Understanding a Corporate Entity

When you work for a corporation, you learn over the years that it is a giant machine and that you are just an itty bitty cog. Not that that is a bad thing. The retail corporation I work for has managed to survive and then some in this troubled economy, and it has taken enormously talented management to accomplish that.
With thousands and thousands of employees nation wide, from the newly hired teen in the parking lot collecting carts to the Store, District and Division Managers and CEO, somehow this corporation runs like a well oiled machine. Everyone has their job to do, and each employee contributes to the success of the company.
With stockholders to keep happy, good management is job one. It can be super stressful for the management team, especially including the managers at store level who are held to a very high level of accountability. In each facility, there are over one hundred employees to oversee while they keep the customer happy and do their individual jobs with efficiency and integrity. And all this without allowing an undue amount of overtime or facility expenses so as to keep the overhead down and the profit margin up.
I am always surprised when I hear fellow employees complaining about this and that about their job. For me, the fifteen years I have spent with my company have taught me that it takes a lot of talent and foresight to run just one store well, not to mention an entire corporation. It will never be possible to keep everyone happy all the time, and it may seem that there is always more and more required or demanded of us as employees, but that is simply the nature of business. If those tough decision were not made and implemented at the higher levels, there would not be a profitable concern for us to continue to contribute to with our labor and make our livelihood from with our day to day efforts.
With what we call world class customer service, our customers are treated with respect and courtesy. They appreciate that and come back week after week. There are many facets to running a successful corporation, but ultimately it takes a team that includes dedication in the trenches and fortitude in the board room. In my mind, a well run business is a thing of beauty.