1.Read the following case:
'Mr Soft n Cool Gelato' is an Ice Cream business owned by Alfredo and Guido Corleone. Since they started the business 18 years ago the firm has expanded steadily from a single ice cream parlour to a 25-parlour chain across the city of Turin. The ice cream for all of the parlours (which are all rented from a large property organisation) is manufactured by a workforce of 50, a large number of whom are relatives of the brothers. Manufacture takes place in a small factory leased from a local government business development agency. The ice-cream is made to a series of secret recipes given to the brothers by their mother on her death bed. Currently the workers are paid on an hourly basis, although it has been regular practice to work 3 hours overtime two evenings a week (at double pay) for the last 2 years to achieve the levels of product output required. Unlike the majority of their competitors who have become heavily automated, the brothers pride themselves on the fact that their ice cream remains hand-made and blended.
Despite the constant expansion of the business, the percentage profit (following tax and other deductions) on turnover made by Alfredo and Guido has not improved. The brothers are therefore considering an attempt to consolidate their business at its current level by carrying out a productivity assessment.
Discuss the internal factors which the brothers could consider as a means of improving their business productivity. Remember that consolidation is intended at the current business level, and assume that the brothers are not in a position to move the location of either their factory or any of their retail outlets.