Individual Decision Making - Case Study Example

Case Study Report: Individual Decision Making Student’s Name: Institutional Affiliation: Case Study Report: Individual Decision Making Executive Summary Yellow Auto Automotive is a company which deals in cars since the year 1989. It was started as a family project. Initial problems in management and employee satisfaction adversely affected the performance and general profitability of the company. A change process was initiated to realign the goals and objectives of the company. These changes in management style and increase of professionals led to increase of the company’s market share. Job satisfaction was realized as the performance of the company was reinforced. Engagement of a university in providing training for the employees tremendously improved service delivery. This report looks at the strengths and weakness of important organization decisions and their impact to the general performance of the company. The company made huge changes that resulted in the increase of its market share (Hofstede, 2000). All the changes were preceded by important decisions. Decisions in human resource management and organizational structure realigned of the company operations to its objectives. Yellow Auto Automotive situation analysis The management of Yellow Auto was initially characterized by lack of separation of office power and ownership. The owner of Yellow Auto was also the president of the board of directors. In this case, the decision made by him could have adversely affected the operation of the company since he has a personal interest in the affairs of the company. The same person was in charge of three units; he headed sales department, finance department and spare parts and after sales service departments. The sales department was further divided into active sales and in store-sales. If everything is put into consideration, the president had a lot of work supervising the units that he was charge. Besides, it was dangerous since the president being the owner of Yellow Auto could interfere with the running of the units under him. He could give directives that were to be followed by the people under him. The fifty employees working at Yellow Auto did not require an organizational structure full of many departments. Many subdivisions increased the expenses of the company and brought about rigidities that hinder the realization of maximum profit of the company. The in-store sales people under their manager were based in the company and did not travel outside the company. Having two separate units of sales that are independent from each other created unnecessary rivalry and conflict of interest. The sales units were further divided into other units (Ulrich, 1996). Supervision of such departments becomes very hard for the top management. A decision being made by the top management would take along time to reach the employee on the ground. Organization structure and cultural decisions The company adopted the hierarchal organizational structure that put emphasis on workers receiving directives from above. It is reported that employees had limited autonomy in decision making, and they were to wait directions from the manager in charge. Hierarchical structure has a disadvantage of delaying the process of decision making and implementation. It takes a long time to reach a decision and communicate the decisions to the workers who are affected. Hierarchical structure falls under the traditional forms of organization which do not quickly respond to changes within the environment. Employees were identified from wearing the same uniform. Wearing of uniform may not have been a good decision since it affected the moral of employees. The decision to implement changes in the organization was done without involvement of other employees. It is only the top management which took part in the decision. The hierarchical decision making did not even involve the middle level managers to take part. Later on, the management style of the company changed (Singh, 2003). Allowing participation of employees in the new management style improved communication and service delivery in the company. The company had many rules, which were unwritten, and only existed in the minds of the family members. These unwritten rules, beliefs, and norms form the culture of the organization. The wearing of uniform served to reinforce the common identity of the members of the organization. The company also targeted religious customers particularly the Muslims during the holy months of Ramadan. The decision to start cultural change was very appropriate for the organization. Human resource management decisions The method of compensation for the sales team consisted of a basic salary and a commission on each sale they made. This was a good way of encouraging the sales people to work hard in order to earn more money. Working overtime of the dales team provided members with an opportunity of making extra cash. The recruitment procedure involved recruitment of dynamic, young, and well-educated people. Potential employees were expected to have excellent interpersonal skills, good physical appearance, patience, and a face that is able to smile. The employees were expected to enhance customer satisfaction. Mechanical engineers were preferred for work, and they were to have additional experience. Accumulation of technical knowledge was seen as an added advantage of the employees to their positions in the company. The recruitment process involved sending job advertisement to numerous newspapers and potential employees were selected from using the mentioned criterion by looking as personal values of the employees. Aptitudes tests were used to select potential employees who would take part in the interviews. Candidates who scored the highest scores in the aptitude tests were consequently invited for interview. Both the parent company and Yellow Auto took part in the orientation program of the selected candidates (Arthur, 1994). The process of employee selection was changed, and intensive training was offered during the induction process. Employees were recruited best on their qualification. A three months period involved vigorous training. Organization change decisions The company focused on organizational change from the year 2001. The company targeted to increase human resource quality by investing in human resources. The economic crisis in Turkey during the same year threatened the decision by the company. Deciding to implement organization change process in a slow economic year was dangerous for the company. Unfortunately, the company only involved academicians in the change process. The rest of the organization was left in darkness save for the top management. First line managers and middle managers were never involved in the change process (Sonja & Phillips, 2004). Organizational change should involve all the members of the organization. Members should be prepared for change and adequately informed to know the objectives of the organization change. If members of the organization are not fully involved in the change process, they tend to resist change. Members have to be educated on the change process and change agents should be identified to assist in the change implementation. Analysis of the existing situation should include the participation of members of the entire organization. The views of members of the organization should be used to determine job satisfaction and what needs to be done (Gelfand, 2000). The decision to involve the university in changing the organization human resource should have incorporated the views of the first line and middle managers. Overlap of duties was found to be one of the biggest problems experienced by employees. It was hard to tell who was responsible for which function. This trend led to low job satisfaction within the organization. The active sales team was found to have problems of adequately responding to questions raised by clients (Elenkov, 1998). The procedures with the company hindered quick response to expectations of the customers. The customer segment was not spacious enough to serve the anticipated customers. The management style was changed by the owners to autocratic management style. The owners worked well with consultants and allowed development efforts to take place. The new style of management enhanced open communication and trust between the top managers and consultants. The change process commenced with physical conditions. Lighting and office layout were duly redesigned. Computers and furniture were renewed on the basis of suggestions as fronted by the interior architect. Landscape architect was involved in outdoor facilities designing. Better services for catering and a relaxation are were offered. The changes greatly affected job satisfaction in a manner that is positive. The provision of extra services like hairdressing at the workplace was aimed at improving the image of the workers (Trompenaars & Hampden-Turner, 1998). A fast food restaurant was opened in Gaziemir and hence both clients and employees could easily access quick meals and save time for other organizational chores. It was a good decision to recruit qualified personnel and train them accordingly. Training provided to the trainee was very efficient in equipping them in the new work. Training in conflict resolution was important for employees as they sought to solve different challenges within the organization. Company’s SWOT Analysis Strengths Turkey provided a vast market for automobile companies owing to its huge population. The parent company had a well connected relationship with different dealers in the part where Yellow Auto operated. Yellow Auto emphasized on strong competition in the market. Provision of all inclusive service to the clients increased customer satisfaction and created brand loyalty. Weakness The hierarchical organization structure hinders faster decision making and emphasis of long procedure of solving issues, which is expensive. Yellow Auto is not independent from its parents, and it cannot implement any other strategy like price changing to suit its own goals. The employee recruitment and eventual hiring is time consuming and burdensome to the company. Job specifications and descriptions were not done adequately hence; it resulted in duplication of duties. The family relationship of the owners was interfering with the running of the organization. Opportunities The growing population of the company in Turkey provides an opportunity for the company to increase its market share. The young and vibrant employees can engage in different activities within the organization and have a chance to be fast learners. Threats Competition from other dealers is one of the imminent threats that Yellow Auto faces. Different dealers are found where Yellow Auto operates from. Changes in technological advancement create a challenge to the organization to engage investment in technological development. Increased competition requires the company to create competitive advantage for the company. Recommendation The company would have done good to use the services of a recruiting company. Sending advertising to numerous newspapers is costly for the company. The process of administering aptitude test to hundreds of job applicants and having to mark the same exams proves to be a tough exercise that is time consuming and expensive (Anderson & Anderson, 2001).  Writing materials for the candidates and venues of conducting the tests would cost money. The company, therefore, has to review its recruitment process. A recruitment firm would have been better as compared to the company getting engaged in the whole process of recruitment. Personally interviewing all candidates invited for the interview is costly because managers doing the same work are required to be in charge other duties within the organization (Marshak, 2005). The company could get involved from the orientation program. Potential employees should technical skills that would enhance faster learning of the sale of company’s product. Human resource development and training is very important in enhancing delivery service of customer. Effective training creates job satisfaction as well as giving the members required skills in delivering their services. The appropriate structure that enhance faster decision making is flat organization, which has few levels of management (Arthur, 1994). Organizational change is inevitable, and the company should have a special unit that gathers market intelligence and suggest changes in order to stay ahead of competitors. Conclusion Yellow Auto is a subsidiary company operating separate from its parent company in Gaziemir. The company engaged in a vigorous exercise of organizational change. The previous bureaucratic organization structure was not working well for the company. Top down communication with the first line managers was not effective, and decision making was being delayed. It has also been noted that there was initial overlap of duties due to poor job description. The decisions made by management had their own strengths and weaknesses. Organizational change is not easy to achieve, and adequate preparation is needed to ensure effectiveness of the process. References Anderson, D., & Anderson, L. A. (2001). Beyond Change Management: Advanced Strategies for Today’s Transformational Leaders. San Francisco: Jossey-Bass/Pfeiffer. Arthur, J. B. (1994). Effects of Human Resource Systems on Manufacturing Performance and Turnover. Academy of Managerial Journal, 37(3), 670-687. Elenkov, D. (1998). Can American Management Concepts Work in Russia? A cross-cultural comparative study. California Management Review, 40 (4), 133-156. Gelfand, M. J. (2000). Cross-cultural Industrial and Organizational Psychology: Introduction to the Special Issue. Applied Psychology: An International Review, 49 (1), 29-31. Hofstede, G. (2000). Culture’s consequences: comparing values, behaviors, institutions, and organizations across nations, 2nd ed. Thousand Oaks: Sage Publications. Marshak, R. J. (2005). 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