Question

Discuss corporate values and Nordstrom. How do you think the Nordstrom snow tire story would influence company culture? Please share one example from your own experience of a story or artifact that influenced culture where you worked or attended school.

Answer 1

Corporate values and Nordstorm

Corporate values fostered by ethical companies are honesty, charity, integrity and fidelity. Honesty requires practicing sincerity and truthfulness. Integrity demands ethical principles following and fair decision making. Fidelity requires loyalty to customers, and winning their trust. It also requires loyalty to foster professionalism. Charity as a corporate value requires from companies to provide compassion and care. Responsibility value demands that the organization should take accountability to its actions.

If these corporate values are compared with Nordstorm Company, it is found that the company is committed to provide outstanding customer service, thus it can be said that fidelity and charity values are fostered by the company. The company promotes values such as integrity, honesty, family and respectful communication. These values adopted by Nordstorm reveal that the company promotes values such as accountability, fidelity, charity, integrity and honesty.

Nordstorm story and company culture

The story is about a person who came to return snow tires that company did not sell. But the store manager accepted tires and refunded the person. It shows Nordstorm unconditional care to its customers. Nordstorm practices a liberal policy to take back products. Even the customer did not purchase the products from the company, it reveals that the company believed that customers were always right and it suggests that exceptions customer service was provided by the company. It shows that Nordstorm believes its customers and pays respect to them even they are wrong. Such customer service is adopted to build loyalty and show humility to the customers. A customer relationship approach is fostered by the company.

Thus this story influences a company culture to make it customer centric. This story suggests that care, compassion, trust, fidelity, paying respect to customers should be adopted to improve customer relationship. The story motivates other companies to adopt a friendly and customer centric work culture.

Personal experience example

The example that influenced the work culture is illustrated. In my workplace, the store manager of the company set an example of customer centric approach that influences the company culture. Most of employees there follow guidelines of the organization during pandemic situation such as not taking clothes back from customers for safety reason. One day, in store, a person visited to return a coat that he bought yesterday. He said that it was an expensive coat and he purchased it to wear in a party. He further said that he would not return this coat had it not be so expensive. He further said that he was unable to purchase such expensive coat again. His concern was that the coat was torn from one side that sales people and he did not check while buying. The store policy was to not accept any cloth during pandemic due to infection issue. But the store manager listened to his pleas and understood that he might not purchase the similar dress. The store manager demonstrated compassion and care to his needs and allowed sales people to take back the coat and give him a fresh coat. The customer was very happy to hear that and he said that he would share this generous gesture of store to his family and friends. Later, the store manager told us how winning trust of customers could help to attract more customers through viral marketing. He also said that such marketing was free of cost and more credible to drive sales of the store. This example influences our work culture to become sensitive and caring while dealing with customers problems. We have developed values such as care and compassion, and building trust with customers. Customer centric values and benefits of adopting these values are well understood and adopted by store’s employees.