The Son-In-Law Jim Martin walked into his father’s office and threw his resignation on the desk. Age 34 and general manager of the retail division of his family’s furniture business, Jim had been with the company for 10 years. Before that, he had worked in the banking industry for three years and had earned his MBA. In his early years at Martin’s Inc., he had been energetic, ambitious, and effective. But now he is burned out. He thinks his future looks grim. He feels unrewarded and unacknowledged. Eric, Jim’s brother-in-law, is sales manager of Jim’s division. Eric, a high-school graduate who has also been with Martin’s for 10 years, has an informal style. Highly sociable, he tends to take long lunch hours and work 9 to 5, in contrast to Jim’s 12-hour days. Although sales have remained steady, Jim resents Eric’s abbreviated hours and easygoing ways. The fact that his father, CEO Ed Martin, will not make it clear who is to succeed him also gnaws at Jim. Ed has adopted a hands-off approach, hoping the successor will emerge or that Eric and Jim will work it out between them. To make matters worse, Ed has just announced he intends to divide the company stock equally—as his father had done before him—between his two children, Jim and daughter Sarah. Never invited into the business herself, Sarah pushed for her husband, Eric, to be involved. According to Ed’s plan, Eric and Jim will continue to receive identical compensation packages. Jim just cannot accept the idea that his hard work and better education will not be rewarded with what he considers appropriate remuneration and ownership.
Q: Assume Jim Martin decided not to just resign, but to provide his father, Ed Martin, with a plan that would have to be carried out in order for Jim to stay in the business. Describe the plan you think he should submit with actions and rational for each action.