employee who felt offended by the gift. Furthermore, it shows respect to its female employees by asking them to come up with gift ideas for next year’s IWD celebration. Moreover, the team will consist of employees with various views on the issue, so that they all feel taken seriously. Lastly, by offering online classes on cultural customs and gender issues, they turn this mistake into a learning opportunity.

1. Problem statement

What should Birkenshire take into account in order to celebrate International Women’s Day next year without offending any of their female employees?

On March 7, 2012, all female employees of Birkenshire Corporation, a British organization in China, received an email from the HR department about International’s Women’s Day: a gift consisting of a pink towel set is given to all female employees of the corporation, in celebration of International Women’s Day (IWD). This email sparked a very lively discussion among the female staff about various issues: gender issues and cultural customs, such as society’s expectations for professional women and cultural connotations of colors. The decision faced by management was whether to respond to the issues raised in the staff email thread, and, how and when the respond should be delivered. The female staff was affected most by this issue, as some felt like it was not an appropriate gift to a woman on IWD. Furthermore, the HR department and management was affected by the issue. The first, because they were the ones who sent out the gift and came up with the idea of pink towels, and the latter because this issue caused their employees hurt feelings.

1. Data analysis

The email that announced the act of giving all female employees the pink towel set as a gift to celebrate International Women’s Day was not appreciated by every female employee. The first respondent to the email from HR expressed her worry on the kind of image of women is reproduced by the act. She did not feel like it was the appropriate type of gift to a woman for showing appreciation for - and recognizing -  the professional achievements of a woman in a corporate environment. Rather, as she quotes in her email, she sees it as joining the “general patriarchal chorus that sees women at work as a temporary, maybe even regrettable, incidence and thinks that women should rather care about their looks (towels), home (kitchenware), and children whose picture would look extremely nice in pink glitter picture frames” (last years’ gifts on IWD).

In addition, staff B and C expressed sympathy with the above made statements. However, an email from staff D expressed gratitude for the gift, as she explained that she never got a gift in the workplace to commemorate such a day, in for instance the US or the UK. She felt it was part of the Chinese protocols, but did recognize that the symbolism of the items selected was deeply rooted. She proposed for next year, that more individuals can be consulted about what might be the appropriate gift for IWD. Soon, an employee from staff E responded that towels have long been popular presents for men and women in China. Moreover, the choice of pink has a different connotation in China than in countries such as Germany and Britain. And she closed her email saying that the gift was appreciated in the free spirit she felt they are meant.

Two other commentators also appreciated their appreciations for the gift, saying that “Actually most of us Chinese staff appreciate the gift from the company. We don’t think too much about it. This case might be a good example of what “cultural conflict” is”.

Then, the first commentator, staff A, commented again, asking if men were given the same type of gifts from the company as women. She argued that it is a gender issue and not a cultural one. But, not everyone agrees, as some say that different women have different views. Others argue that an employer buying her a pink towel or a business card holder could not change the fact that she is a professional woman. She thinks the gift is useful, and sees it as being recognized for her hard work, hence she appreciates all gifts being offered by Birkenshire.

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