Aaron Dudkowski
W131
Professor Brittenham
24 September 2015
Surveillance in Business Structure
Companies tend to have two very different business models. In Michael Lewis’s “Pyramids and Pancakes”, Lewis talks about how Askme.com found distinctions between the two business structures. There is the first, which is a pyramid. Lewis states that, “In pyramid-shaped, hierarchical organizations, the bosses tended to appoint themselves or a few select subordinates as the ‘experts’. Questions rose up from the bottom of the organization, the answers flowed down from the top, and original hierarchy was preserved, even reinforced”(95). The second business model is a pancake. Lewis states that, “In less hierarchical, pancake-shaped companies, the bosses
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used the software to create a network of all the company’s employees and to tap intelligence wherever in that network it happened to be”(95). Pyramid companies are about control over information, which in turn shows that pyramids want control. Pancake companies are about sharing information, which in turn shows that pancakes want community.
Surveillance plays a major role in control and in community. Therefore, how a business uses surveillance will affect its business structure. This in turn shows that pancake structured businesses and pyramid structured businesses use surveillance for different reasons.
When askme.com introduced their software to various businesses it was surprised to find two different business models. There were two clear business models: pancake and pyramid. In the pyramid model Lewis states, “the bosses tended to appoint themselves or a few select subordinates as the ‘experts’. Questions rose up from the bottom of the organization, the answers flowed down from the top, and the original hierarchy was preserved, even reinforced”(95). This type of business model can be seen at Kinko’s. Natasha Werther is an employee at Kinko’s. Werther shows many examples of the store being a pyramid model. Werther says that there are cameras everywhere, with the exception of the dirty break-room and one small blind-spot in a corner of the store. Employees choose to eat their food in the blind-spot as the break-room is dirty and everywhere else is monitored. According to Werther, often times a manager or someone higher up than
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that will casually remark about them being on camera, enforcing that they need to do as told. Kinko’s also has tests for its employees and even its candidates for employment. They train employees on machines, but according to Werther they are “indoctrinating you into this Kinko’s philosophy”(73). They say they are going to teach you a machine but focus hardly anytime on that, they instead try to indoctrinate you into Kinko’s. It’s also something that seems to happen on a frequent basis. Another example of a pyramidal structure is that Kinko’s sends in disguised shoppers. They pose as customers, but all the while they take notes over the store and the employee helping them. You are congratulated for doing good while helping, but if you screw up it is posted. The company tries to keep its employees in line with this by singling them out if they do screw up. Kinko’s also enrolls its employees into courses. According to Natasha, it is about keeping the employees locked into the family mindset that the store tries to enforce. Another example of pyramidal structure is the lack of information flow from the bottom to the top. Kinko’s is a company that recycles. Werther states that she has even seen this at two other stores. However, the area where Werther works charges people for recycling. In turn, the Kinko’s that Werther works at does not recycle. This shows the lack of information flow. The company’s constant surveillance shows a need to control its employees and shows that they are a pyramid. Michael Lewis writes that in the pancake model, “bosses used the software to create a network of all the company’s employees and to tap intelligence wherever in that network it happened to be”(95).
In this model, company’s employees can share and spread knowledge from anywhere in the corporate structure. On the other hand, Kinko’s does have some parts that are pancake like. The company seems to allow its employees to use resources available in the store. Whether they use the copier, a printer, or the computers, the company does not seem to mind employees using these resources without paying for them. According to Werther, “this guy was applying to lots of graduate schools and he took crazy advantage of the store. He was doing thousands of dollars of work every single week”(76). The company has surveillance all over the store and thus knew of the employee using the equipment. Kinko’s does not accept money theft or lateness though. The employee that did thousands of dollars of work eventually got into school, missed two shifts, and was fired. Another employee was caught stealing money and was fired, too. Werther also says that she was constantly using the fax machine to communicate with banks and universities. While faxing everything, “they would put them in the back office for me and seal them in envelopes and give them to me by hand”(77). The employees of the store try to maintain a pancake setting and share information amongst each other. As mentioned above, the employees
at the store informed Werther about the cameras blind-spot in the store. That way Werther could eat lunch in peace and not worry about being watched. Kinko’s also brings its employees together for team meetings and talks about the business with them. The company also does golf outings for them. Werther brings up that the company takes care of rude employees quickly to keep the family setting of the store for the customers and for the employees. Marcus Arnold is a member of askme.com who acts as an online lawyer. He provides simple law advice to people in need of information. The way Arnold treats those asking for information is very much a pancake. He does not discriminate or care the type of person to ask him a question. Arnold also responds to as many questions as possible. This shows that he is spreading information to many people. Both Werther and Arnold are a part of a pancake. Surveillance is important in a company. It allows a company to monitor not only its employees but also its customers. This allows a company to keep track of what happens when and how it happens. It can also show how an event came to happen. Kinko’s seems very much about monitoring its employees. The cameras are pointed at employee stations and only one small spot of the store remains untouched by the eye of the cameras. This shows that company wants to control what its employees are doing by putting them under constant surveillance. The company even has higher ups send in decoy customers to keep an eye on its employees. This is an extremely pyramidal surveillance model. Askme.com and Arnold retain a very different situation in which Arnold is ranked not by the company, but by the people that he has helped. It shows how well he has helped people. This is still a form of surveillance but it is being done so by customers and how well they are treated. This shows a pancake model with a singular form of surveillance. Pancakes and pyramids are very different, with benefits and down sides to both models. Surveillance plays a huge part in how a company’s business structure can be determined. Surveillance is an important part of companies and how they treat employees and customers. Works Cited Lewis, Michael. “Pyramids and Pancakes.” Seeking Common Cause. Ed. Diane Bennett Durkin and Lisa Gerrard. New York: McGraw Hill, 2007. 95-106. Print. Werther, Natasha. “Kinko’s Co-Worker.” Gig: Americans Talk about Their Jobs. Ed. John Bowe et al. New York: Three Rivers, 2001. 71-79. Print.
Penenberg closes his essay by mentioning that the surveillance is not only used to watch the citizens but also for citizens to keep an eye on the government. Through his organization, relevant information, and professional tone, Penenberg creates an effective
Under corporate governance, the Board of Directors has majority power. After shareholders elect the Board, said Board selects the CEO who is responsible for managing the business. The key problem with Chipotle’s central and formal governance is that their strategy does not encourage innovation or employee moral. Instead, the Board of Directors decides what they feel Chipotle’s franchisees should implement, and tells managers to relay their decisions to in-store employees. Therefore, corporate representatives strive to improve in-store quality through strict supervision of each franchisee. They make decisions regarding all processes from the preparation of the product, customer service, and marketing strategies, which are enforced at each location. This system is slow and decreases efficiency. Since store employees are kept out of the immediate circle, it is difficult for them to have confidence in Chipotle’s operations, resulting in low employee empowerment. Two solutions to consider include bridging gaps between hierarchical levels and making the company more decentralized. Chipotle can implement a few liaisons (brokers and structural holes) to make sure that all professional networks within corporate and store levels are communicating effectively and working as a
“With surveillance technology like closed-circuit television cameras and digital cameras now linked to the Internet, we now have the means to implement Bentham's inspection principle on a much vaster scale”(Singer) Bentham's inspection principle is a system that allows the collection, storing and dissemination of data on individuals, corporations, and the government. This collection of data has large implications in regard to privacy and security. “There is always danger that the information collected will be misused - whether by regimes seeking to silence opposition or by corporations seeking to profit from more detailed knowledge of their potential customers.”(Singer) What is done with the information collected is the main issue in terms of privacy. We do not want to be marketed to, or inundated with spam from third-party sources. We also do not want our private social circles and experiences to appear that they are being monetized or subjected to surveillance outside our control. In addition, surveillance has a large effect on the government that can beneficial or detrimental to democracy. Exposure of government secrets may make officials tread carefully when making decisions, ensuring that politicians are nothing but just and fair.“The crucial step in preventing a repressive government from
Taylor, James Stacey. "In Praise of Big Brother: Why We Should Learn to Stop Worrying and Love Government Surveillance." Public Affairs Quarterly July 2005: 227-246.
includes a Subway brand shirt and hat, a black apron, and black pants (or Subway brand shorts). Anyone who is smarter than a brick can follow these simple rules. Failure tocomply with such easy instructions will result in joblessness. It is indeed amazing that anyone could get fired for demonstrating such a complete lack of dependability. Yet they do.
Zetter, Kim. "World’s Top Surveillance Societies — Updated with Link." Editorial. Wired.com. Conde Nast Digital, 31 Dec. 2007. Web. 08 Feb. 2014.
In 1948, George Orwell wrote about a society in which individual privacy was nonexistent. In this society, which he imagined would become a reality in the 1980s, surveillance was foremost. Everything one did was under surveillance by “Big Brother”, an unseen figure who was always watching you. Surveillance in this society was imposed and malicious. Although this type of society has never fully become a reality in the Western world, changes in technology and media are indirectly bringing this imagined society, one of complete surveillance, to life. With the rise in corporate business and commercialism, surveillance in society increasing; however, new media has brought about a significant shift in its use. In the 20th century, surveillance was primarily used for “protective measures”, as Orwell had imagined. In the 21st century, there has been a rise in its use for commercialism. This essay will critically analyze the developments in new media that have contributed to this shift, as well as explain the reason for the ubiquitous nature of surveillance in today’s western society. To aid with this analysis, surveillance will hereby be defined as a “focused, systematic, and routine attention to personal details for purposes of influence, management, protection or direction” (Lyon 2007:14).
Most people concerned about the privacy implications of government surveillance aren’t arguing for no[sic] surveillance and absolute privacy. They’d be fine giving up some privacy as long as appropriate controls, limitations, oversight and accountability mechanisms were in place. ”(“5 Myths about Privacy”). The fight for privacy rights is by no means a recent conflict.
Kinko’s has been losing revenues and market share over their competition for the past years; reason why its directors have been doing market research to understand the causes of their business slowdown. It’s fast growing market had substantially developed an ongoing business model, facing changes, rapid expansions & even mergers. Their model of service solutions was not fitting their customer’s needs any longer…now it is needed to increase revenues and fast.
Ultimately, however, surveillance is only a tool that can be used both ethically and unethically. Employee monitoring, consumer data collection, and government surveillance provides great benefits, including improving company efficiency, providing commercial and health values, and protecting the nation from threats. However, when considering the extent to which surveillance can be done, the rights of the people affected must be taken into account. Finding the right balance between these two views is the key to maximizing the benefits of everyone involved.
Shafer, S. M., Smith, H. J., & Linder, J. C. (2005). The power of business models. Business
Bottom of Pyramid Marketing is the way of business which can be large and small, domestic and multi-national, to target the poor family as consumers, and sell products and services to them at low cost, large scale, and thin margins to gain a new and improved revenue stream.
However, government agencies, especially in America, continue to lobby for increased surveillance capabilities, particularly as technologies change and move in the direction of social media. Communications surveillance has extended to Internet and digital communications. law enforcement agencies, like the NSA, have required internet providers and telecommunications companies to monitor users’ traffic. Many of these activities are performed under ambiguous legal basis and remain unknown to the general public, although the media’s recent preoccupation with these surveillance and privacy issues is a setting a trending agenda.
Media surveillance can have good as well as bad consequences. Misinterpretation and panics fabricated by news media have often threatened security in good policies, people, and products. The individuals and economic implications have been huge. For instance, suspicious stories that challenged the well-being of bioengineered foods lead to the lose millions of dollars in the damaged
In terms of government intelligence, in the information age greatest threats to privacy have been the result of technology and business practices related to e-commerce, marketing and information databases, and not the result of government intrusions (Hoffman, Novak & Peralta, 1997). Nevertheless “all things considered, the increasing and overlapping information sharing by governments and businesses about formerly confidential or private activities generates concerns about potential violations of individual’s privacy rights” (Mace, 2008 cited in Gal, Kantor & Lesk, 2008, p.41).