Case Study
Case--Losing Your Cool!
Debra Allen was the branch manager at big Bank's Northwood branch. She was in charge of approximately twenty people, including two assistant manages. All but two of the tellers were women. Several were employees who had difficult lives outside the workplace. Often, their personal lives influenced the work environment in a negative way. Allen regularly met with the employees, both individually and in small groups. She constantly reminded them of the need to work together to serve the customers. The bank's motto was, "Two centuries of giving customers outstanding services."
Janet Taylor was the lead teller at the Big Bank Northwood branch. She had started working at the bank shortly after her high school graduation about fourteen months ago. Taylor had been a model employee, coming in early for work, investigating every opportunity to learn, and seemingly enthusiastic about her job at the branch. Her work ethic was a positive influence on the other tellers. Unlike many of the tellers, Taylor still lived at home with her parents and had never experienced the personal problems or financial woes that many of her peers were experiencing.
Yesterday, Bonnie Boyce, a single parent, showed up for work late without calling in. As head teller, Taylor had the responsibility of addressing the issue with Boyce and putting documentation in her file. Subsequent attendance issues within a two- week period were referred to Allen or one of the assistant managers. As one or the youngest people in the branch, Taylor found her responsibilities stressful. She was not comfortable dealing with performance or personal problems.
Today was another matter. It was the very busy first Friday of the month. Many senior citizens came in to deposit their retirement of Social Security checks, and most business came to deposit their retirement or Social Security checks, and most businesses paid their employees on Friday. The bank also handled utility payments for its customers. The customers appreciated the convenience, and it saved them postage. Rhodda Ayers was the oldest teller. She was in her sixties, and her disposition was annoying at times. She often tried to boss or "mother" most of the other tellers.
Shortly before noon, the teller lines were long, and Bonnie Boyce strolled in two hours after she was scheduled. Because of the workload, Taylor immediately assigned her one of the vacant windows with the comment that she would talk with her at break time.
Taylor was having in the break room when Ayers came in. Everyone could tell that Ayers was upset, and Taylor made an effort to cheer her up.
TAYLOR: Rhodda, what's the matter? Is something wrong?
AYERS: (Tries to ignore Taylor.)
TAYLOR: Well, go ahead and ignore me. I was just trying to help.
AYERS: You'd help if you'd get that problem out of here. I'm tired of always having to work harder because of that woman.
TAYLOR: What do you mean?
AYERS: You know exactly who I mean-Bonnie Boyce. She's lazy, inconsiderate, and a slob.
TAYLOR: What exactly has she done?
AYERS: Yesterday, she was late, and you did nothing. Today, she showed up midmorning on your busiest day of the month, and you welcomed her like she was prodigal son. You never should have been promoted to head teller. (Getting louder) Your good looks might have dazzled some of the guy's downtown, but I've never been impressed with you.
TAYLOR: Stop right now. I'm just doing my job. If you'd do yours without being so rigid and motherly, things might be a lot better around here.
AYERS: You are nothing but a naïve little pipsqueak!
TAYLOR: Why don't you just back off!" (She stormed out of the break room.)
QUESTIONS FOR DISCUSSION
1. Why did anger appear at the Northwood branch?
2. To what extent did Taylor handle Friday's events well? Poorly?
3. Given the situation, list what might have been done by either party (Taylor or Ayers) to have prevented or at least minimized the situation.
4. Taylor had been a model employee for fourteen months, and then she lost it. How do you explain her behavior? Search the Web for information on emotional intelligence and controlling anger. You might want to review the Emotional Intelligence Special Issue of the Journal of Organizational Behavior, Vol. 26, Is. 4 (June 2005) to understand different perspectives.
5. what strategies have you learned for keeping your emotions under control?
6. How do you think Debra Allen should deal with this situation?
Case Study
CASE Study--"Fear of Being Passed on the Corporate Ladder"
Mark Wells is the evening shift warehouse supervisor for Sanders Supermarket, a large grocery-store chain. Over the past twelve years, with only a high-school education, Mark had worked his way up from being a laborer to a supervisor. The 35-year-old Wells was married with two school- age children, and he had wanted to move to the day shift so that he could spend more time with his family.
Two days ago, Mark's boss, John Swanson, told him that the current day-shift the job. This would be a lateral move; there would be no change in title and no pay increase. Actually, Mark would take a $20 per week reduction because the evening shift salary included a premium shift differential. Never the less, Mark Wells was very interested because he saw it as his only near-term opportunity to move to the day shift.
Mark's assistant, or leadman, on the evening shift was Sam Melton, and energetic and intelligent young man in his med-twenties who had been with the company for three years. Sam had been attending a local community college, and he recently completed a two-year management certification program. Mark felt some what intimidated be Sam's credentials, his easygoing personality, his exceptional communications skills, and his ability to get work crews to go the "extra mile." On several occasions, Sam was able to get work crews to complete difficult projects that Mark could not accomplish. Mark knew that if he took the day-shift position, Sam likely would be promoted to evening-shift supervisor. Then Sam would be able to demonstrate to upper management his superior supervisory skills. Because opportunities for advancement beyond the supervisory position were limited, Mark was concerned that Sam would soon pass him by on the corporate ladder. Thus, Mark would be forever trapped in the first-tier supervisory position with little hope for advancement.
QUESTIONS FOR DISSCUSSION
1. What factors account from Mark Wells's apprehensions in this situation?
2. What should Mark do if the day-shift supervisory position is offered to him? Why?
3. Is it realistic for supervisors like Mark Wells to expect that younger, former subordinates will not pass them on the corporate ladder? Why?
4. What specifically could Mark Wells do to increase the value of his services and potential (e.g., increase the SKAs he brings to work each day?
Case Study
Case--Coping with the New Manager
Cindy Smith is a supervisory training facilitator at the Barry Automotive Albion plant. The plant makes composite plastic components for the automotive industry. Plastic components are more durable and resisted dents and scratches better than components made of steel. The nonunionized facility employs about 450 personel. Eight years ago, Smith began as a second-shift entry-level worker in the modeling section. After a series of advancement, she was promoted to production supervisor and then to training facilitator, and she had been performing this function for about sixteen months. New employees were assigned to Smith's section for orientation and training, usually lasting a week or more. Depending on the company's needs, employees then were reassigned to a specific production department. In recent months, however, the high turnover rate-25 percent of new hires quit within six weeks of hire-coupled with requirements to produce a variety of high-quality products for individual customer specifications have led to a deterioration of morale.
Traditionally, the average car buyer waited 26 to 35 days from the time a custom order was placed at a dealership until the customer could drive the vehicle off the lot. However, during the past decade, some manufacturers had cut the time to build a car- from the moment the customer places an order at the dealership to the vehicle rolls off the assembly line-to five days. Not more than five days for travel was allotted from the plant to the dealership. Reducing the time to build a car to customer specifications, including color, engine type, and other options, had been an ongoing effort. As a supplier to the automotive industry, additional quality and production pressures were placed on the plant management team.
About one year earlier, Operations Manager George Patterson was replaced by Don May. Even though the plant often had missed delivery deadlines and labor costs as a percentage of product costs were escalating, Patterson had been content with the status of the plant . Patterson had the reputation of expecting department managers to correct problems after they occurred, and "crisis management" was the prevalent style. Don May, a former military officer, was expected to turn the place around. Under May's direction, the culture of the plant seemed to change overnight. May immediately announced to all supervisors that he was not willing to accept the high rate of product rejects. May practiced management by wandering around (MBWA), and he met and talked with supervisors, group leaders, and facilitators one on one. Further, he met with small group of employees and listened to their concerns. Initially, May was positively received, but the situation soon deteriorated.
Shortly after assuming the position of operating manager, Don May informed all managers and supervisors that they were being placed on a salary-and-bonus system. He told them that their hard work was appreciated and would be rewarded. Yet, because of costly rework production delays and overtime for hourly employees, the bonus systems did not yield any tangible benefits. Among the supervisory complaints: "You told us the new system would result in greater compensation, and it hasn't. We're making less than before. We'd be better off financially of we were hourly production workers!"
Most supervisors now were working six days a week, ten to twelve hours a day. Employees and machinery were being stretched to the limit. Several supervisors had quit during the past month, and some took less-demanding plant jobs. Surviving supervisors often worked "double duty" in overseeing several production departments. On any given day, ten to twenty percent of employee production positions could be vacant. Cindy Smith and her only remaining employee (five were assigned to fill in for vacant supervisory positions and one was placed in the quality department) were directed by Don May to cut the normal one-week training time to a half day. The most recent customer quality audit was a disaster. There were rumors that some work would be transferred to other Barry plants or even to competitors.
To Cindy Smith, it was like someone had flipped a switch. Any supervisor who spoke out and didn't agree with Don May "fell from grace," and May put pressure on all who questioned what he was doing. Most supervisors were afraid to speak up. To Smith, supervisors appeared to be "mindless robots going through the motion." Smith's crowing blow came at a choir rehearsal in her church Wednesday night. Amy Richardson, a fellow choir member and a front-office secretary to Don May, told Smith," Mr. May told me that when he was meeting with and interviewing our supervisors he was actually getting the scoop on everyone. He took names and tucked them away. I even heard him tell Bill Arnold, Barry's president, that he'd get rid of all malcontents." Cindy Smith felt betrayed.
QUESTIONS FOR DISCUSSIONS
1. How would you evaluate Cindy Smith's situation in terms of job satisfaction?
2. Compare and contrast the management styles of George Patterson and Don May.
3. What should Cindy Smith do? Why?
4. Have you ever experienced a situation like the one described in this case? If so, how did you handle those problems?
5. Using the Internet, find at least two sources that provide examples of how employees view managers who use their authority to an extreme. To help your search, we suggest you start with https://www.npr.org/programs/morning/features/2002/june/bosses/or google "bad bosses." Write a one page paper explaining what you learned from this experience.
Case Study
Case--Barry Automotive's Glendale Plant: The Picnic Conversation
Barry Automotive's Glendale Plant's annual picnic was well attended, as usual. It was a well-planned, day-long family affair for all employees of the firm, giving them an opportunity to get together informally. At the picnic, Charlene Knox, one of the supervisors, had a long chat with her boss, Jim Cross, the general manager. They spoke about many things, including some work problems. Cross greatly emphasized the need to cut costs and generally tighten the company's finances. He told Knox that he had already received a number of written suggestions and plans from some other supervisors. He highly praised their efforts as appropriate and helpful.
Three weeks after the picnic, Charlene Knox received a memo from her boss asking her "report in reference to cost cutting had no yet arrived." At first, she wondered what Jim Cross was referring to, and then she remembered their talk at the picnic. She realized that was the only time Cross had discussed with her the need to cut costs. Knox pondered what her response should be.
QUESTIONS FOR DISCUSSION
1. Is it appropriate for a supervisor to give a directive to a subordinate in a social, off-the-job setting? Why or why not?
2. Was Charlene Knox at fault for failing to understand what her boss told her at the picnic? Was Jim Cross at fault? Were both managers at fault?