Case Study – Bridging the Two Worlds –
The Organizational Dilemma
By William Todorovic, University of Waterloo
I had been hired by a Toronto based company, ABC
Limited, and it was my first day of work. I was 26 years old,
and I was now the manager of ABC’s customer service
group, which looked after customers, logistics, and some of
the raw material purchasing. My superior, George, was the
vice-president of the company. ABC manufactured most of its
products from aluminum, a majority of which were destined
for the construction industry.
As I walked around the shop floor, the employees
appeared to be concentrating on their jobs, barely noticing
me. Management held daily meetings in which various
production issues were discussed. No one from the shop floor
was invited to the meetings, unless there was a specific
problem. Later I also learned that management has separate
washrooms and separate lunchrooms as well as other perks,
which floor employees did not have. Most of the floor
employees felt that management, although polite on the
surface, did not really feel they had anything to learn from the
floor employees.
John, who worked on the aluminum slitter, a crucial
operation required before any other operations could
commence, had had a number of unpleasant encounters with
George. As a result, George usually sent written memos to
the floor in order to avoid a direct confrontation with John.
Because the directions in the memos were complex, these
memos were often more than two pages long.
One morning, as I was walking around, I noticed that
John was very upset. Feeling that perhaps there was
something I could do, I approached John and asked him if I
could help. He indicated that everything was just fine. From
the looks of the situation, and John’s body language, I felt
that he was willing to talk, but John knew this was not the way
things were done at ABC. Tony, who worked at the machine
next to John’s, then cursed and said that the office guys only
cared about schedules, not about the people down on the
floor. I just looked at him, and then said that I had only begun
working here last week, but thought I could address some of
their issues. Tony gave me a strange look, shook his head,
and went back to his machine. I could still hear him swearing
as I left. Later I realized that most of the office staff were also
offended by Tony’s language.
On the way back to my office, Lesley, a recently hired
engineer from Russia, approached me and pointed out that
the employees were not accustomed to management talking
to them. Management only issued orders and made
demands. As we discussed the different perceptions between
office and floor staff, we were interrupted by a very loud lunch
bell, which startled me. I was happy to join Lesley for lunch,
but she asked me why I was not eating in the office
lunchroom. I replied that if I was going to understand how
ABC worked, had to get to know all the people better. In
addition, I realized that this was not how things were done at
ABC, and wondered about the nature of the apparent division
between the management and the floor. In the lunchroom, the
other workers were amazed to see me there, commenting
that I was still new and had not learned the ropes yet.
After lunch, when I asked George, my supervisor,
about his recent confrontation with John, George was
surprised that John had got upset, and exclaimed, “I just
wanted John to know that he had done a great job, and as a
result, we will be able to ship one large order from the west
coast on time. In fact, I thought I was complimenting him.”
Earlier, Lesley had indicated that certain behaviour
was expected from management, and therefore from me. I
reasoned that I didn’t think this behaviour worked, and
besides, it’s not what I believed or how I cared to behave. For
the next couple of months, I simply walked around the floor
and took every opportunity to talk to the shop floor
employees. Often when the employees related specific
information about their workplaces, I felt that it went over my
head. Frequently I had to write down the information and
revisit it later. I made a point of listening to them, identifying
where they were coming from, and trying to understand them.
I needed to keep my mind open to new ideas. Because the
shop employees expected me to make requests and
demands, I made a point of not doing any of that. Soon
enough, the employees became friendly, and started to
accept me as one of their own, or at least as a different type
of management person.
During my third month of work, the employees
showed me how to improve the scheduling of jobs, especially
those on the aluminum slitter. In fact, the greatest contribution
was made by John who demonstrated better ways to
combine the most common slitting sizes, and reduce waste
by retaining some of the “common-sized” material for new
orders. Seeing the opportunity, I programmed a spreadsheet
to calculate and track inventory. This, in addition to better
planning and forecasting allowed us to reduce our new order
turnarounds from four to five weeks to in by 10 a.m. out by 5
p.m. on the same day.
By the time I had been employed at AC for four
months, I realized that members from other departments
were coming to me and asking me to relay messages to the
shop employees. When I asked why they were delegating this
task to me, they stated that I spoke the same language as the
shop employees. Increasingly, I became the messenger for
the office to the shop floor communication.
One morning, George called me into his office and
complimented me on the level of customer service and the
improvements that had been achieved. As we talked, I
mentioned that we could not have done it without John’s help.
“He really knows his stuff, and he is good,” I said. I suggested
that we consider him for some type of promotion. Also I
hoped that this would be a positive gesture that would
improve communication between the office and shop floor.
George turned and pulled a flyer out of his desk;
“Here’s a management skills seminar. Do you think we should
send John to it?”
“That’s a great idea,” I exclaimed. “Perhaps it would
be good if he were to receive the news from you directly,
George.” George agreed, and after discussing some other
issues, we departed company.
That afternoon, John came into my office, upset and
ready to quit. “After all my effort and work, you guys are
sending me for training seminars. So, am I not good enough
for you?”
Tips for Case Writing Assignment Two
** Do not answer the discussion questions at the end of the case. Use the discussion questions posted separately in the Resources area of our Blackboard site. **
Due Date:
Thursday, November 5
Length:
550 words, double spaced
Resources:
Chapter One discussion of the flow of information within organizations, as well as, our class discussions regarding communication and communication flow will give you the background you need to complete the assignment.
Content:
Case Writing Assignment Two asks you to analyze and discuss the downward and upward flow of information at ABC Limited, the barriers to the flow of downward and upward information and how the downward and upward flow of information could be improved.
Be sure to use the terminology of the assignment in your essay (e.g. use the word “downward flow of information” or “upward flow of information” when referring to how information flows at ABC Limited). Use “barriers to the flow of downward information” or “barriers to the flow of upward information” when discussing the barriers. When discussing how the flow of information could be improved, be specific about whether you are talking about improvements to the downward flow of information or the upward flow of information.
Suggested Structure:
Introduction:
In a short paragraph, tell me what you will discuss in your paper.
Main Body:
Section 1
Discuss how downward and upward information flowed at ABC Limited when the new manager of the Customer Service Group began working there.
Section 2
Identify and discuss the barriers to the downward and upward flow of information at ABC Limited.
Section 3
Briefly describe what the new manager of ABC’s Customer Service Group could do to improve the flow of downward and upward information. Did the flow of information actually improve? Why or why not?
Note: Please use paragraph breaks within sections for each new topic you discuss.
Conclusion
In a short paragraph, summarize what you have discussed in your essay.
Important: Be sure to hand in your first written draft of your paper with clear markings for grammar, spelling, punctuation and structure.
