Category: Management

Introduction

Douglas McGregor, a social scientist, came up with two different views of human nature regarding employees motivation. The first one is theory X, which holds negative assumptions about human nature. It explains that man is inherently lazy and needs to be compelled. He is also self-centered and lacks ambition. Therefore, to have the employees achieve the desired results, they have to be controlled, directed, and punished.

The second one is theory Y, which assumes that employees naturally enjoy work as play. It explains that when committed employees are given room for self-control, then the organizational goals are easily achieved. Therefore managers who believe in this theory cultivate good relationships with their employees to work together to achieve organizational goals (Bagad, 2008).

My Preferred Management Style and My Managers Management style

My preferred management style is aligned to theory Y as I have a total score of 63 from the questionnaire survey. I prefer to work under minimal supervision and to be able to consult with my boss when the need arises. I also prefer to have a manager who is concerned with his employees well-being as much as he is concerned with the companys performance. Likewise, my boss also uses a strong theory Y management style as he scored 60 on the questionnaire survey.

My manager prefers a hands-off management style as he does not constantly watch over his employees activities. He consults with us before setting targets and rewards us if the targets are met. If they are not, he always comes to us to determine why they were not and works with us to implement necessary changes (Chapman, 2002).

Effects of the Management Styles

Since both my manager and I have the same management style (Theory Y), there is a strong positive relationship between us. The freedom provided by the manager has led to the invention of new ways of performing tasks, which are efficient and more effective. The opportunity to consult with the manager when going through problems has helped employees to solve their external issues amicably without affecting the other workers (Sullivan & Cardinal Stritch University, 2009).

It has also helped understand one another such that the boss can assign us duties in our areas of strength. The offering of incentives has motivated me as an employee to increase my efforts. As a result, the company has been able to achieve its targets. Constant updates from the management have enabled us to plan our schedules and resources effectively, such that wastage is minimized. Lastly, there is an improved understanding between the manager and me as each of us knows the others expectations and can act according to those expectations (Mukherjee, 2009).

Conclusion

There are two distinct views on the motivation of employees at work. Each managers perception of employees behavior will determine the environment that he will offer at the workplace. If the managers management style and the employees preferred style are the same, there would be a cordial relationship between them. This is because each of the parties knows the others expectations and will be able to achieve them. However, if the management styles differ, there are chances that the two will not understand each other as their expectations towards each other are so varied. Therefore, the manager must understand the preferred style of his employees. Thus, he will be able to lead them well.

References List

Bagad, V. S., (2008). Management & finance. Pune: Technical Publications.

Chapman, A., (2002). X-Y Theory Questionnaire. Web.

Mukherjee, K., (2009). Prin of Mgmt & Ob, 2E. New Delhi: Tata McGraw-Hill Education.

Sullivan, K. K. and Cardinal Stritch University, (2009). Wisconsin internal medicine physician career satisfaction and associated risks to retention. Ann Arbor, MI: ProQuest.

Organizational changes are the type of alterations in the companies functioning that may be driven by a variety of factors. It is not easy to achieve a change (Anderson, 2017). There are many issues to take into consideration prior to planning and implementing such adjustments. No one can guarantee that a change will be positive, and quite frequently, innovations appear to be negative. However, it is not possible to know how it will turn out without trying. In the present paper, I will discuss the outcomes of a change management simulation and the positive and negative lessons learned from it.

My Diagnosis of the Situation

My diagnosis of the situation was not a successful one. I failed to predict the situation properly. Although I had a very noble aim of turning the production process in a more sustainable direction, I did not have enough power and experience to fulfill this goal. The majority of the companys employees were the resisters of the change. However, I managed to identify several early adopters. Leslie Harris, Spectrums VP of sales and marketing, agreed with the idea that the company should become more environmentally friendly and join the sustainable development. Mary Gopinath, the VO of human resources, also suggested that the organization should give the request of BigMart a serious consideration.

Other members of the management team were resisters of the innovation. Paul DArcy, Spectrums CFO, was rather opposed to the idea of initiating a sustainability project. Luke Filer, the VP of operations, remarked that the plant managers would not accept any change in raw materials input in the nearest future.

The formal organizational hierarchy was a rather helpful factor during the stages of planning the change. Knowing the structure of the company allowed me to identify whose support would be most favorable for me. A hierarchy is needed for big companies management as it joins various business activities and makes it possible to assign responsibilities to the employees. Another positive factor when thinking about changes is social network information. Nowadays, social media have a great impact on the way of receiving and exchanging information (Badea, 2014). Therefore, I suggested that Spectrum should include new approaches in its organizational communication. The employment of social media would allow the company to concentrate on the tools necessary for achieving the communicational goals.

The Strategy of Influencing the Organizational Members

In order to enhance the organizations members mobilization and move them towards the adoption of the change initiative, it is necessary to choose the most appropriate change theory. I wanted to develop a strategy that would make it possible to implement the necessary innovations gradually and not make the employees frustrated about them. The change theory that I found most suitable was Lewins change model (Cawsey, Deszca, & Ingols, 2016). This model consists of three stages: unfreezing, moving, and refreezing. At unfreezing phase, a thorough analysis of a prospective change is performed. In my case, I researched literature and media sources concerning the environmental sustainability. I paid particular attention to the ways in which such innovations were implemented in the companies similar to Spectrum. I also investigated several case studies of successful and unsuccessful change within such organizations.

The second phase  moving  is the most important one. It presupposes taking action, making the actual changes, and involving people in the process of a change. At this stage, I presented the plan to the employees and informed them about the steps necessary to take in order to implement the change suggested by BigMart. We rearranged the companys operations so as to comply with the new requirements. As per CEOs demand, the following measures were taken. The additional four members from finance, production, research and development, and marketing joined the innovation team. Further, every person on the task force dedicated minimum three-fourths of their time to designing a proposal for BigMart that would satisfy all the four departments. Finally, the task force members were supposed to create a financially agreeable plan that would change one of the product lines based on petrochemical alternatives and give that plan to the CEO no later than in three months.

The third phase of the chosen change theory is refreezing. At this stage, the changes are made permanent, the new way of things becomes a regular way of operation, and the expected outcomes are rewarded (Cawsey et al., 2016). I have to admit that this stage has not been fulfilled to the full extent. Because of the poor diagnosis of the situation, I was not able to make the change as successful as I had expected it to be. As a result, the change did not become permanent, and it had to be canceled due to the losses that the organization experienced after its implementation.

Evaluation of my Failure as a Change Agent and Middle Manager

Although changes present a crucial requirement for the organizations successful development, it is not always the case that their outcomes are successful (Cawsey et al., 2016). However, it is still necessary to take a risk and come up with new solutions, as everything in the world, particularly in the world of business, has to develop in order to become better. In my case, I decided to implement a change even though there were serious concerns about doing so.

I think that the main reason why I was not successful was that I did not have any formal authority. I was a change initiator, but I did not have sufficient support since there were not many change implementers or change facilitators (Cawsey et al., 2016). I gained credibility at the beginning of the project when I initiated the support of a proposal from our largest retail customer. Also, some of the employees trusted and supported me because of their personal environmentalist views and the desire to make the work of our company more sustainable. However, as the process involved more money than the organization could afford to spend on it, I gradually started losing the staffs credibility. I admit that the biggest misstep was not giving appropriate consideration to the financial side of the change.

Important Lessons Learned from the Simulation

The following insights were gained from the simulation:

1. It is not enough to have a good idea. It is necessary to develop it extremely thoroughly and from a variety of angles. I think that I did not pay sufficient attention to details. When the companys CFO, Paul DArcy, and the VP of operations, Luke Filer, were against the change, they did not vote so because of some personal resistance. Their experience made them realize that it would be impossible to make my plane come true. Unfortunately, I insisted on making the change and made the whole organization feel the bitter outcomes.
2. Before implementing a change, it is necessary to calculate the probable results in case of successful as well as unsuccessful outcomes. If the latter are too burdensome and impossible to be covered in a short period of time, it is a good idea to reconsider the change.
3. It is always necessary to think of the financial side first since many peoples lives and the companys image and success depend on it. No matter what positive plans and endeavors one has, it is necessary to make sure that no one will suffer when the innovation fails. In my case, the company went through considerable losses because the change implementation required more costs than it could have afforded.

An Action Necessary for the Enhancement of My Future Effectiveness

In order to enhance my future effectiveness in leading change, I will resort to such an action as clarifying my leadership vision. As I was able to learn from the simulation, my vision is not clear enough, which led to disastrous outcomes. Making my leadership vision more explicit will allow me to differentiate between the most and least successful aspects of my work and come up with the ways of improving the weaknesses.

Conclusion

My failure as a change agent gave me several important lessons. First of all, it is necessary to approach the process of implementing the change more thoroughly and include various aspects and possible scenarios. Secondly, it is necessary to take into consideration the opinions of more experienced colleagues, no matter how great the temptation of becoming the companys hero is. Finally, even though I did not succeed, I find this experience rather useful for my future endeavors. I will work on the development of my leadership vision and will not make the same mistakes next time.

References

Anderson, D. L. (2017). Organization development: The process of leading organizational change (4th ed.). Thousand Oaks, CA: SAGE.

Badea, M. (2014). Social media and organizational communication. Procedia  Social and Behavioral Sciences, 149, 70-75.

Cawsey, T. F., Deszca, D., & Ingols, S. (2016). Organizational change: An action-oriented toolkit (3rd ed.). Thousand Oaks, CA: SAGE.

Push and Pull management philosophies

The origin of the term push and pull can be traced back to supply chain and logistics management (Hugos 214). However, according to Nigel, the term is also used in marketing (76). The term describes the flow of information or products from one subject to another. Consumer of goods and services usually pulls information or goods in the market to meet their needs. On the other hand, suppliers push goods or information required by the customers to the market. The logistic and supply chain operates through a push and pulls system. The inter-boundary between a pull and push stage is referred to as decoupling point (Ballou 56). He adds that the Push and pull strategy is either non-interactive or interactive (86).

The sandwich manufacturing company is a production-driven company, which produces sandwiches and wait for demand to arise. The future anticipation of growth opportunity to the production of 12,000 items up from 3,000 a week will convert the company from a manufacturing to a marketing-oriented company. This is because the company will now manufacture sandwiches to meet the needs of the built-up demand. Sandwich, therefore, will sell fast hence pushing to customers to meet their demand other than wait for the consumers to pull the commodity. This will result to higher returns by the company and ensure instant demand for the highly perishable sandwich.

On the other hand, the sandwich manufacturing company will result in to pull strategy in demand for supplies of the ingredients used to manufacture sandwiches. The supplies will be pulled from them to meet the expected demand for a sandwich. Because of the increase in the scale of production, the company will, however, be faced with a dire need to scale its operations. More production will call for more labor and resources. The services of the workers and employees will, therefore, be pulled more into the company to meet the expected output. More effort will be pulled from the business improvement manager to ensure that the production process is effectively carried out to meet the customers needs. This would be by ensuring that time and place utility is observed. More effort will also be required to ensure that quality is observed.

The resulting increase in the scale of production will call for a more effective control system. The services of the control system will therefore be pulled more to meet expected output. This may, therefore, call for an upgrade of the systems to ensure that control is not compromised. As the company pulls more supplies, more facilities including storage facilities, transport, processing, and communication will be required. More workforces and more working hours will also be necessitated by the companys pull for labor. This will therefore lead to huge costs and the company may therefore be compelled to pull the services of financial institutions. Communication costs will escalate, as the company from the various parts of the supply chain pulls more information.

The business improvement manager will offer advice to the company on how to deal with the expected increase in demand for sandwich. He will therefore provide his know how to the company. The company will in return offer him wages for his services. The Business development manager will also exchange information with the customers especially the supermarket outlet to secure orders and feedback from them, since they will have a direct contact with the companys customers.

The supermarket will obtain and place orders for sandwich from the sandwich manufacturing company. The company will provide feedback in form of information to the supermarket. Once the products are ready, the company will distribute them to the supermarket, ensure time, and place utility. Since the products are perishable, the company will provide the best means of transport for example refrigerated vans to transport the products. The supermarket will in return offer payments to the company on order. The company will take expired products from the supermarket and replacement done.

Because of a pull in labour by the company, more services in form of working hours will b required from the workers. This will be per with the companys regulations to ensure that quality of production is not compromised. The labour force will in return expect a pay for their service for normal and extra working hours. Information will also be exchanged between the labour force and the company to ensure that the expected output is met. This will also be critical in understanding the working condition of the workers to ensure that they are not overworked to maximize output. To ensure effective allocation of working hours between the various employees a more advanced system will have to be incorporated into the company. The system may in turn call for employment of expert staff to run and manage the system.

The companys suppliers will require information from the company on the quantity of supplies required. Time for delivery of the products will also be communicated because most of the products are perishable. This will ensure that the correct quantity and quality of products is supplied to the company in time for production and in the right quality so as not to comprise on the quality of the final product. The suppliers will also need to be communicated on increase in scale of production in order to communicate the same to their source of the products. The same will be also important since it may call for more investment on suppliers especially on transport facilities. The suppliers will in return receive payments on procurements delivered to the company.

The control system of the company monitors the operations of the company to ensure that the manufacturing process runs effectively as planned. The control system also allows the company to identify any discrepancies in the production process. It also provides interventions in case a discrepancy occurs. For an effective production process, an effective control system is therefore critical. A company should therefore, consider an effective control system probably in software form rather than manual. The company however, provide the expertise and resources for effective running of the system in return of the benefits it offer to the company.

SCOR Model

A SCOR model is used by an organization to assists an organization to measure their rate of success in their target market (Hugos 301). The model performs the task by forming a framework that forms a link between a firms processes, technology, best practices, and metrics. The model also provides common language and metrics, which accelerate change within a business. SCOR model improves, reorganize, measure, and identify the processes of a supply chain (Hugos 305). The cyclic cycle of a SCOR model, include configuration and capturing of the supply chain. The configuration of a supply chain is motivated by a plan of the levels of sources of information, their integration, their source, make method used, site, delivery methods used and return methods and locations (Hugos 310).

The model also encompasses measurements of the supply chain performance through comparison between external and internal goals of the company. This is through focus on assets, costs, agility, responsiveness, and reliability of the supply chain. It also re-aligns the best practices and processes of a supply chain by reviewing the set objectives. This is achieved through bench marking, ISO- 9000, Constraints Theory, Six-sigma, Lean Manufacturing, and Reengineering (Hugos 315).

Level 1 is the top-level top level of a SCOR diagram. Level 1 SCOR Diagram for the sandwich manufacturing company can therefore, be illustrated as shown below:

The plan process will involve an identification of the requirements for the supply chain management; these will then be prioritized and aggregated. This will be followed by an identification of the production, delivery and return requirements and their prior prioritization and aggregation.

The sandwich company supplies comprise the perishable and non-perishable products. Non-perishable products will be supplied fast before the perishable products. This is because they can be stored within the companys facilities for some days before actual production takes course. On the other hand the perishable products used for making sandwich will be supplied a day before production process. Production process for sandwich will be done during the night when temperatures are low. This will enable the products to have a longer shelf life. The returns from the customers and the supermarket will be received fast on delivery of the products. This will allow the company meet costs for supplies acquired by the company together with other costs for example labour and transport costs.

Conclusion

The supply chain of the sandwich manufacturing company can be supported through automation of the supply chain through use of a software application system. This will allow the company to identify the profitable channels through which the company can dispatch its products. This will also allow the company to track all costs arising from its operations, allow invoicing of supplies, and allow a connection between the supply chains for effective management.

Works cited

Ballou, Ronald. Business Logistics: Supply Chain Management. London: Prentice Hall, 2003. Print.

Hugos, Michael. Essentials of Supply Chain Management. San Francisco: Wiley, 2006. Print.

Nigel, Slack. Operations Management. London: prentice Hall, 2004. Print.

Research question

Although there is no section of the research that clearly defines the research question, readers can easily gather from the introduction that the study sought to gain an understanding of resource-performance in resource and capabilities and how this contributes to effective performance, in this case, sales and distribution. Additionally, the researchers made readers understand that, in most cases, resources and capabilities are in most cases deployed in bundles in order to attain certain outcomes, it was necessary to examine how these bundles determine various performance outcomes. It is evident that the researchers wanted to establish the relationship between resource capabilities and performance in sales and distribution.

Theoretical framework

The authors acknowledge that the concept of an organizations activities is interlinked. Thus, it is the synergy brought about by the interrelationship of these activities that leads to insights that would not be achieved or rather out of scope if the activities were left to operate individually. It has been held that, in addition to providing a holistic perspective to understanding organizational activities, the approach of configuration enhances insights into the equifinality of the various configurations (Schroeder, Bates & Junttila, 2002; Ethural, Kale, Krishna & Singh, 2005 and Hulland, 1999). Organizations deploy resources along the value chain in order to perform functional activities which can include sales and distribution, manufacturing among others. In this case, the issue of sales and distribution is affected by a number of factors.

To fully understand the functions of resources as well as capabilities in sales and distributions, there is a need to first identify them. There was a need to be careful with the number of resources to be listed to avoid the problem of not detecting configurational cluster structures in the empirical data. This resulted in developing three categories for the resources and capabilities, tangible, intangible and capabilities (Ray, Barney & Muhanna, 2004; Qamar, Hussain & Jamal, 2011 and Ketchen, Hult & Slater, 2007).

Research objective

The objectives of the research included investigating the effects of tangible, intangible resources and capabilities on performance in sales and distribution and to explore the bundles or configurations of these resources as well as capabilities.

Problem formulation

In the introduction section, the researchers have made it possible for readers to realize that they are engaging in this research in order to solve a given problem. From the literature, it is evident that resource-based review has been used traditionally to explain organizational competitive advantage. Nonetheless, this concept is tautological, provides very little normative guidance as well as does not predict explicitly which strategy can be used to deploy resources to gain effectiveness and organizational performance (Ketchen, Hult & Slater, 2007). The researchers have, thus, managed to show the gaps in the existing literature that need to be filled.

Literature review

I have to acknowledge that the currency of the literature used was too old considering the fact that the article was published in 2010. However, this did not derail the quality of the literature review. For instance, there was an article used that was published back in 1959. Nonetheless, the researchers tried to utilize some current articles and books published between the years 2000-2008. The strength of the literature reviews rests on the idea that the researchers not only brought forth the views and finding of previous scholars but they critically analyzed them and link them with the topic in the present study (Newbert, 2007; Mahoney, J. & Pandian, R. (1992).

Research methodology

It is worth noting that although the researchers did not devote a section to explain the overall research design, it can be established that the study adopted a quantitative research approach. This can be exemplified by the researchers option to use an online survey to collect the desired data. The researchers conducted an online survey among 1,438 firms considered young in technology in Germany. They were selected randomly. These firms were members of the Chamber for Industry and Commerce which is a must for all firms to be members. This ensured that there were no biases in data collection. To be included in the sample size, firms were to be independently held and less than 12 years old.

To ensure data, validity and reliability were guaranteed, the researchers pretested the questionnaires on 20 individuals. Additionally, the researchers tested non-response bias by comparing answers of early and late respondents through discriminate analysis. The strength of the methodology section includes the data collection tool, data reliability and validity, ethical issues, among others (Acedo, Barroso & Galan, 2006; Wold, 1985; Black & Boal, 1994 and Barney, 1991a). However, the researchers failed to mention the reasons behind using an online survey or questionnaires (Holcomb, Holmes & Connelly, 2009; Hansen, Perry & Reese, 2004; Gruber, Heinemann, Brettel & Hungeling, 2010).

Data were analyzed using PLS structural equation modeling and cluster analysis. It is important to note that the researcher justified their reason to use this method in analyzing their data. For instance, they pointed out that it takes into account models which combine formative and reflective constructs.

The results indicated that those firms with a high level of resources attained high performance while those with low-level resources achieved relatively low performance. The major limitation of the study is with regard to the interpretation of the findings. It is important to note that few related studies have been carried out that could help in interpretation and the performance measures are only perceptual (Barney, 1991b; Crook, R. Ketchen, Combs & Todd, 2008; Wernetfelt, 1984 and Sanchez, 2004).

Conclusion

It is worth noting that the authors concluded the paper based on the findings of their research. For instance, they were able to link their findings and the research questions and objectives.

References

Acedo, F., Barroso, C., & Galan, J. (2006). The resource-based theory: Dissemination and main trends. Strategic Management Journal, 27, 621-636.

Barney, J. (1991a). Firm resources and sustainable competitive advantage. Journal of Management, 17(1), 99-120.

Barney, J. (1991b). Special theory forum the resource-based model of the firm: Origins, implications and prospects. Journal of Management, 17(1), 97-98.

Black, J. A., & Boal, K. (1994). Strategic resources: Traits, configurations and paths to sustainable competitive advantage. Strategic Management Journal, 15, 131-148. Web.

Crook, R., Ketchen, D., Combs, J., & Todd, S. (2008). Strategic resources and performance: A Meta analysis. Strategic Management Journal, 29, 1141-1154.

Ethural, S., Kale, P., Krishna, M., & Singh, J. (2005). Where do capabilities come from and how do they matter? A study in the software services industry, Strategic Management Journal, 26(1), 25-45.

Gruber, M., Heinemann, F., Brettel, M., & Hungeling, S. (2010). Configurations of Resources and Capabilities and their Performance Implications: An Exploratory Study of Technology Ventures. Strategic Management Journal, 31, 1337-1356.

Hansen, M., Perry, L., & Reese, S. (2004). A Bayesian operationalisation of the resource-based view. Strategic Management Journal, 25, 1279-1295.

Holcomb, T., Holmes, M., & Connelly, B. (2009). Making the most of what you have: Management ability as a source of resource value creation. Strategic Management Journal, 23, 457-485.

Hulland, J. (1999). Use of partial least squares in strategic management research: A review of four recent studies. Strategic Management Journal, 20(2), 195-204.

Ketchen, D., Hult, T., & Slater, S. (2007). Research notes and commentaries towards greater understanding of market orientation and the resource-based view. Strategic Management Journal, 28, 961-964.

Mahoney, J., & Pandian, R. (1992). The resource-based view within the conversation of strategic management. Strategic Management Journal, 13, 363-380.

Newbert, S. (2007). Empirical research on resource-based view of the firm: An assessment and suggestions for future research. Strategic Management Journal, 28(2), 121-146.

Olson, E., Craven, D., & Slater, F. (2001). Competitiveness and sales management: A marriage of strategies. Business Horizons, 44, 25-30.

Qamar, A., Hussain, A., & Jamal, F. (2011). Theoretical underpinnings behind resource based view: A marketing perspective. Interdisciplinary Journal of Contemporary Research in Business, 3(3), 1324-1328.

Ray, G., Barney, J., & Muhanna, W. (2004). Capabilities, business process and competitive advantage: Choosing the dependent variable empirical tests of the resource-based view. Strategic Management Journal, 25(1), 23-27.

Sanchez, R. (2004). Understanding competence-based management: I identifying and managing five modes of competence. Journal of Business Research, 57, 518-532.

Schroeder, R. G., Bates, K. A., & Junttila, M. A. (2002). A resourced-based view of manufacturing strategy and the relationship to manufacturing performance. Strategic Management Journal, 23(2), 105-117.

Wernetfelt, B. (1984). A resource-based view of the firm. Strategic Management Journal, 5, 171-180.

Wold, H. (1985). Partial least squares. Encyclopedia of statistical sciences, 6, 581-591.

Introduction

Project management today draws a lot of attention based on the benefits that accrue from its successful application. As business processes keep changing, a need for a defined process to start, plan, execute, and monitor these processes is necessary. This discipline normally presents itself through project management. The dynamic nature of business processes require an approach that can well adapt to the ever-changing business environment.

During project management starting, planning, executing, and monitoring the project must be within the project constraints of time, cost, and scope. These are considered as the constraints into which every other project resource must fit. These constraints cost, scope and the time, form the project envelope. The project management process helps organizations to work within these constraints to ensure the success of their projects.

Project management requirements are significant and planned by a well-defined team that has the technical capacity to work within the defined boundaries. However, when these disciplines are not followed clearly, the project is likely to slip or all together fail resulting in loss of money and a dented reputation. Failed projects have a colossal negative impact to any business, especially due to the time and resources spent. To ensure that the project management process advances in a successful manner, tools are available to ensure that the aspects of project integration, time, cost, quality, as well as human resources are effectively covered.

The project charter for instance is a very important document that is prepared to support a successful project management process (Schwalbe, 2009). This lays the framework for the project management process and remains a strong reference point during the progress of the project. Lack of a project charter reflects negatively on the project and can adversely affect its success.

Project scheduling under project time management can be demonstrated using scheduling chart tools such as Gantt chart and critical path method (CPM) which are covered in more detail in a later section of this write up. The general project management tools provide the necessary support to assist expediently the project management team manage a candidate project successfully.

Financial Tools

Financial costing and other financially related matters in any project is very critical. Managing these issues will determine the success of any given project. A professionally constituted project management team should be able to employ cost estimation tools and techniques (Schwalbe, 2009, p.263). A variety of financial oriented tools may be used within a project. Some can be integrated as applications while others are specific and stand-alone. The conventional tools such as the net present value (NPV) which uses cash flows, investment rate of return (IRR), and the annual percentage yield (APY) are among the tools used to determine the financial value of the project undertaken.

The Tenrox tool for instance rely on previously collected data relating to similar disciplines that include planning, resource management and scheduling, project cost and billing, time and expense tracking as well as work process management (Tenrox, 2011). This tool makes use of a constituent component called the chargeback to ensure effective project cost reporting. The chargeback is also used to determine whether project costs and billing are properly accounted for. Chargeback also makes the projects revenue recognition policy automatic.

General Project Management Tools

The IT project management framework is an example of a tool that falls in this general category of project management tools. The framework also called the project investment life cycle combines the development life cycle of the system with the project management process (Dataperceptions, 2010). This framework also depicts the activities related to deployment and operations.

Assembla is another example of a tool that can be used for general project management purposes. This tool has features that offer communication through powerful collaboration. The main support features within this tool includes easily editable wiki pages allowing the team members to gain access and post their messages efficiently (Assembla, 2010). This tool also provides a centrally accessible file repository where the project team members can upload and download their files. Message boards where the team can pin and retrieve their messages. The tool also has a group chat video that offers real time communication for the team as another feature within this tool.

Risk Management Tools

Risk management is one of the most fundamental issues necessary for the success of any project. A very vital undertaking by any project manager is to identify, prioritize, and mitigate any likely project risks. The project manager can set up a risk chart covering these risks and their priority based on the likely impact to the project because of their occurrence. The risks with a higher possibility of occurrence and a greater impact on the project progress are addressed adequately or their effects addressed to reduce impact to a bare minimum. All this is important for successful implementation of the project. PIMS risk is a framework used to identify, analyze as well as evaluate typical threats to the project.

This tool will work well with the probability impact model that is used to estimate the occurrence probability by the cost or schedule delay. Other tools such as the schedule risk assessment manager (SCHRAM) and technical risk identification and mitigation system (TRIMS) enables the generation of risk adjusted schedules and provision of knowledge on technical risk management.(Worldnews, 2011).

Scheduling Charts

During project activity documentation, illustrations and diagrams ensure that communication is well effected among the members of a project team and with other stakeholders. Charts are used to ensure that information is accurately passed across to the target audience. Project scheduling is one such area where charts are used to illustrate effectively the projects progress. Gantt charts are a common phenomenon in many projects.

They represent a graphical design of the project schedule. Other tools such as the critical path method (CPM) which helps the project team to determine the best duration a project can take based on the available resources normally accompany these scheduling charts. Another common tool is the project evaluation and review technique (PERT) which is an analysis tool that also falls within this category.

Claromentis project management software is a tool that specifically generates scheduling charts during project progress. The tool can enable the project team to effectively collaborate by controlling and monitoring the projects progress and other related activities. Claromentis project management software provides task management, Gantt chart, as well as resource allocation capabilities. The task status-reporting component within this tool effectively complements the charting capability (Claromentis, 2010).

Communication Aids for Teams

The success of any project largely depends on the communication among all the stakeholders. Effective communication channels must be established and maintained so that the progress of the project is communicated at every designated point. Perfecting communication involves the use of several support tools. One such tool is the ProWorkflow tool that is a web-based tool that can be used for time and team management (ProWorkflow, 2010). This tool provides an easy to use interface to manage projects and all their associated tasks. This process is integrated with the time tracking function for the staff.

Basecamp is another tool that enables the project team to communicate online concerning the status of the project. The tool is complete with a component that caters for project files. Basecamp has a dedicated dashboard that avails all the project resources and options to a user. Using this tool interactive milestone setting is easy. The team can also have online discussions related to the project they are working on. Basecamp centralizes these discussions to reach a wider audience (Basecamp, 2010). The message board component will support message posting concerning particular projects.

This tool has powerful communication aiding components that enable every team member to contribute to any project related discussions as well as enable task assignment and tracking. Personalized and unique features enable the team members to even leave comment tags against project milestones. Basecamp has an automated email notification system to encourage communication. The tool also supports popular file formats, which covers documents and images. These files and images can be shared between the team and clients. To keep track of project status, Basecamp supports version control

Conclusion

Project management remains an important exercise whenever a project is undertaken. The size and complexity of the project can be addressed satisfactorily if the project management approach is used. However, it can be noted that the management process itself spreads out to cover other aspects of the project. It is important for the project team to address integration issues independently. This is based on the assumption that the project consists of various components that must eventually be integrated. This integration is going to result into the complete system that represents the whole project. Therefore, towards this end, project integration management should be carried out.

Another key aspect for any project is its scope. The scope clearly identifies the project stakeholders and the acceptable levels of contribution and involvement within the project. The scope will cover the tasks and durations typical to the project. The time management will cover the whole project duration. A combination of methods and tools are available to support this process.

Costing in projects is among the most essential exercises. This process can determine the financial viability of a project as well as lay a foundation on which future projections can be made. This exercise helps the stakeholders beforehand to assess the financial benefits that accrue from the implementation of the project. Project cost management as a part of the project management exercise will employ methods, tools, and techniques to achieve a successful project management exercise. Forecasts can also be made based on the results for future projects.

Project management also includes quality management in projects. Under this part, the projects quality assurance and control process is defined. Accompanying tools and techniques such as statistical sampling or the six-sigma approach can be used here.

Communication remains the most crucial aspect within any project management process. The project human resource management covers all aspects related to a project team to ensure a projects success. This process focuses on the communication process within the project and ways of making the process effective and productive. Project human resource management explores the available communication aids, methods, tools, and techniques that are important to establish effective project teams that can be employed projects effectively.

References

Basecamp. (2010). Project management software, online collaboration: Basecamp. Web.

Claromentis. (2010). Project software: Online project Management: Project management software- Claromentis. Web.

Dataperceptions. (2010). IT project framework. Web.

Proworkflow. (2010). ProWorkflow: Online project management software web based system: Time, task, contact. Web.

Schwalbe, K. (2009). Information technology project management (6th ed.). Cambridge, MA: Course Technology.

Tenrox. (2010). Project management software, online project tracking, & workforce management solution by Tenrox. Web.

Worldnews. (2011). Risk management tools. Web.

Introduction

Lego has been a global household name for quite a while. The company has introduced a line of unique toys and has become a global brand with an easily recognizable image. However, because of some of the flaws that could be defined as inherent to the companys current business model, such as slow-moving inventory, the levels of satisfaction have dropped significantly among its customers. To improve the quality of the product and be warmly received by its customers, the organization will have to rebrand its product and focus on the opportunities that the online environment offers.

Key Challenges

A drastic drop in the number of customers, problems with Supply Chain Management (SCM), and the necessity to meet the challenges of the global market can be regarded as the primary issues with which Lego will have to deal. The specified problems can be attributed to two essential problems within the companys design. Particularly, Lego seems to have difficulties deploying technological advances for enhancing its communication. By reinforcing the dialogue between the organization and its stakeholders, primarily customers and suppliers, Lego will be able to manage deadlines more efficiently and meet the needs of its target population accordingly. Indeed, with the introduction of a coherent framework for information management, a range of misconceptions that cause delays in the delivery of necessary materials and tools will be avoided. Furthermore, feedback from customers will be obtained much faster and processed with greater precision. As a result, a gradual rise in the quality of services and, thus, the levels of customer satisfaction, retention, and the attraction will rise.

Possible Solutions

Seeing that the organization has witnessed a significant drop in the number of its customers, opportunities for rebranding should be considered as the first step toward improving the situation. The identified change to the companys products and services will help target new types of customers, thus, helping Lego to target a wider range of clients. Consequently, the current corporate image will have to be altered to address the needs of more diverse buyers. The introduction of culture-specific items, as well as the focus on developing interactive applications, will have to be deemed as a priority for Lego.

In addition, the issues associated with product quality and customer satisfaction need to be addressed. As the case shows, Lego has been defaulting on some of its transactions due to imperfections in its Supply Management Chain (SMC). A closer look at the factors that have contributed to the development of the problem will reveal that the company, in fact, requires an update on its information management techniques.

Furthermore, the new growth strategy will have to be reconsidered. As stressed above, it is crucial for Lego to ensure that its customer base is expanding and that customer satisfaction levels increase consistently. Thus, the company will have to focus on improving its quality, at the same time introducing new products and enhancing the existing communication system. The specified steps will require a twofold approach toward increasing the companys sales and attracting new customers attention. Particularly, product diversification will have to be regarded as a necessity. As the case study shows, Lego currently has a rather limited range of products. Even though occasional instances of media exposure due to collaboration with other organizations, especially those in the entertainment and movie industry, help Lego advance in the global market, it needs a more profound approach. By introducing product diversification and creating a new brand, e.g., designing mobile applications, Lego will be able to elevate itself in the eyes of its current clientele, as well as attract new customers. Indeed, a closer look at Legos customer base will show that it mainly consists of nostalgia-driven customers (Rivkin et al. 3). Therefore, aiming at attracting children and teenagers should be the primary step toward gaining more attention in the market. The specified goal, in turn, can be achieved by creating a new brand that will represent the organization in the online environment, such as a mobile application.

The identified changes, in turn, will require a massive shift in Legos current values and corporate philosophy. The quality standards of the organization will have to be altered to become more customer- and innovation-oriented. The resulting shift toward introducing new ideas and concepts into the corporate framework will allow addressing rapid changes in the realm of the global market and adjust to new quality standards and customers demands. Needless to say, the specified alterations will imply a change in the corporate leadership framework.

Conclusion

A change in the current approach toward SCM processes and the introduction of a new brand along with a launch of several applications are bound to affect Lego positively and, thus, help it manage the crisis. Even though the organization has been addressing its recent troubles comparatively well, a new framework for managing communication between the organization and its key stakeholders is desperately needed. Thus, communication issues and the problems in the firms current SCM framework will have to be addressed respectively so that the firm could continue delivering the products of the best quality to its buyers.

Work Cited

Rivkin, Jan W., et al. Lego (A): The Crisis. Harvard Business School, 2013.

Performance management is an essential process of communication in any organization. The constant communication between a supervisor and the employees is a way of achieving its strategic objectives. Human Resource faculty plays a major role in the performance management process by designing and implementing performance appraisals. It is upon the human resource team to ensure that the appraisal process is simple and takes the least time. HR members provides follow-ups on every responsibility assigned to every employee. The HR team creates a system where the employees overall achievements can be assessed by supervisors concerning their crucial responsibility areas that align with the strategic plan (DeNisi & Murphy, 2017). The HR team also explains to the supervisors and employees how the system works and makes sure that employees understand the organizational goals. The HR team can ensure the process aligns with the strategic plan by giving employees continual on-the-job feedback, encouraging them, and rewarding those who do their jobs well.

Different appraisal systems are used by management during the performance management process. One of them is the trait evaluation approach which is a method of assessing employees based on specific traits that an employee exhibits in relation to the job. It focuses on personal characteristics. For example, dressing code, punctuality when reporting to work, dedication to the job, communication ability, cooperation, dependability, helpfulness, and flexibility are traits that supervisors can assess in an employee. Supervisors assess the observable characteristics like the ones mentioned above, but that are associated with the job.

Another appraisal system is behavioral-based which focuses on how often an employee displays the desired behaviors. This approach addresses problems from the roots, based on leading signals instead of waiting for the problem to occur. Examples of the behaviors assessed are friendliness to customers, trust and mutual respect for colleagues obeying company rules, effective communication, and creativity. The third appraisal system is result-based which is an approach to tracking performance based on the employees ongoing or completed tasks. It focuses on the measurable contributions that an employee makes to the organization. For example, a lawyer winning a case and earning his/her law firm a certain amount of money. The supervisors can then rank the lawyers performance on the cases they win the firm at the end of the evaluation process.

The best-suited appraisal system for customer service employees in Maersk Customer Care is behavior-based. Observable skills are essential in customer service occupations. Supervisors focus on observing how their customer service agents use the desired skills like greeting customers with a smile or being polite when serving customers. Maersk Customer Care managers may use direct observation or video reviews in this method. However, it is best to observe employees frequently to get great results for behavior-based evaluation measures. Managers also need to discuss these measures with the employees before any evaluation and review the observations often. This appraisal method based on employees behavior enables Maersk Customer Care to know the quality of service their employees provide to customers. The company also gets to adjust service training programs from the results they receive after evaluation to align with the organizations primary goal  customer satisfaction.

Performance rating scales are used in organizations by the management to indicate an employees performance level at the end of the evaluation process. They provide quantitative assessment and enable the management to differentiate between employees. The graphical rating scale appraisal method involves listing out traits or behaviors that are important for effective performance and rating each employee against these traits (DeNisi & Murphy, 2017). This method enables the management to quantify the behaviors exhibited by its employees. A letter rating scale involves assigning grades (from A to F) to employee results to quantify performance. However, a numerical rating scale involves giving quantitative symbolization to an attribute, for instance, anchoring specific employee behaviors such as good customer relations to numerical ratings from 1-5 to show a difference in attribute among the employees.

In conclusion, performance management process is important to every organization, during which the HR team works together with other members of the organization towards achieving organizational goals. The three appraisal systems, trait-based, behavioral-based, and result-based, apply distinctly in different organizations depending on the employees job type. In some cases, supervisors may opt to use all three appraisal systems on every employee to get maximum evaluation results.

Reference

DeNisi, A. S., & Murphy, K. R. (2017). Performance appraisal and performance management: 100 years of progress? Journal of Applied Psychology, 102(3), 421-433.

Introduction

The organization chosen is Macys departmental stores. The company was founded in the year 1858 by Rowland Hussey Macy in Massachusetts. It has seven divisions in forty five states within the country except five. It provides a wide range of retail products that include cosmetics, furniture, clothing, jewelry and other household items. It is owned by Macys Inc. as of 2007.

Management is universal and cuts across all organizations, Macys is no exception. There are five managerial functions that will receive a lot of emphasis in the subsequent discussion. The first function is planning-it can be defined as the process of developing the objectives and mission of the organization. (Cherrington, 1995) A manager must also organize-this involves coordinating and dividing tasks among members of the organization. Here, the manager assigns responsibilities to team members. Staffing is another managerial function and can be defined as the filling and maintaining of all the positions available in a company. Some of the activities involved in this function include: recruiting, training, hiring, evaluation and compensation. Managers are also expected to control members of staff. This involves measuring performances, setting performance standards and taking corrective or preventive measures to ensure that the standards set are adhered to. Communication is another vital element in management and involves the transfer of information from management down to other members of the organizational structure (Kenneth, 2003).

Lastly, managers are expected to motivate their team members, this involves influencing or channeling peoples behavior to accomplish the missions and objectives of the organization.

The person chosen for the interview is a line manager. He is a store manager in one of Macys retail stores within the City and is called Paul ONeil. His main function is to oversee the daily operation of the retail store. He ensures that the store is run efficiently by taking charge of both employee and customer needs. He started as a clerk then became an associate manager after which he was promoted to store manager.

Management functions

Paul says that the hardest thing he has had to do is to dismiss an employee but he had to ensure that only those who deserve to stay do so. He released this individual after he exhibited very poor work etiquette. The manager has sent a number of his employees to training programmes as prerequisite to admission in the company. He claims that this will give them a platform to serve the company better. It is not a piece of cake to get accepted into Macyss store. After applications have been received from job seekers, employees are subjected to a series of interviews conducted by the manager. After employees have made it to Macys, he ensures that they remain there by providing them with a number of benefits like health insurance, All the above activities fall under the staffing function of management (Dessler, 2003).

Paul sets targets for his employees. He then checks on them to ensure that they meet these targets through performance appraisals. The manager then issues verbal warnings to his employees when they are below their target. He also ensures that targets are met by giving incentives to his people. These include allowances. Finally, Paul also reviews some financial reports and ensures that everything adds up. Macys would not be where it is now if its management does not exercise control. This is a role of management which Paul plays everyday.

Paul holds a lot of discussions with his employees. In these discussions, he exchanges ideas about how to improve performance of individuals. The store normally experiences an influx of customers during the festive season. To cope with this increase in activities, Paul normally designates more work to a particular employee. He also hires part time employees to work for that season alone and retains full time workers afterwards. There are plenty of activities that need to be done by the employees at Macys and these should be delegated (Kenneth, 2003). This is done by assessing employees interests and talents if there are several candidates who can do a variety of tasks. This is the organization function of management (Adrian, 2005).

Pauls role is to ensure that staff members get their dues in time thus getting motivation to do more for the company. He is quick to admit that there have been problems in this section because money matters are always a sensitive issue. He solves these problems through dialogues and mutual understanding. Paul strongly believes that to have maximum performance, then employees should be motivated. He does this by offering end year bonuses for the best employee. (Nadler, 1986). In addition to this, staff members who have exceeded their targets are normally given commissions depending on their output. Macys offers benefits to workers like health and insurance schemes. This is the motivation function of management.

As a manger it is crucial for one to set organizational goals and objectives (Ulrich, 1996) i.e. performing the planning function of management. Paul does this through setting objectives for the store and communicating them clearly to his subordinates. In addition to the above, he works hand in hand with his seniors when setting goals in order to harmonize departmental and corporation goals. This is because it is important to uphold Macys reputation in retail. He prepares a budget within which the company will operate and it is normally done on a daily basis.

Paul says that he has an open door policy for all his employees. Members of staff do not necessarily have to schedule a meting to discuss any issue that may be disturbing them. (Dessler, 2003) He communicates frequently to customers through interviews where he asks them about their shopping experience or what kind of products they would like to see when they come to the store. (Kenneth, 2003) Managers are the wheels that drive an organization. (Mandy, 1996) They need to be in constant communication with the outside environment and the internal one too. In addition to this, he also handles any customers who may be unhappy with an employees work or who may simply have asked for the manager. Paul also communicates to his subordinates through formal meetings which they hold every week. In these meetings, they normally review their weeks output and discuss ways of improving it. He also stays in touch with his superiors. This is necessary in order to make sure that changes made by top executives are implemented on the ground. In case anew product has been introduced in the market, it is Pauls duty to enlighten his employees about it. He does this as soon as the product has been received. (Kenneth, 2003)

Overly, Paul feels that he enjoys his job. He is motivated by the fact that he can be able to influence peoples activities through his position. He comes across as a very down to earth leader and describes his management style as laid back but uncompromising on quality. The interview was an enriching experience for me as I put a face to management skills and knowledge through this great store manager.

References

1. Interview
2. Dessler, G. (2003): Management: Principles & Practices for tomorrows leader, revised 3^rd editing; Prentice Hall Publishers
3. Kenneth, B. (2003): One minute manager; HarperCollins Publishers
4. Cherrington, D. (1995): The Management of Human Resources; Prentice-Hall Press
5. Ulrich, D. (1996): Human Resource Champions; Harvard Business School Press
6. Mondy, R. (1996): Human Resource Management; Prentice-Hall.
7. Nadler (1986): Managing Human Resource Development; Columbia University Press Adrian, W. (2005) Human Resource Management at work; London CIPD

Appendix A: Questions and responses

Planning

1. How do you direct expenditure for the store? This is done on a daily basis. I examine all the sales reports submitted at the end of the day and make sure that they add up.
2. What features are similar between the store and the parent company? Our goals-Macys main goal is to provide high quality service in a welcoming environment with personalized service. This is a portion of what our goal is in the store. This means that we have something in common.
3. How do you ensure the store maintains Macys reputation? This is done through establishing store goals. I work hand in hand with senior managers because we are simply a branch of the bigger corporation and we must include top managers in our decisions and actions.
4. What mission have you set for this store in Florida? To be the best retail store now and in the future through friendly service delivery.

Organizing

1. When theres a vacancy in the store, how do you fill it? We examine all the candidates available. We asses ones talents, productivity and interest to determine which candidate fits a particular post.
2. What kind of activities do you have to divide among your staff members? Clerical duties, sales activities, kitchen duties and supplies.
3. What kind of issues do you discuss with employees? We discuss their performance. This is done on a weekly basis after doing the performance appraisal
4. What do you do about seasonal upsurges in work and how do you divide workload during peak seasons? During the festive season, especially Christ mass, theres a high turn out, so we hire part time workers to handle the numbers.

Staffing

1. How many people do you recruit per year? Ten to twelve
2. What was the hardest thing you have had to do and what made you do it? Firing a staff member. This occurred after the employee kept reporting to work late, showed disrespect to customers, prolonged low productivity and poor work etiquette like coming to work drunk.
3. What does management offer to applicants before they are admitted to a job? Because the retail business is a bit complex, we offer training ranging from one week to a month depending on the type of job. This is normally applicable to salesmen and women.
4. How can you ensure that employees do not run away to the next best offer from a rival company? We offer a lucrative pay package with health insurance and benefits; we also listen to our employees and settle any discrepancies as soon as they occur.

Motivation

1. How do you ensure that your workers perform to their maximum? We give them incentives to facilitate maximum output like commissions, bonuses and other health policies. In addition, we offer
2. What kind of conflicts or discrepancies have you had to deal with and what did you do? Some of my subordinates have had pay discrepancies and we sat down and discussed the issue.
3. What kind of insurance schemes are offered to your employees? We offer health insurance, life insurance and retirement benefits
4. What is your basis for giving pay rises or promotions? When an employee continuously exceeds their target.

Communication

1. How and when do you communicate with your with your employees and why? I normally schedule formal meetings with them. This is done weekly where everyone hands in a report/. This is done to keep an eye on the stores progress.
2. What do you do about new products? I normally update my subordinates as soon as a new product is introduced. The timing normally depends, because they come at different intervals. But we let them know as soon as we get them
3. How do you ensure that the services the store is providing are in line with customer needs? This is done through customer interviews and surveys.
4. How often do you communicate with your superiors and what prompts you to do that? This is done after three to four days and it normally prompted by an incident.

Control

1. How do you ensure that all the money obtained from the days sales is accounted for? I ensure that receipts are issued for every payment made, after which the system is checked by our computer experts and clerks to make sure that transactions are balanced. My work is to make impromptu checks on these workers to ensure accountability.
2. How do you asses employee performance? I have set targets  they all have a specific amount which they must meet.
3. What do you do when an employee does not meet his/her target? Serve a verbal warning, then a letter if theres no change and when six months elapses, dismissal
4. What incentives have you and top management provided to the staff members in order to assist them in meeting their targets? We give them allowances to aid in service delivery.

Questions

1. How did you get to your position? I started as a clerk after doing accounting in college, and then l worked as store manager for another company, laws admitted to Macys as an associate manager. I worked for two years then l became store manager in the year 2002.
2. How would you describe your job and responsibilities as a manager? I take care of the daily operations in the company from sales, customer care, supplies and storage.
3. How many people do you oversee?
4. What is your volume responsibility? I handle all the workers that deal with sales, customer care, supplies and storage.
5. What is the most difficult issue? Firing workers. Why? Because one puts themselves in their shoes; they have a family to support but you have to take care of management.
6. How have cultural differences impacted the internal environment? There are many cultures at Macys so we have to learn how to get along.
7. How has diversity shaped your organization? We have a variety of products and we are always venturing into new ones every now and then.
8. What personal traits shape your management style? I am approachable, I frequently communicate with staff and customers but l am strict on performance
9. What kind of leader do you consider yourself to be? I am down to earth and a good organizer.
10. What do you like and dislike about your position? I like the fact that l can influence peoples actions through my position positively. But I dislike the fact that most employees misunderstand managers and think that we are out to get them!

Appendix B

The store manager-Macys,

On behalf of my university, lecturer and myself, I would like to send my gratitude for allowing me to interview you. I realize that you had to take time off your busy schedule and this is highly appreciated. The knowledge l gained from this interview was priceless and it has helped to bring a practical aspect to all the management information we have received in class

Yours faithfully

(Your name)

Introduction

In the current epoch of unprecedented rivalry emerging from the outstanding variety as well as availability of goods and services, quality is among the most important parameters that enable firms to outcompete the other. Quality management, therefore, has become one of the focuses of strategic planning; a variety of methodologies and approaches exists. Those based on total quality management (TQM), such as benchmarking or JIT/Lean, doubtlessly are more promising in terms of development and innovativeness in comparison with their traditional equivalents, for instance, bossmanship.

TQM Theory

The known theorists of total quality management are Deming and Crosby, whose philosophies are quite close to each other. Particularly, their views of the role of senior management in quality control have much in common. The key idea is that quality can be attained only through learning; the latter actually is the heads main function (Billah & Karim, 2021, p. 260). Specifically, they should guide their subordinates, performing as coaches, which meets the definition of transformational leadership (Goetsch, D. L., & Davis, S). Strategic planning, therefore, should involve improvement at each stage of the companys operation, and management is responsible for communicating the ways of it to the staff.

Regarding customers, both thinkers see the requirements and values of those as the key reference point. Gathering and actualizing topical evidence is another responsibility of senior management (The Deming Institute, 2020). Simply stated, employees should realize what consumers need and how to provide that, which is guessable from the feedback their supervisors should collect on a regular basis. Enabling this awareness is an essential component of knowledge management; another is assessment, which, also according to both theorists, should be internal. Thus, Deming highlights the poor relevance of inspections because they do not actually add to perfection, but only give grades (The Deming Institute, 2020). Crosby offers an alternative, so-called quality improvement teams that should be organized by senior management, include the representatives of all departments, and be responsible for both measurement and solutions.

Considering the above, workforce and operation are the closest focuses of TQM, as they determine the success of production process. It is possible exclusively on the condition of appropriate integrity, maintaining which, therefore, is another task of management (Billah & Karim, 2021). Specifically, the latter should unite the staff under their supervision, train those regularly, and apply motivating approaches (Ma et al., 2021). It is essential to be precise, for instance, avoid vague goals and ambiguous slogans, to ensure the common understanding of the companys vision.

Finally, another similarity between the two philosophies is that the results of operation can never be final. Both Crosby and Deming regard production as a cycle, whose driving force is advancement; according to Ma et al. (2021), it means quick adaptation to the changing environment. It is necessary, therefore, to assess the results within the process via the above customer feedback, which, as mentioned, senior management should collect regularly.

Benchmarking

Benchmarking is the approach to quality improvement that lies in comparing the given firms production process to that of the other, normally the best in its area. Commonness, complete or partial, of the visions and objectives is among the factors that lead firms to such a decision. It is noteworthy that benchmarking means modeling and advancement but not imitation, for which reason openness to new information is another essential aspect (Horváthová et al., 2021). This, in turn, is impossible without understanding the key processes and practices as well as realizing their importance. It is noteworthy that, similar to other TQM techniques, benchmarking targets to adjust the entire production. This requires involvement and dedication from senior management, so that the firms operation remains integrated and well-organized after reframing (Ma et al., 2021). Subsequently, documenting production processes is another very important predisposition and another function of top manager teams.

JIT/Lean Manufacturing

Modern firms, apparently due to the current megatrend for eco-friendliness, pay considerable attention to minimizing waste. Through the lens of quality management, the approaches of such a kind allow for improving excellence while lowering expenditures (Goetsch & Davis, 2020). Accomplishing these goals is possible due to another complex methodology that considers all phases of production and is referred to as Just-in-Time (JIT)/Lean manufacturing. In the simplest terms, its essence lies in making exclusively what, when, and how many is necessary. Such tactic help not only avoid overproduction crises, but also reduce the use of materials as well as equipment, manufacturing cycle time, and, consequently, waste (Goetsch & Davis, 2020). The absence of the need for extra production reduces the prices naturally, making them especially competitive without affecting the quality. These advantages encourage world-class manufacturers to adopt JIT/Lean to reorganize their production into more efficient.

Leadership versus Bossmanship

All of the above perspectives and approaches refer to leadership as a cornerstone. It actually is among the most important measures of a companys performance excellence (Malcolm Baldrige National Quality Award, 2013). In brief, this approach to management presupposes unity, equality, and openness to new ideas, which enables progress (Ma et al., 2021). On the contrary, bossmanship ascribes limitless knowledge and expertise to a single person, who, consequently, acquires absolute power. The first model doubtlessly is more relevant for TQM, which rests on improving quality throughout the manufacturing process and, therefore, presupposes teamwork.

Conclusion

Total quality management may involve various approaches, but the feature those share is the focus on innovation and progress. Notably, TQM is built around never-ending education and advancement of production, in which senior management should participate actively. Two popular techniques, benchmarking and JIT/Lean manufacturing, are good examples of how realizing the priority of learning can help firms remain competitive. Classical methodologies, on the contrary, involve bossmanship that actually resembles a personality cult, eliminating productive cooperation within the company.

References

Billah, M., & Karim, M. R. (2021). Implementation of total quality management in education. International Journal of Scientific and Research Publications, 11(2), 259-267. Web.

The Deming Institute. (2020). Deming on management: Customer focus. Web.

Goetsch, D. L., & Davis, S. (2020). Quality management for organizational excellence (9th Ed.). Pearson Education.

Horváthová, J., Mokriaová, M., & Vrábliková, M. (2021). Benchmarking  A way of finding risk factors in business performance. Journal of Risk and Financial Management, 14(5), 221-238. Web.

Ma, Ch., Ge, Yu., & Wang, J. (2021). Top management team intrapersonal functional diversity and adaptive firm performance: The moderating roles of the CEOTMT power gap and severity of threat. Frontiers in Psychology, 12, article 772739. Web.

Malcolm Baldrige National Quality Award  A model for performance excellence [Video]. (2013). Web.

Introduction

Wegmans is a large family-owned company that sells groceries in 6 states (Ebert and Griffin 305). The total number of stores run under the supermarket chain accounts for 80 (Ebert and Griffin 305). The company has a long history; it was founded in 1915 and since that, has been owned by the representatives of the same family (Ebert and Griffin 306). Besides, the organization is famous for its almost family-like attitude towards its employees, both full- and part-timers. The purpose of this paper is to analyze how the companys approach has helped to develop a positive working environment, reach business productivity, and win customers devotion.

Analyses of the Companys Approach

The company has become prosperous because its CEOs have always realized how important it is to provide employees with good working conditions and competitive salaries. There is a direct connection between these factors and the high quality of the products and services which ensures the businesss being successful and having standing customers. According to a spokesperson of the Wegmans, theres no better way to take care of our customers than to be a great place for our employees to work (Ebert and Griffin 306). Therefore, Wegmans takes care of its workers by supporting and encouraging people working for the organization. It seems to be a wise decision because it makes a good advertisement for the supermarket chain and raises trust for the company.

Speaking about the companys approach in detail, employees of Wegmans are entitled to a range of perks and advantages. Wegmans policies include, for example, offering free medical insurances to full- and part-timers. In fact, part-time workers make about two-thirds of the workforce of Wegmans (Ebert and Griffin 306). Other benefits for Wegmanss workers are discounts for fitness clubs, compressed workweeks, telecommuting, Employee Scholarship Program, and benefits for domestic partners (without a limitation to heterosexual couples) (Ebert and Griffin 306). All these perks make employees trust the leadership and create a friendly atmosphere so that people want to work for Wegmans and become a part of its team. Besides, having such benefits and advantages encourages employees to stay in the company for a long time. It means that during the years of work, they get sufficient knowledge and experience in the sphere; therefore, Wegmans turns out to have high-class specialists devoted to the business.

Of course, being so generous costs the business a large sum of money. The companys HR-executive claims that they do not have the goal of justifying the costs, otherwise they would have limited the number of bonuses long ago (Ebert and Griffin 306). However, speaking about the long-term effect of the employee-friendly policies, it might be concluded that they justify all the expenses for several reasons. Firstly, the companys generousness and family-like attitude towards its workers has become a sort of brand and made it famous. Since 1998, Wegmans has been yearly included in the list of 100 Best Companies to Work For composed by Fortune magazine (Ebert and Griffin 306). Secondly, the policies serve as an advertisement for the company, and many people want to join it so that Wegmans can choose from the best specialists while hiring new employees. Finally, through using the practices, the leadership shows the workers that they are valuable which makes employees work harder and get devoted to the business. Hence, it might be stated that Wegmanss implementing the approach aimed at supporting the workers is profitable for the company despite all the expenses.

Conclusion and Personal Opinion

To sum up, Wegmans, a company that sells groceries has been following employee-friendly principles since its foundation. In my opinion, in spite of the fact that sharing the resources with workers costs the business a large sum, they should continue using the practices described above. The reason is that the approach has been used for many years and it has proved its efficiency: Wegmans remains a successful and prosperous company. Moreover, the policies affect the quality of the work done by the employees which get higher, and more customers choose Wegmans as a store for doing shopping regularly.

Work Cited

Ebert, Ronald, and Ricky Griffin. Business essentials (11th ed.). Pearson/Prentice Hall, 2015.