Business Finance Homework Help

Hello Professor Agler and classmates,

For this week’s discussion I chose to reflect on experience I had while living in Scranton, PA and served on the Greater Scranton Martin Luther King Commission community board. This commission was created to ensure the city of Scranton had a dedicated team to plan and execute the annual recognition and celebration of MLK day while recognizing leaders, members, and organizations within the community who also embody his spirit by moving his mission forward. The commission was resilient having started in a church basement. Over the years it then partnered with the University of Scranton and several other colleges, schools, churches, and organizations around the city to ensure a weekend of celebration occurred. In 2015, I joined the organization and was one of the youngest board members they had in years.

During this time, we were looking to get more local corporations like Bank of America and younger people within the city invested and a part of the board. We planned to expand its purpose, so it also began to serve as a resource for those looking to ensure a more equitable experience for marginalized and oppressed people in Scranton. These changes, particularly as the social climate was changing would require the board to receive more funding and more participants able and willing to engage the community in new ways. After adding new events, migrating the board to social media, and restarting the 501c3 process to increase donor options the initiative fell flat.

In hindsight several factors led to the failure of this initiative. First, there was no “culture of change,” board members did not anticipate reinventing the commission to ensure it met the needs of the time (Malik, 1). Most of the members were older and committed to the idea that the commission’s only focus was to ensure the planning of MLK weekend events. They could not envision the board serving the community in a greater way and feared the youth would not provide the necessary support to sustain this change. In reviewing the bylaws, the mission of the group also did not create space for this form of expansion. As the team reviewed and considered revising the mission, some members became openly resistant and antagonistic to the process which led the president to believe the new changes were not worth the trouble. Engaging in the “work-out” sessions mentioned in this week’s lecture notes would have proved beneficial for this group (JWI555, 2). There was no shortage of corporate and higher education professionals to bring their experience of leading change onto this board to ensure success Unfortunately, members were reluctant to take that initiative as many ideas of progress were seen as political and the group wanted to be “a-political” because of the diversity of backgrounds on the board.

Given the wealth of knowledge and experience that existed on the board, the executive board members could have set the tone by intentionally managing the emotional culture of the board (Barsade & O’Neil, 3). There was a mixture of pessimism, optimism, and apathy on the team as it related to the progression of the commission. Some people held onto offenses of inequities in how speakers were chosen, and awards were provided. Going beneath the surface and selecting leadership and appointing committee leaders that demonstrated the desired emotions of joy and optimism would have provided the necessary stamina and motivation to continue with the change (Barsade & O’Neil, 3). Lastly, emphasizing the evolving needs of the community and the necessity of the commission to evolve to create more meaningful celebrations would have also empowered members to continue with the changes.

Thank you for reading.

Jenn Q. Williams

References:

1. Malik, Lauren. 2020. Six Factors for Making Change Stick. Thought Ensemble. Six Factors for Making Change Stick – Thought Ensemble
2. JWI555. 2021. Week 8. Lecture One. Making Change Stick
3. Barsade, Sigel & O’Neill, Olivia A. January- February 2016. Manage Your Emotional Culture. Harvard Business Review. content-launch (harvard.edu)