Can you please post some case studies on Principles of Mnagement / Business Management, HRM, SHRM, OB, Conflicts in Negotiation Management
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CASE STUDY - Principle of Practice Management
The president of Simplex Mills sat at his desk in the hushed atmosphere typical of business offices after the close of working hours. He was thinking about Rehman, the manager in charge of purchasing, and his ability to work with George, the production manager, and Vipulabh, the marketing and sales manager in the firm.
When the purchasing department was established two years ago, both George and Vipulabh agreed with the need to centralize this function and place a specialist in charge. George believed this would free his supervisors from detailed ordering activities. Vipulabh opined that the flow of materials into the firm was important enough to warrant a specialized management assignment. Yet, since the purchasing department began operating, it has been precisely these two managers who have had a number of confrontations with the new purchase manager, and occasionally with one another, regarding the way the purchasing function is being carried out.
From George's point of view, instead of simplifying his job as production manager by taking care of purchasing for him, the purchasing department has developed a formal set of procedures that have resulted in as much time commitment on his part as he had previously spent placing his orders directly with vendors. Further, he is especially irritated by the fact that his need for particular items or specifications is constantly being questioned by the purchasing department. When the department was established, George assumed that the purchasing manager was there to fill his needs, not to question them.
As Vipulabh sees it, the purchasing function is an integral part of the marketing function, and the two, therefore, need to be jointly managed as a unified process. The purchasing function cannot be separated from a firm's overall marketing strategy. However, Rehman has attempted to carry out the purchasing function without regard for this obvious relationship between his responsibilities and those of Vipulabh, thus making a unified marketing strategy impossible.
In his previous position, Rehman had worked in the purchasing department of a firm considerably larger than Simplex. Before being hired, he was interviewed by all the top managers, including George and Vipulabh, but it was the president himself who negotiated the details of the job offer. As Rehman sees it, he was hired as a professional to do a professional job. Both George and Vipulabh have been distracting him from this goal by presuming that he is somehow subordinate to them, which he believes is not the case. The people in the production department, who use the purchasing function most, have complained about the detail that he requires on their requisitions. But he has documented proof that materials are now being purchased much more economically than they were under the former decentralized system. He finds Vipulabh's interests more difficult to understand since he sees no particular relationship between his responsibilities for efficient procurement and Vipulabh's responsibilities to market the firm's products.
The president has been aware of the continuing conflict among the three managers for some time, but on the theory that a little rivalry is healthy and stimulating, he has felt that it was nothing to be unduly concerned about. But now that much of his time is being taken up by what he considers to be petty bickering, the time has come to take some positive action.
Questions:
1. Is George's view of the situation realistic?
2. How do you evaluate Vipulabh's position?
3. How might this conflict be associated with factors in the formal organization?
4. What should the president of Simplex Mills do now?
From India, Mumbai
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The president of Simplex Mills sat at his desk in the hushed atmosphere typical of business offices after the close of working hours. He was thinking about Rehman, the manager in charge of purchasing, and his ability to work with George, the production manager, and Vipulabh, the marketing and sales manager in the firm.
When the purchasing department was established two years ago, both George and Vipulabh agreed with the need to centralize this function and place a specialist in charge. George believed this would free his supervisors from detailed ordering activities. Vipulabh opined that the flow of materials into the firm was important enough to warrant a specialized management assignment. Yet, since the purchasing department began operating, it has been precisely these two managers who have had a number of confrontations with the new purchase manager, and occasionally with one another, regarding the way the purchasing function is being carried out.
From George's point of view, instead of simplifying his job as production manager by taking care of purchasing for him, the purchasing department has developed a formal set of procedures that have resulted in as much time commitment on his part as he had previously spent placing his orders directly with vendors. Further, he is especially irritated by the fact that his need for particular items or specifications is constantly being questioned by the purchasing department. When the department was established, George assumed that the purchasing manager was there to fill his needs, not to question them.
As Vipulabh sees it, the purchasing function is an integral part of the marketing function, and the two, therefore, need to be jointly managed as a unified process. The purchasing function cannot be separated from a firm's overall marketing strategy. However, Rehman has attempted to carry out the purchasing function without regard for this obvious relationship between his responsibilities and those of Vipulabh, thus making a unified marketing strategy impossible.
In his previous position, Rehman had worked in the purchasing department of a firm considerably larger than Simplex. Before being hired, he was interviewed by all the top managers, including George and Vipulabh, but it was the president himself who negotiated the details of the job offer. As Rehman sees it, he was hired as a professional to do a professional job. Both George and Vipulabh have been distracting him from this goal by presuming that he is somehow subordinate to them, which he believes is not the case. The people in the production department, who use the purchasing function most, have complained about the detail that he requires on their requisitions. But he has documented proof that materials are now being purchased much more economically than they were under the former decentralized system. He finds Vipulabh's interests more difficult to understand since he sees no particular relationship between his responsibilities for efficient procurement and Vipulabh's responsibilities to market the firm's products.
The president has been aware of the continuing conflict among the three managers for some time, but on the theory that a little rivalry is healthy and stimulating, he has felt that it was nothing to be unduly concerned about. But now that much of his time is being taken up by what he considers to be petty bickering, the time has come to take some positive action.
Questions:
1. Is George's view of the situation realistic?
2. How do you evaluate Vipulabh's position?
3. How might this conflict be associated with factors in the formal organization?
4. What should the president of Simplex Mills do now?
From India, Mumbai
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Case – 2
Bharat Engineering Works Limited is a major industrial machinery manufacturer, besides producing other engineering products. It has enjoyed market preference for its machinery due to limited competition in the field. Usually, there have been more orders than the company could supply. However, the scenario changed quickly with the entry of two new competitors in the field, backed by foreign technological collaboration. For the first time, the company faced problems in marketing its products with the usual profit margin. Sensing the likely problem, the chief executive appointed Mr. Arvind Kumar as General Manager to direct the operations of the industrial machinery division. Mr. Kumar had a similar assignment abroad before returning to India.
Mr. Kumar had a discussion with the chief executive about the nature of the problem being faced by the company so that he could prioritize his tasks. The chief executive advised him to consult various heads of departments to gather first-hand information. However, he emphasized that the company lacked an integrated planning system, while members of the Board of Directors insisted on introducing this in several meetings, both formally and informally.
After joining as General Manager, Mr. Kumar received briefings from the heads of all departments. He asked all heads to identify major problems and issues concerning them. The marketing manager indicated that to achieve higher sales, he needed more sales support. Salespeople had no central organization to provide sales support, nor was there a generous budget for demonstration teams that could be sent to customers to win business.
The production manager complained about the old machines and equipment used in manufacturing. Therefore, the cost of production was high without corresponding quality. While competitors had better equipment and machinery, Bharat Engineering had neither replaced its age-old plant nor reconditioned it. Therefore, to reduce the cost, it was essential to automate production lines by installing new equipment.
The Director of Research and Development did not have specific problems and therefore did not indicate any need for change. However, a principal scientist in R&D indicated one day that the Director of R&D, though very nice in his approach, did not emphasize short-term research projects, which could easily increase production efficiency by at least 20 percent within a very short period without any major capital outlay.
Questions
(a) Discuss the nature and characteristics of the problems in this case.
(b) What steps should be taken by Mr. Kumar to overcome these problems?
From India, Mumbai
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Bharat Engineering Works Limited is a major industrial machinery manufacturer, besides producing other engineering products. It has enjoyed market preference for its machinery due to limited competition in the field. Usually, there have been more orders than the company could supply. However, the scenario changed quickly with the entry of two new competitors in the field, backed by foreign technological collaboration. For the first time, the company faced problems in marketing its products with the usual profit margin. Sensing the likely problem, the chief executive appointed Mr. Arvind Kumar as General Manager to direct the operations of the industrial machinery division. Mr. Kumar had a similar assignment abroad before returning to India.
Mr. Kumar had a discussion with the chief executive about the nature of the problem being faced by the company so that he could prioritize his tasks. The chief executive advised him to consult various heads of departments to gather first-hand information. However, he emphasized that the company lacked an integrated planning system, while members of the Board of Directors insisted on introducing this in several meetings, both formally and informally.
After joining as General Manager, Mr. Kumar received briefings from the heads of all departments. He asked all heads to identify major problems and issues concerning them. The marketing manager indicated that to achieve higher sales, he needed more sales support. Salespeople had no central organization to provide sales support, nor was there a generous budget for demonstration teams that could be sent to customers to win business.
The production manager complained about the old machines and equipment used in manufacturing. Therefore, the cost of production was high without corresponding quality. While competitors had better equipment and machinery, Bharat Engineering had neither replaced its age-old plant nor reconditioned it. Therefore, to reduce the cost, it was essential to automate production lines by installing new equipment.
The Director of Research and Development did not have specific problems and therefore did not indicate any need for change. However, a principal scientist in R&D indicated one day that the Director of R&D, though very nice in his approach, did not emphasize short-term research projects, which could easily increase production efficiency by at least 20 percent within a very short period without any major capital outlay.
Questions
(a) Discuss the nature and characteristics of the problems in this case.
(b) What steps should be taken by Mr. Kumar to overcome these problems?
From India, Mumbai
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Chapter XVI - Organizational Conflict, Politics, and Change.ppt