978-0132953511 Part 11 | Course Paper

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those who are involved and who can limit access to resources the company seeks. For

example, if the company is going to adopt more liberal attitudes, then store managers

Teaching the Case

1 Week Prior

Distribute the case at least one lesson prior to when you will discuss it in class. Tell the

students that you intend to focus on several matters during the discussion, including:

 How conservative attitudes among top managers can affect both business policy

and organizational culture.

 That employees might perform well but violate company policies nonetheless,

especially when those policies address issues of personal lifestyle.

 That customers’ attitudes might traditionally be aligned with those of

management but that when a business expands to new areas, those attitudes may

become more varied.

 The public relations of a company can affect its performance, independent of the

satisfaction of customers’ preferences for its product.

 The tension between the business case for or against diversity and other criteria

for deciding how to manage diversity.

First 30 Minutes of Class

Spend the first 10 minutes of class reviewing the main facts of the case, including a

description of the history of Cracker Barrel and its founder, its discriminatory

employment policies in respect to gay and lesbian personnel, the changing regional

nature of the firm, efforts to affect public perceptions of the company by gay and lesbian

rights advocates, and shareholders’ initiatives that were intended to change management

policy.

Next 20 Minutes of Class

Students should identify and discuss:

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 The various and changing stakeholders in this case and their shared and

conflicting interests.

 How interest groups and shareholders might or might not have leverage on a

company’s policies.

 The various criteria that can come into play in making decisions about

employment policies, including firm performance, customer satisfaction, public

relations, and fairness to employees.

Summarize Students’ Responses

Ask students whether they would patronize, work at, or invest in Cracker Barrel

or not, and why.

Issues to consider:

 While there are gay and lesbian individuals in every community, attitudes

toward gays and lesbians vary greatly by region.

 If companies rely on customers’ attitudes to determine their policies, they might

need to have different policies in different markets.

 Many personnel policies present both advantages and disadvantages to

companies.

 Most investors care primarily about the profitability of a company, not the

specific ways in which those profits are achieved; for example, its personnel

policies.

Last 15 Minutes of Class

Conclude the discussion.

Make sure that students understand how personnel policies can create both advantages

and problems for a company. Make sure they understand the various criteria that can be

applied in judging the advisability of personnel policies.

Timeline of Events

1969 Dan Evins opens the first Cracker Barrel restaurant and gas station store in

Lebanon, Tennessee.

1974 As a result of the Arab oil embargo, Cracker Barrel exits the gasoline market to

focus just on restaurants.

1981 Cracker Barrel is sold to the public.

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1986 Cracker Barrel had 47 stores and net sales above $80 million.

1991 Cracker Barrel expressly prohibits the employment of gays and lesbians.

Activists organize boycotts and protests throughout the year. Pension funds that

held Cracker Barrel stock expressed concern and put pressure on management.

1999 Eleven states and the District of Columbia offered protections for gays and

lesbians. Cracker Barrel operated in six of those states.

1992 The chain continues to grow with 127 stores and $400 million in sales.

1996 Sales reach $1 billion from 260 stores.

2006 Cracker Barrel operates over 500 stores in 41 states.

Discussion Questions

1. What were the reasons for Cracker Barrel’s personnel policies? Could they have been

well intentioned?

2. What were the advantages and disadvantages to Cracker Barrel of actively banning

gay and lesbian employees?

3. How should the values of a customer base affect a company’s personnel policies?

What if those values vary by region?

4. What criteria should shareholders use in judging the performance of management?

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IN THE EYE OF THE PERFECT STORM:

CREATING ACCESSIBILITY—IBM, GM, AND CISCO

This teaching note was prepared by Dr. Harris Sondak (David Eccles School of Business;

University of Utah).

Purpose of the Case Study

1. To illustrate difficulties faced by people with disabilities.

2. To help students understand the complexities of defining disability and the rights of

people with disabilities.

3. To encourage students to question the factors that combine to create obstacles for people

with disabilities which prohibit them from achieving opportunities equal to other

Americans.

4. To provide examples of companies that have embraced the hiring and accommodation of

people with disabilities as part of their competitive human resources strategies.

Identifying the Business Problem

Many people in the United States are disabled or will become disabled at some time in

their lives. Business organizations often fail to hire people with disabilities, thereby

overlooking an important and potentially valuable source of human resources. The

organizational sources of this potential loss of productivity include managers’

stereotypes about people with disabilities, exaggerated expectations about the costs of

hiring people with disabilities, and unrealistic fears about the legal complications of

hiring people with disabilities. In addition, people with disabilities face the problem that

they may lose some of their public assistance, especially health benefits, if they become

employed, creating reluctance on their part to accept full employment.

Forecasting the Most Desirable Outcome

Companies should assess the advisability of hiring people with disabilities accurately.

Ideally, their analyses will be based on a clear understanding of the law, the full range of

advantages to the company of hiring people with disabilities, and an accurate estimate of

the costs of doing so. In addition, companies must tailor jobs and employment benefits

offered to people with disabilities to their needs, abilities, and the status of their current

disability benefits. Various third-party organizations can be consulted to help companies

and people with disabilities work together to create mutual opportunities.

Identifying the Critical Issues

1. Companies need to assess accurately the costs and benefits of hiring people with

disabilities. Commonly held misconceptions may lead managers to exaggerate the

potential costs of hiring people with disabilities as well as underestimate the potential

benefits of seeking employees from this sector of the labor market.

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2. Companies must be careful to develop human resources policies that do not undermine

the current public assistance benefits received by individuals with disabilities whom they

seek to hire.

3. Third party agencies, including a number of non-profit organizations, can be employed

to help train, select, and recruit people with disabilities.

4. Companies must meet the minimum legal requirements for accommodation for

employees and accessibility for the public. Going beyond these standards, however, can

be a competitive advantage for attracting both good employees and customers.

Stakeholder Perspectives Include:

People with Disabilities. Many people with disabilities seek to lead lives that are as

employees if given the chance. For example, the author recently overheard a state

legislator express surprise that a lobbyist with cerebral palsy really knew the issues

before the lawmakers; the lobbyist said in reply: “My body doesn’t work right, but

there’s nothing wrong with my mind.” In fact, the lobbyist had graduated with honors

from an internationally respected and leading university.

the job for which they are being recruited, nor do they need to give preference to people

with disabilities. However, they may not discriminate against people because they have a

disability. In fact, hiring people with disabilities may be in a manager’s interests. Many

managers actually rate their employees with disabilities higher on a number of job

performance related measures than their non-disabled employees. In addition, managers

Customers. Customers with or without disabilities may be impressed with an

organization that accommodates people with disabilities. On the other hand, customers,

too, may harbor misconceptions about or prejudice against people with disabilities.

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Shareholders. Shareholders are generally most concerned with the profitability of their

company. Hiring people with disabilities and comprehensively working to help them be

productive employees has worked well for major firms, including IBM, GM, and CISCO.

Possible Solutions to the Problem

1. One possible solution to the problem of reluctance to hire people with disabilities is for

employers to understand clearly the legal framework of the ADA and ensure that their

2. Going beyond the minimum requirements of the law, some companies have embraced

accessibility as a principle of competitive advantage. For example, the author once had a

3. To help determine the actual costs and benefits of hiring people with disabilities, most

states have created state-level commissions promoting the employment of people with

4. Third party organizations, including private organizations and agencies of state and

federal government, can facilitate the training and hiring of talented people with

disabilities. See, for example, the U.S. Department of Labor’s Office of Disability

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Explaining How to Communicate the Solution

Any organization must communicate its policies on hiring and accommodating people

with disabilities, especially if it seeks to use these policies as a competitive advantage. Its

human resources strategies must be congruent with its approach to welcoming people

Teaching the Case

1 Week Prior

Distribute the case at least one lesson prior to when you will discuss it in class. Tell the

students that you intend to focus on several matters during the discussion, including:

 The economic challenges faced by people with disabilities.

 The stereotypes and outright discrimination that undermine the efforts of people

with disabilities to be full and productive members of our society.

 Legal requirements for accessibility and accommodation.

 The potential costs and benefits of hiring people with disabilities and the need to

assess them accurately.

 The role that third party organizations can play in increasing the opportunities

for people with disabilities and the organizations that hire them.

First 30 Minutes of Class

Spend the first 10 minutes of class reviewing the main facts of the case including the

convergence of three systems of discrimination and the strategies of IBM, GM, and

CISCO.

Next 20 Minutes of Class

Students should identify and discuss:

 The various stakeholders in this case and their shared and conflicting interests.

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 The sources of managers’ reluctance to hiring people with disabilities and ways

to ensure an accurate assessment of the costs and benefits of doing so.

 How hiring people with disabilities can provide a competitive advantage to

Make sure that students understand the various challenges faced by people with

disabilities, the wide diversity among disabilities, and the stereotypes that harm people

with disabilities. In addition, be sure to discuss the economic incentives and disincentives

for companies to employ people with disabilities and for people with disabilities to seek

employment.

Timeline of Events

1918 Congress passes a law to promote the rehabilitation of disabled U.S. military veterans.

1924 Commonwealth of Virginia passes a law that allows for the forced sterilization of the

“mentally handicapped,” among others.

1927 The U.S. Supreme Court upholds the right of states to forcibly sterilize developmentally

disabled citizens.

1935 The Social Security Act provides for support of the blind and disabled children.

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1939 Nazi Germany begins a program of euthanasia to eliminate those deemed unworthy for

life; by the time the program is ended, more than 100,000 people are killed.

1951 Institute of Rehabilitation Medicine opens in New York.

1956 Social Security Disability Insurance program for disabled workers is established.

1968 The Architectural Barriers Act prohibits architectural barriers in all federal buildings.

1973 Congress passes the Rehabilitation Act mandating that federally funded programs must

be accessible.

1975 The Education for All Handicapped Children law is passed, giving disabled students the

right to attend public schools.

1976 The Federal Communications Commission reserves space for closed-captioning on

televisions.

1977 Demonstrations pressure the U.S. Health, Education and Welfare Departments to create

regulations for implementing the Rehabilitation Act.

1981 The Reagan administration begins an effort that eventually fails to rescind the

Rehabilitation Act.

1988 The Fair Housing Act amendments to the Rehabilitation Act prohibit housing

discrimination against people with disabilities.

1990 Passage of the Americans with Disabilities Act, mandating that local, state, and federal

governments and programs be accessible, that businesses with more than 15 employees

1997 Passage of the Individuals with Disabilities with Education Act that ensures free and

appropriate educational opportunities to children with disabilities.

1999 The Supreme Court decides that individuals with disabilities must be offered services in

the setting most integrated into their communities.

Source: http://courses.temple.edu/neighbor/ds/disabilityrightstimeline.htm

Discussion Questions

1. Why are people with disabilities at a disadvantage when compared to people without

disabilities? Why do you think this is still the case when the ADA was passed in 1990?

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2. What are the various provisions of the two most significant pieces of legislation for

people with disabilities: the ADA and the IDEA?

3. What can society in general and people with disabilities in particular do to change the

4. Why haven’t other companies followed the lead of those organizations, like IBM, that