IIBM Exam papers/case studies:Contact us for answers at assignmentssolution@gmail.com

Attend any 4 case studies. All cases carry equal marks.

CASE 01: The Wal-Mart Story:

Union Files Wal-Mart Complaint:
The United Food and Commercial Workers Union filed an unfair labor practice complaint against Wal-Mart stores Inc.  Yesterday, urging federal officials to investigate claims that the retailer’s former head Of U.S.  Operations paid people to monitor union activity.  The complaint, filed with the National Labour Relations Board, alleges that World-Mart violated federal labour law by “bribing” employees to report on co-workers who favored a union.

Wal-Mart recently ousted board member and formed vice chairman. Thomas M. Coughlin after an internal investigation raised questions about the use of up to $500,000 in company funds-money that Coughlin maintains was spent on anti-union activities. Wal-Mart, the nation’s largest retailer, has fired three other employees over the probe and has turned the case over to the U.S. attorney for the western division of Arkansas…………………….

……………………………..
“It’s something that might be harder to walk away from then some of the other units that have had organizing drives,” Jacobi said of the Harrisonville site.

Source: Washington Post, April 13, 2005, Independent/U>K> may 11, 2005 and Kansas City Business Journal, November 9, 2001.

Questions:

1. In the various incidents discussed in these reports, what has been the role of the union?

2. What kind of causes has the union pursued with the management of Wal-Mart?

3. What can you conclude about a country’s culture and the kind of union concerns discussed in these cases lets.



CASE 02: CONSCIENCE OF THE4 COMPETITIVE EDGE:

The plane touched down at Mumbai airport precisely on time.  Olivia Jones made her way through the usual   immigration bureaucracy without incident and was finally ushered into a waiting limousine, complete with a uniformed chauffeur and soft black leather seats.  Her already considerable excitement at being in India for the first time was mounting. As she cruised the dark city streets, she asked her chauffeur why so few cars had their headlights on at night.  The driver responded that most dr4ivers believed that headlights use too much petrol!  Finally, she arrived at her hotel, a blank marble monolith, grandiose and decadent in its splendor, towering above the bay.

The goal of her four-day trip was to sample and select swatches of woven cotton from the mills in and around Mumbai, to be used in the following season’s youth-wear collection of shirts, trousers and underwear.  She was thus treated with the utmost deference by her hosts, who were invariably Indian factory owners of British agents for Indian mills. For three days, she was ferried from one air-conditioned office to another, sipping iced tea or chilled lemonade, pouring over leather-bound swatch catalogues, which featured every type of stripe and design possible.  On the fourth day, Jones made a request that she knew would cause some anxiety in the camp.  “I want to see a factory”, she declared………………………
……………………………Once Jones returned to the United Kingdom, she considered her position and the options open to her as a buyer for a large, publicity traded, retail chain operating in a highly competitive environment. Her dilemma was twofold; can an ambitious employee afford to exer4cise a social conscience in his or her career?  And can career-minded individuals truly make a difference without jeopardizing their future? Answer her.

Questions:

1. What is business ethics? Bring out the ethical dilemmas.

2. Explain the sources of ethics. What are the myths associated with ethics? How do you defined business ethics?

3. What is CSR? Bring out the pros and cons of it.

4. Bring out the role of IHR manager in ensuring ethical behavior and social actors.





CASE 03: “The Culture of Appraisal”

Measuring individual performance and tying consequences to the appraisal will be more acceptable in cultures that are individualistic than in cultures that are collectivist. Employees from countries such as the United States. United Kingdom, Canada, Denmark, the Netherlands and Australia tend to be more individualistic in their orientation than employees from Egypt, Mexico, India, Japan, France and Venezuela, who are more likely to prefer performance to be measured at an aggregated level, since they believe results require collective effort.  This is not to suggest that individualistic cultures are blind to the importance of group results, or that collectivist cultures ignore individual performance and its relationship to group results. Reconciling different perspectives will require the recognition that both individual and collective results are critical to success.

Holding the individual totally accountable for meeting performance standards will be more acceptable in cultures that believe in internal control than in cultures that believe in external control.

Employees from countries such as the United States, United Kingdom, France and the Netherlands more readily accept personal responsibility for results than would employees from countries such as Venezuela, China, Russia, Kuwait, Egypt, Saudi Arabia and India, who are more likely to believe outcomes are due to forces at least partially outside of their control.  Reconciling differing perspectives requires recognition that both internal and external factors impacted results and that both must be considered in appraisal.

………………….cultures.  Employees from the Netherlands, United Kingdom, Australia, Canada and the United States tend to be more active in the process and challenge the supervisor when there is disagreement performance level, while this would be less likely among employees from countries such as Mexico, Venezuela, France and China.

Questions:
1. List the 5 key learning’s that seem to have been identified as appraisal considerations in a cross-cultural organization.
2. Differentiate between achievement-oriented culture and ascription-oriented culture. Provide examples.
3. With the information give in the case in what 3 dimensions would be you propose for Indian company with operations in 4 US locations in designing a successful performance appraisal system.
CASE 04: CEOs Salary and Inequity.

An issue there for two decades or more. Five years before Mr. Ahluwalia stumbled upon the debate in the United States, Merrill Lynch, Lucent Technologies, Citigroup, and AT & T axed over 91,000 workers between them.  The same year, their four CEOs took home more than $130 million in pay. (Plus more millions in stock options and other sops).  Lucent Technologies in fact (AS THE New York Daily News pointed out) reported a $ 17 billion loss and sacked 56,000 workers.  Then it gave its CEO a $22 million payoff.

………………………………….
Dr.Krugman argued that it was not simply economic well-being that such levels of inequality threatened.  It was democracy itself.  In Dr. Krugman’s own nation, long ago, Justice Louis Brandeis said the same thing; “We can have concentrated wealth in the hands of a few or we can have democracy, but we cannot have both”.

CASE 07:
1. Explain why Tom Peters suggests calling CEOs as CDO’s.

2. What role can the government play in regulating salary payouts?

3. In the case let, how is salary inequality compared with ‘democracy’.


CASE 05: Going Home

Back home and yet Katrina Katino had felt more like she had just left home. It had been six long years and India had proved to be a lot more than the land of snake charmers and stone temples she’d read about as she prepared for her first international assignment out of the USA six years age.  A technical trainer by profession, she had worked for a leading medical transcription company for four years before they offered her the opportunity for an international assignment to India.  It had sounded overwhelming at first when Shawn the HR manager had urged her to apply for the post of Director Training, and assist the company set up its first host unit outside of the US as a 100% captive BPO.  The industry was just getting sensitive to the cost and skill advantages available in countries like India and the Board had proactively made a decision to set up its own back-office medical records transcription company in India.  The first core team of four senior managers were quickly put together  with very limited ‘assessment’ other than the fact that they were each experts at what they did, were willing to relocate for a period of minimum three years and were positively oriented towards India.  A  lot of the pre-departure  training involved personal reading and browsing of India and the Indian cultural differences and the Indian customs of ‘do’s and ‘don’s, and sharing the notes amongst themselves.

…………….., she wanted to make a difference, wanted to contribute to help the company grow.  She had enjoyed working here in the past, why was it feeling different now?  Who should she approach for help?  What should she do with Andrew?  Is it right to have him live with the grandparents as it happens in India?  What can she share and expect from Rob given his job and his career?  These question kept her awake that night.

Questions:

1. What parts of repatriation were missing in relocating Katrina back to the US?

2. What next step do you suggest for Katrina to take on her professional front?

3. What course of action would you propose for Katrina to help her cope with her personal problems?

4. What role could Rob play?

5. Should Katrina heed to her father-in-law’s advice on job change? Why / why not?

IIBM Exam papers/case studies:Contact us for answers at assignmentssolution@gmail.com

Note: Solve any 4 Cases Study’s

CASE: I    Conceptualise and Get Sacked

HSS Ltd. is a leader in high-end textiles having headquarters in Bangalore.
The company records a turnover of Rs 1,000 cr. Plus a year. A year back, HSS set up a unit at Hassan (250 km away from Bangalore) to spin home textiles. The firm hired Maniyam as GM-HR and asked him to operationalise the Hassan unit.
Maniyam has a vision. Being a firm believer in affirmative actions, he plans to reach out to the rural areas and tap the potentials of teenaged girls with plus two educational background. Having completed their 12th standard, these girls are sitting at homes, idling their time, watching TV serials endlessly and probably dreaming about their marriages. Junior colleges are located in their respective villages and it is easy for these girls to get enrolled in them. But degree colleges are not nearby. The nearest degree college is minimum 10 km and no parents dare send their daughters on such long distances and that too for obtaining degrees, which would not guarantee them jobs but could make searching for suitable boys highly difficult.
These are the girls to whom Maniyam wants to reach out. How to go about hiring 1500 people from a large number who can be hired? And Karnataka is a big state with 27 districts. The GM-HR studies the geography of all the 27 districts and zeroes in on nine of them known for backwardness and industriousness.
Maniyam then thinks of the principals of Junior Colleges in all the nine districts as contact persons to identify potential candidates. This route is sure to ensure desirability and authenticity of the candidates. The girls are raw hands. Except the little educational background, they know nothing else. They need to be trained. Maniyam plans to set up a training centre at Hassan with hostel facilities for new hires. He even hires Anil, an MBA from UK, to head the training centre.
All is set. It is bright day in October 2006. MD and the newly hired VP-HR came to Hassan from Bangalore. 50 principals from different parts of the nine districts also came on invitation from Maniyam and Anil. Discussions, involving all, go on upto 2 PM. At that time, MD and VP-HR ask Maniyam to meet them at the guest house to discuss some confidential matter.
In this meeting, Maniyam is told that his style of functioning does not jell with the culture of HSS. He gets the shock of life. He responds on expected by submitting his papers.
Back in his room, Maniyam wonders what has gone wrong. Probably, the VP-HR being the same age as he is, is feeling jealous and insecure since the MD has all appreciation for the concept and the way things are happening. Maniyam does not have regrets. On the contrary he is happy that his concept is being followed though he has been sacked. After all, HSS has already hired 500 girls. With Rs 3,000 plus a month each, these girls and their parents now find it easy to find suitable boys.


Question:

1. What mad the MD change his mind and go against Maniyam? What role might the VP-HR have played in the episode?

2. If you were Maniyam, what would you do?




CASE: II  A Tale of Twists and Turns

Rudely shaken, Vijay came home in the evening. He was not in a mood to talk to his wife. Bolted inside, he sat in his room, lit a cigarette, and brooded over his experience with a company he loved most.
Vijay, an M.Com and an ICWA, joined the finance department of a Bangalore-based electric company (Unit 1), which boasts of an annual turnover of Rs. 400 crores. He is smart, intelligent, but conscientious. He introduced several new systems in record-keeping and was responsible for cost reduction in several areas. Being a loner, Vijay developed few friends in and outside the organization. He also missed promotions four times though he richly deserved them.
G.M. Finance saw to it that Vijay was shifted to Unit 2 where he was posted in purchasing. Though purchasing was not his cup of tea, Vijay went into it whole hog, streamlined the purchasing function, and introduced new systems, particularly in vendor development. Being honest himself, Vijay ensured that nobody else made money through questionable means.
After two years in purchasing, Vijay was shifted to stores. From finance to purchasing to stores was too much for Vijay to swallow.
He burst out before the unit head, and unable to control his anger, Vijay put in his papers too. The unit head was aghast at this development but did nothing to console Vijay. He forwarded the papers to the V.P. Finance, Unit 1.
The V.P. Finance called in Vijay, heard him for a couple of hours, advised him not to lose heart, assured him that his interests would be taken care of and requested him to resume duties in purchasing Unit 2. Vijay was also assured that no action would be taken on the papers he had put in.
Six months passed by. Then came the time to effect promotions. The list of promotees was announced and to his dismay, Vijay found that his name was missing. Angered, Vijay met the unit head who coolly told Vijay that he could collect his dues and pack off to his house for good. It was great betrayal for Vijay.

Question:

1. What should Vijay do?


















CASE: III  Mechanist’s Indisciplined Behaviour

Dinesh, a machine operator, worked as a mechanist for Ganesh, the supervisor. Ganesh told Dinesh to pick up some trash that had fallen from Dinesh’s work area, and Dinesh replied, “I won’t do the janitor’s work.”
Ganesh replied, “when you drop it, you pick it up”. Dinesh became angry and abusive, calling Ganesh a number of names in a loud voice and refusing to pick up the trash. All employees in the department heard Dinesh’s comments.
Ganesh had been trying for two weeks to get his employees to pick up trash in order to have cleaner workplace and prevent accidents. He talked to all employees in a weekly departmental meeting and to each employee individually at least once. He stated that he was following the instructions of the general manager. The only objection came from Dinesh.
Dinesh has been with the company for five years, and in this department for six months. Ganesh had spoken to him twice about excessive alcoholism, but otherwise his record was good. He was known to have quick temper.
This outburst by Dinesh hurt Ganesh badly, Ganesh told Dinesh to come to the office and suspended him for one day for insubordination and abusive language to a supervisor. The decision was within company policy, and similar behaviours had been punished in other departments.
After Dinesh left Ganesh’s office, Ganesh phoned the HR manager, reported what he had done, and said that he was sending a copy of the suspension order for Dinesh’s file.

Question:

1. How would you rate Dinesh’s behaviour? What method of appraisal would you use? Why?

2. Do you assess any training needs of employees? If yes, what inputs should be embodied in the training programme?





















CASE: IV   A Case of Misunderstood Message

Indane Biscuits is located in an industrial area. The biscuit factory employs labour on a daily basis. The management does not follow statutory regulations, and are able to get away with violations by keeping the concerned inspectors in good books.
The factory has a designated room to which employees are periodically called either to hire or to fire.
On the National Safety Day, the Industries Association, of which Indane Biscuits is a member, decided to celebrate collectively at a central place. Each of the member was given a specific task. The Personnel Manager, Indane Biscuits, desired to consult his supervisors and to inform everybody through them about the safety day celebrations. He sent a memo requesting them to be present in the room meant for hiring and firing. As soon as the supervisors read the memo, they all got panicky thinking that now it was their turn to get fired. They started having ‘hush-hush’ consultations. The workers also learnt about it, and since they had a lot of scores to settle with the management they extended their sympathy and support to the supervisors. As a consequence, everybody struck work and the factory came to a grinding halt.
In the meantime, the personnel manager was unaware of the developments and when he came to know of it he went immediately and tried to convince the supervisors about the purpose of inviting them and the reason why that particular room was chosen. To be fair to the Personnel Manager, he selected the room because no other room was available. But the supervisors and the workers were in no mood to listen.
The Managing Director, who rushed to the factory on hearing about the strike, also couldn’t convince the workers.
The matter was referred to the labour department. The enquiry that followed resulted in all irregularities of the factory getting exposed and imposition of heavy penalties. The Personnel Manager was sacked.  The factory opened after prolonged negotiations and settlements.

Question:

1. In the case of the Indane Biscuits, bring out the importance of ‘context’ and ‘credibility’ in communication.
2. List the direct and indirect causes for the escalation of tension at Indane Biscuits.
3. If you were the Personnel Manager what would you do?















CASE: V  Rise and Fall

Jagannath (Jaggu to his friends) is an over ambitious young man. For him ends justify means.
With a diploma in engineering. Jaggu joined, in 1977, a Bangalore-based company as a Technical Assistant. He got himself enrolled as a student in a evening college and obtained his degree in engineering in 1982. Recognising his improved qualification, Jaggu was promoted as Engineer-Sales in 1984.
Jaggu excelled himself in the new role and became the blue-eyed boy of the management. Promotions came to him in quick succession. He was made Manager-Sales in 1986 and Senior Manager-Marketing in 1988.
Jaggu did not forget his academic pursuits. After being promoted as Engineer-Sales, he joined an MBA (part-time) programme. After completing MBA, Jaggu became a Ph.D. scholar and obtained his doctoral degree in 1989.
Functioning as Senior Manager-Marketing, Jaggu eyed on things beyond his jurisdiction. He started complaining Suresh—the Section Head and Phahalad the Unit Chief (both production) with Ravi, the EVP (Executive-Vice President). The complaints included delay in executing orders, poor quality and customer rejections. Most of the complaints were concocted.
Ravi was convinced and requested Jaggu to head the production section so that things could be straightened up there. Jaggu became the Section head and Suresh was shifted to sales.
Jaggu started spreading wings. He prevailed upon Ravi and got sales and quality under his control, in addition to production. Suresh, an equal in status, was now subordinated to Jaggu. Success had gone to Jaggu’s head. He had everything going in his favour—position, power, money and qualification. He divided workers and used them as pawns. He ignored Prahalad and established direct link with Ravi. Unable to bear the humiliation, Prahalad quit the company. Jaggu was promoted as General Manager. He became a megalomaniac.
Things had to end at some point. It happened in Jaggu’s life too. There were complaints against him. He had inducted his brother-in-law, Ganesh, as an engineer. Ganesh was by nature corrupt. He stole copper worth Rs.5 lakh and was suspended. Jaggu tried to defend Ganesh but failed in his effort. Corruption charges were also leveled against Jaggu who was reported to have made nearly Rs.20 lakh himself.
On the new-year day of 1993, Jaggu was reverted to his old position—sales. Suresh was promoted and was asked to head production. Roles got reversed. Suresh became the boss to Jaggu.
Unable to swallow the insult, Jaggu put in his papers.
From 1977 to 1993, Jaggu’s career graph has a steep rise and sudden fall. Whether there would be another hump in the curve is a big question.


Question:

1. Bring out the principles of promotion that were employed in promoting  Jaggu.

2. What would you do if you were (i) Suresh, (ii) Prahalad or (iii) Ravi?

3. Bring out the ethical issues involved in Jaggu’s behaviour.




CASE: VI   Chairman and CEO Seeking a Solution and Finding It

Sitting on 50-plus year old ION Tyres, the Kolkata-based tyres and tubes manufacturing company with a turnover of more than Rs.1,000 crore, both A.K. Mathur, and Raman Kumar, the CEO are searching for solutions to problems which their company started unfolding.
Financial performance of ION Tyres, is poor as reflected in its falling PBT. Performance gap between the top performer in tyres and tubes and ION Tyres ranges from 4 per cent to 5 per cent. The company has aging managerial people and equally old plant and equipment. High cost of production keeps the company in a disadvantaged position. “Boss is always right” culture has permeated everywhere. Common thread binding all the departments is missing. Each department is a stand alone entity.
There are positives nevertheless. ION Tyres and tubes are famous world-wide for durability, and superior quality. The company offers a wide range of bias tyres and tubes catering to all users segments like heavy and light commercial vehicles, motorbikes, scooters, and autos. The firm has state-of-the-art radial plant. The client list of ION comprises several big guns in Indian corporate sector. Tata Motors, Hero Honda, TVS Motors, Mahindra and Mahindra, L&T, Eicher, Swaraj Mazda, Maruti Udyog and Bajaj are the regularly buying ION’s tyres and tubes.
ION seems to have everything going in its favour. It is the market leader in the Indian market enjoying 19 per cent of the market share; manufactures 5.6 m tyres per year, has a network of 50 regional offices with over 4,000 dealers and 180 C&F agents.
Suddenly both Chairman and CEO have realised that there are too many road blocks ahead of them and the journey to be rough and bumpy.
Realisation dawned on Mathur and Raman Kumar way back in 2001 when they both attended a two-day seminar on “Enhancing Organisational Capability through Balanced Scorecard” organised by CII at Kolkotta. The duo had personal talk with Sanjeev Kumar, the then Chairman of CII. They are now convinced that Balanced Score card is ideal performance assessment tool that could be used in ION with greater benefits.
Mathur and Raman Kumar acted fast. They soon organised a workshop on “Balanced Score” to educate in-house managers about the concept and the procedural aspects of its implementation. There was initial resistance to accept the scorecard as the managers felt that they were already burdened since they were busy implementing other quality improvement initiatives. Deliberations in the workshop changed them. They are now convinced and enthusiastic about the positives of the scorecard. They are ready to implement the system.
A two member task force was constituted comprising Director—HRD and G.M.—Strategy and Planning. The task force travelled to all three factories as well as zonal headquarters to unfold the implementation of scorecard. The scorecard principles were implemented successfully from November 2002 and completed by March 2003. Figures 1 to 4 show the scorecards adopted by ION Tyres.











Financial
“To succeed financially how should we appear to our shareholder Objectives Measure Target Initiatives
To achieve turnover of Rs.1850 crs by FY05 • Sales turnover
• PBIDT • To achieve turnover of Rs.1850 crs by FY05
• PBIDT of Rs.150 crs (FY05)
• Decrease in conversion cost from Rs.25 to Rs.21/kg in Bhopal plant and Rs.25/kg in Mysore plant • Develop acceptable 1000-20 lug tyres
• Increasing number of sales offices from 180 to 220
• 7 day work week to be introduced at Bhopal plant
• Improve fuel wastage and ensure lower power
• VP Technology and MD to initiate technology tie-ups

Fig. 1


















Customer
“To achieve our vision, how should we appear to out customers” Objectives Measure Target Initiatives
Improvement in customer satisfaction • Customer satisfaction survey (by external agency) • To improve from 65% to 70%
• Customer engagement at 30% • Claim settlement to be reduced from 8 to 2 days
• Improvement of casing value of used tyres, atleast by 15%
• Cost per Kilometer of tyre comparable to competitors

Fig. 2

Outcomes of scorecard implementation have been very encouraging. PBT improved and the gap between ION Tyres and the toppers in the industry reduced by 50 per cent. A transparent and objective performance assessment system came to be kept in place. With inertia and the ennui being broken, both Mathur and Kumar felt galvanized and realised that the road ahead of them was no more bumpy and rough. Thus, solutions to the problems were found.

















Learning and Growth
“To achieve our vision, how will we sustain our ability to change an improve” Objectives Measure Target Initiatives
Identification of “high-fliers”; Talents to be identified through development workshops • Job enrichment, job enlargement,  job rotation
• Competency Assessment
• Potential Appraisals • Career planning for the High-Fliers (expected to be around 30 managers)
• Successions planning for all key positions
• 5 manday’s training/manager/year • Move people within same functions, in the first two years and at the year two move them to another function
• Variable pay component in the ration 1:4 for the “high-fliers”
• Non-financial rewards
• Felicitation by company chairman in presence of family members for recognizing extraordinary contributions

Fig. 3


















Internal Business Processes
“To satisfy our shareholders and customers, what business processes must we excel at” Objectives Measure Target Initiatives
Introduction of new products in the commercial tyre segment
Reduction of development time
Quarterly reconciliation of accounts receivables from dealers
Annual increases on-time to employees • Introduction of 3-4 new products per year in commercial tyre segment
• Reduction of development time from 18 months to 6 months
• Achieve 100% reconciliation
• Annual increases by on time by 1st July   • Introduction of 3-4 new products per year in commercial tyre segment
• Reduction of development time from 18 months to 6 months
• Achieve 100% reconciliation
• Annual increases by on time by 1st July • Regular quarterly review of performance
• KRA targets to be ready by 1st April
• European certification for tyres


Fig.4

Question:

1. Do you agree with the conclusion drawn at the end of the case that scorecard system has galvanised ION Tyres? In other words, does scorecard system deserve all the credit?

2. Will quality improvement initiatives clash with scorecard implementation? If yes, how to avoid the clashes?

IIBM Exam papers/case studies:Contact us for answers at assignmentssolution@gmail.com

Masters Program in Business Administration (MBA )

Specializations :- Human Resource Management


Case 1 :-
Meeting the Challenge of Sexual Harassment
At an office of Goldman, Sachs and Company in Boston, some male employees allegedly pasted photos of bare-breasted women on company newsletters, next to biographies of new female employees (suggesting that the photos were pictures of the new staff members). Copies of the newsletters were circulated around the office. Sexist literature such as “The Smart Man’s Creed or Why Beer Is Better Than Women” (“After you’ve had a beer, ………………..
courts have yet to establish consistent record concerning the issue of “hostile environment” as illegal harassment. For example, a federal district court in Michigan dismissed a claim by Vivienne Rabidue that sexual posters and obscene language in her office at Osceola Refining Co. constituted illegal sexual harassment.
     However, Joanne Barbetta has won the first round of her court battle with Chemlawn. The judge hearing her complaint rejected Chemlawn’s motion to dismiss the suit; he has ordered Ms. Barbetta’s case to trial. Chemlawn is expected to present a vigorous defense, asserting that the men involved in the newsletter incident have been disciplined and that the situations Ms. Barbetta cites fall far short of creating a hostile, harassing environment because they occurred “over the course of two years.”

Questions
1. Assumes that you are an HR executive for a company that manufactures and sells agricultural products (for example, fertilizers and grain feeds). The company’s workforce of 1,200 employees is 70 percent male and 30 percent female. Drawing from this case and the chapter content, develop an antiharassment policy and program. What are the major challenges you see in implementing the program?
2. Many experts assert that reported cases of sexual harassment represent only a small percentage of the total number of incidents that actually occur in the workplace. If their assertion is true, why do so many cases go unreported? How would your HRM policy on harassment address this situation?
3. As research indicates, people differ widely in their perceptions of sexual harassment. What is a harmless remark to one individual can be an annoying, even infuriating insult to another. In your view, what separates harmless conduct from harassing behavior? In the same vein, when does a sexist environment become a hostile, harassing one?
Case 2 :-
Are New Recruits Looking for Work – Life Balance?
Anyone who has tried to balance his or her time between a busy job and a fulfilling personal life knows challenging this can be. An Indisputable fact is that work and personal lives are interconnected. Companies know this. Potential recruits also know this. It’s become more of an issue in recent years due to some important demographic changes that are affecting many workers. For example, companies are experiencing rising demand for the expansion …………….
As new college graduates increasingly find themselves providing care to both their aging parents and young children, the value of these programs will only increase. Undoubtedly, this will make work-life friendly companies more attractive in the marketplace.
Questions
1. Why is there a need for companies to offer work-family balance programs such as flextime, telecommuting, and job sharing?
2. Of the three programs discussed above, which be the most important program for you personally when deciding whether or not to join an employer? Why?
3. Some organizations do not believe in offering any of these work-life balance programs. What do you think their reasoning is? Explain.

Case 3 :-
Creative Staffing Solutions: A Pipeline of Human Assets
Finding the talent, competence, and expertise needed to operate a business, run a project, or grow a company is always a challenging job. In the recent labor market, even with an economic downturn, firms have had difficulty finding enough employees who are skilled in specific areas such as management information technology, software programming, and …………………..
says Wahlquist. Creative Staffing Solution intends to remain part of the process as well.
Questions
1. How can Creative Staffing Solutions create a learning environment for job candidates before they accept a position or while they are between positions?
2. What type of job candidates would use the temporary job support and services provided by a firm like CSS?
3. What difficulties might Creative Staffing Solutions have to deal with in using electronic job and resume posting?
Case 4 :-
Human Resource Planning and Virtual Human Resource Management
Just a few years ago, computer technology offered a revolutionary change in human resource management. Organizations experimented with computerized skills inventories, pay and benefits administration, and applicant tracking systems. Today, the revolution continues but is undergoing fundamental changes as computer technology and the Internet grow at unprecedented rates. Human resource management is moving away from a mainframe technology to the world of virtual reality, with the Internet at its core. Although many forces ……………………….
the privacy and integrity of these virtual human resource systems. The challenges are immense, but the organizational consequences can be invaluable.  
Questions
1. How has the emergence of the Internet changed the way that organizations plan and mange their human resource needs?
2. What kinds of future human resource activities might we see developed over the next several years?
3. What are the legal and ethical issues surrounding the use of the Internet by Individual employees for human resource activities? Are you concerned about violations of your own privacy because of these kinds of Web applicants?
4. What specialized skills will the future HRIS professional need in order to effectively manage an organization’s virtual human resource function
Case 5 :-
Toyota in France: Culture Clash?
Hiroaki Watanabe, the Japanese general manager of the first major Toyota plant in Valenciennes, France (and in continental Europe), has a lot at stake. He is in charge of a modern and efficient $570 million Toyota Motor factory designed to manufacture the Yaris, a subcompact car. The plant was designed to employ 2,000 workers. Currently, there are about 200 …………………
r the past 20 years. To underscore the importance of Toyota to this region, more than 30,000 people applied for the 2,000 jobs at the factory when it first opened its doors.    
Questions
1. What potential conflicts could arise between the Japanese managers/trainers and the French employees? Explain.
2. What do you think of Mr. Watanabe’s approach to preparing himself for French culture? Do you think that his approach would be useful for American managers? Why or Why not?
3. What kind of organizational culture did Mr. Watanabe want to establish at the factory in Valenciennes, France? Do you think he’ll try to manage the plant just like a Toyota factory in Tokyo? Why or Why not?
4. What implications are there for the French employees of the plant if its good fortune takes a turn for the worse, and the factory consequently shuts its doors? Explain.
Case 6 :-
OSHO and Unions versus Manufactures: Is Workplace Ergonomics a Problem?
During the Industrial Revolution a century ago, workplace injuries were so commonplace that they were simply considered one of the hazards of having a job. Children and adults were often maimed or disfigured in factory accidents. Today strict regulations cover safety in the workplace, guided by the U.S. Department of Labor’s Occupational Safety and Health administration (OSHO).
          During the past couple of decades…………………
 may be a way to retain good employees.”
Questions
1. Do you agree or disagree that ergonomics in the workplace should be covered by federal regulations? Explain your answers.
2. Choose a job with which you are familiar and discuss the possibilities for repetitive stress injuries that could occur on this job and ways they could be prevented.
3. Imagine that you are the human resources manager for a company that hires workers for the selected in question 2. What steps might you encourage company officials to take to identify and prevent MSDs?
         
 

IIBM Exam papers/case studies:Contact us for answers at assignmentssolution@gmail.com

Note: Solve any 4 Case Study’s

CASE: I    Enterprise Builds On People

When most people think of car-rental firms, the names of Hertz and Avis usually come to mind. But in the last few years, Enterprise Rent-A-Car has overtaken both of these industry giants, and today it stands as both the largest and the most profitable business in the car-rental industry. In 2001, for instance, the firm had sales in excess of $6.3 billion and employed over 50,000 people.
Jack Taylor started Enterprise in St. Louis in 1957. Taylor had a unique strategy in mind for Enterprise, and that strategy played a key role in the firm’s initial success. Most car-rental firms like Hertz and Avis base most of their locations in or near airports, train stations, and other transportation hubs. These firms see their customers as business travellers and people who fly for vacation and then need transportation at the end of their flight. But Enterprise went after a different customer. It sought to rent cars to individuals whose own cars are being repaired or who are taking a driving vacation.
The firm got its start by working with insurance companies. A standard feature in many automobile insurance policies is the provision of a rental car when one’s personal car has been in an accident or has been stolen. Firms like Hertz and Avis charge relatively high daily rates because their customers need the convenience of being near an airport and/or they are having their expenses paid by their employer. These rates are often higher than insurance companies are willing to pay, so customers who these firms end up paying part of the rental bills themselves. In addition, their locations are also often inconvenient for people seeking a replacement car while theirs is in the shop.
But Enterprise located stores in downtown and suburban areas, where local residents actually live. The firm also provides local pickup and delivery service in most areas. It also negotiates exclusive contract arrangements with local insurance agents. They get the agent’s referral business while guaranteeing lower rates that are more in line with what insurance covers.
In recent years, Enterprise has started to expand its market base by pursuing a two-pronged growth strategy. First, the firm has started opening  airport locations to compete with Hertz and Avis more directly. But their target is still the occasional renter than the frequent business traveller. Second, the firm also began to expand into international markets and today has rental offices in the United Kingdom, Ireland and Germany.
Another key to Enterprise’s success has been its human resource strategy. The firm targets a certain kind of individual to hire; its preferred new employee is a college graduate from bottom half of graduating class, and preferably one who was an athlete or who was otherwise actively involved in campus social activities. The rationale for this unusual academic standard is actually quite simple. Enterprise managers do not believe that especially high levels of achievements are necessary to perform well in the car-rental industry, but having a college degree nevertheless demonstrates intelligence and motivation. In addition, since interpersonal relations are important to its business, Enterprise wants people who were social directors or high-ranking officers of social organisations such as fraternities or sororities. Athletes are also desirable because of their competitiveness.
Once hired, new employees at Enterprise are often shocked at the performance expectations placed on them by the firm. They generally work long, grueling hours for relatively low pay. And all Enterprise managers are expected to jump in and help wash or vacuum cars when a rental agency gets backed up. All Enterprise managers must wear coordinated dress shirts and ties and can have facial hair only when “medically necessary”. And women must wear skirts no shorter than two inches above their knees or creased pants.
 So what are the incentives for working at Enterprise? For one thing, it’s an unfortunate fact of life that college graduates with low grades often struggle to find work. Thus, a job at Enterprise is still better than no job at all. The firm does not hire outsiders—every position is filled by promoting someone already inside the company. Thus, Enterprise employees know that if they work hard and do their best, they may very well succeed in moving higher up the…..corporate ladder at a growing and successful firm.


Question:

1. Would Enterprise’s approach human resource management work in other industries?

2. Does Enterprise face any risks from its human resource strategy?

3. Would you want to work for Enterprise? Why or why not?


































CASE: II    Doing The Dirty Work

Business magazines and newspapers regularly publish articles about the changing nature of work in the United States and about how many jobs are being changed. Indeed, because so much has been made of the shift toward service-sector and professional jobs, many people assumed that the number of unpleasant an undesirable jobs has declined.
In fact, nothing could be further from the truth. Millions of Americans work in gleaming air-conditioned facilities, but many others work in dirty, grimy, and unsafe settings. For example, many jobs in the recycling industry require workers to sort through moving conveyors of trash, pulling out those items that can be recycled. Other ……
chicken feathers, faeces, and blood also contribute to the hazardous and unpleasant work environment.

Question:
1. How relevant are the concepts of competencies to the jobs in a chicken-processing plant?
2. How might you try to improve the jobs in a chicken-processing plant?
3. Are dirty, dangerous, and unpleasant jobs an inevitable part of any economy?
CASE: III    On Pegging Pay to Performance

“As you are aware, the Government of India has removed the capping on salaries of directors and has left the matter of their compensation to be decided by shareholders. This is indeed a welcome step,” said Samuel Menezes, president Abhayankar, Ltd., opening the meeting of the managing committee convened to discuss the elements of the company’s new plan for middle managers.
Abhayankar was am engineering firm with a turnover of Rs 600 crore last year and an employee strength of 18,00. Two years ago, as a sequel to liberalisation at the macroeconomic level, the company had restructured its operations from functional teams to product teams. The change had helped speed up transactional times and …….
trendsetters in executive compensation in Indian industry. We have been paying the best. Will your plan ensure that it remains that way?”
As he took the floor again, the dominant thought in Narayanan’s mind was that if his plan were to be put into place, Abhayankar would set another new trend in executive compensation.

Question:

But how should he see it through?




























CASE: IV Crisis Blown Over

November 30, 1997 goes down in the history of a Bangalore-based electric company as the day nobody wanting it to recur but everyone recollecting it with sense of pride.
It was a festive day for all the 700-plus employees. Festoons were strung all over, banners were put up; banana trunks and leaves adorned the factory gate, instead of the usual red flags; and loud speakers were blaring Kannada songs. It was day the employees chose to celebrate Kannada Rajyothsava, annual feature of all Karnataka-based organisations. The function was to start at 4 p.m. and everybody was eagerly waiting for the big event to take place.
But the event, budgeted at Rs 1,00,000 did not take place. …..
s were cut for the days not worked.
Murthy’s death witnessed an unusual behavior on the part of the workers and their leaders, and magnanimous gesture from the management. It is a pride moment in the life of the factory.

Question:

1. Do you think that the Bangalore-based company had practised participative management?
2. If your answer is yes, with what method of participation (you have read in this chapter) do you relate the above case?
3. If you were the union leader, would your behaviour have been different? If yes, what would it be?


CASE: V    A Case of Burnout

When Mahesh joined XYZ Bank (private sector) in 1985, he had one clear goal—to prove his mettle. He did prove himself and has been promoted five times since his entry into the bank. Compared to others, his progress has been fastest. Currently, his job demands that Mahesh should work 10 hours a day with practically no holidays. At least two day in a week, Mahesh is required to travel.
Peers and subordinates at the bank have ….
flashed in his mind and suddenly he instructed his secretary to set up a meeting with the doctor and some key staff members, at the earliest.

Question:
1. If the news is broken to Mahesh, how would he react?
2. If you were giving advice to the Chairman on this matter, what would you recommend?















CASE: VI    “Whose Side are you on, Anyway?”
It was past 4 pm and Purushottam Mahesh was still at his shopfloor office. The small but elegant office was a perk he was entitled to after he had been nominated to the board of Horizon Industries (P) Ltd., as workman-director six months ago. His shift generally ended at 3 pm and he would be home by late evening. But that day, he still had long hours ahead of him.
Kshirsagar had been with Horizon for over twenty years. Starting off as a substitute mill-hand in the paint shop at one of the company’s manufacturing facilities, he had been made permanent on the job five years later. He had no formal education. He felt this was a handicap, but he made up for it with a willingness to learn and a certain enthusiasm on the job. He was soon marked by the works manager as someone to watch out for. Simultaneously, Kshirsagar also ….
able to understand whose side he was on. Perhaps the best course would be to resign from the board. Perhaps he should resign both from the board and the union. Or may be resign from Horizon itself and seek a job elsewhere. But, he felt, sitting in his office a little later, “none of it could solve the problem.”
Question:
1. What should he do?

IIBM Exam papers/case studies:Contact us for answers at assignmentssolution@gmail.com

CASE I

EMPLOYEE MOTIVATION IN A GOVERNMENT ORGANIZATION"

Bhumika Services Ltd., one of the largest public sector companies of India, was serving more than 31 million customers. Along with its vast customer base, BSNL's financial and asset bases too were vast and strong. Changing regulations, converging markets, competition and ever demanding customers had generated challenges for BSNL. The Indore division of BSNL was the first in the country, which faced competition in basic telecom services from 1998. In spite of being a government department, Indore telephones had to face the competition, and relentless efforts were put in to improve the services and provide world¬class telecom services to its customers. Among the various services offered by Indore Telecom, 197 and 183 were two special services. 197 provided non-metered enquiry services to obtain telephone numbers by simply giving the name of person/name of organization/ name and designation of person, or by giving address. 183 on the other hand, was a non¬metered enquiry service that provided similar services for distant stations. There were a large number of complaints related to these services. Complaints were either directly forwarded to the district office by customers or raised during Telephone Adalats or pointed out by correspondents during press conferences, which were conducted quarterly. Complaints ranged from non-response, long waiting time to rude responses.

S. Baheti took charge as Area Manager (North) on July 25, 2001 In the Indore Division. Immediately after taking charge, he realized that special services like 197 and 183 required urgent attention as they were directly affecting the image of the organization amongst customers. Since most of the complaints during Telephone Adalats and press conferences were related to these services, Baheti wanted to reach the root cause of the problem, to solve it forever. In this process, he looked at the background of the employees involved in the special services and found that most of the employees were office bearers of various unions that were active in the organization. The problem was more complicated than it seemed to during interactions, the employees indicated that they were not to be blamed for poor services since they were facing a number of problems in providing services and senior officials were not paying enough attention to alleviate their problems. Defective handsets, non-operating telephone lines, disturbance in lines, jacks not making proper connections, fans and air conditioners not working properly and non availability of typewriter/computer terminals were some of the problems brought to the notice of Baheti by operators.


Further investigation revealed that in addition to these technical problems, there were some Human Resource Management problems as well, such as frequent short leave, extended breaks, uninformed leave and indifferent attitude of employees towards customers. Baheti identified that despite technical problems, some operators were sincere towards their viork and tried their best to provide better services. To improve these services, Baheti decided to use multipronged strategies. Most of the technical problems were solved immediately, other problems that could not be solved at his level were forwarded to higher authorities and pursued rigorously. As the technical problems were taken care of, efficiency of sincere employees went up. Moreover, Baheti also began regular interaction with the operators, appreciating their good work, listening to their problems and explaining them the;-i. importance of their jobs. The employees were made aware of the facts that B5NL did not enjoy a sole monopolistic position any more and had to compete with private players. So the laidback attitude towards customer complaints was not only detrimental to the image of the organization, but also could lead to a reduced market share.

After gaining the confidence of operators, the next step was to motivate them. Towards this end, Baheti started announcing the best operator of the month and recognition was given to the operator by displaying his name on the board of honor. The criteria for award were minimum 200 calls attended per day and 20 days' attendance. In addition, based on last six months performance, three best performers were identified. Appreciation letters from Area Manager and General Manager were conferred upon these operators in a public function and prizes of their own choice were given to them. These efforts had a desired result and the performance of all the operators showed a marked improvement. The number of calls attended by some operators increased from 200 to 700 calls per day. Further, quick and polite response had reduced customer complaints. While reviewing the situation, Baheti was quite contended to see a remarkable change in the behavior of operators just four months. He wondered whether this change was a permanent phenomenon or he would have to strategize further.

QUESTIONS

1. Discuss the long-term relevance of motivational techniques used by Baheti in the light of prevailing environment in the organization.
2. Had you been Baheti, what other techniques you would have used to improve the special services provided by the organization?



CASE II
EMPLOYEE RELATIONS AUDIT

Triveni Foods Pvt. Ltd., a multinational confectionary company, having its branches in more than 50 countries and marketing its products in about 135 countries, established one of its production units in 1988 at Mathura near Delhi. It had a workforce of nearly 320 employees and sales turnover was more than Rs. 150 crores. Being a confectionary unit, hygiene was given the upper most priority to the extent that no one was allowed to enter the production area without taking bath and wearing sterilized clothes provided by the company. The entire process was automatic and required only food specialists and labor. In order to match the required standards, emphasis was given on training and welfare of employees on regular basis. Facilities like transportation were also provided since delay by ten minutes could cause production losses at the time of shift changes.
Over a period of time due to start and workers' redundancy, it was observed that problems like lethargy, absenteeism, violation of work practices were increasing. Absenteeism rate went up to 18 percent. Employees visited canteen for drinking water and started gossiping during working hours. Buses did not arrive on time due to which production suffered. Operators came late and left shop floor early without waiting for relievers. Employees were found hovering in administration building without any reason. It was also found that employees were violating personal hygiene standards. Malpractices were also reported with attendance process and records. These activities were having a negative impact on managerial effectiveness and performance of the unit. The management tried to take number of initiatives to overcome these problems. However, these initiatives seemed ad hoc solutions and did not serve the purpose in the long run.
In 1996, Alok Trivedi joined the company as Head of the Department H.R. While facing these problems, he realized that the causes of these problems were deep rooted and required a proactive approach. He started with an approach called Employee Relation Audit, developed by him, where everything was to be monitored, regulated and reported on regular intervals. He along with his team prepared an action plan (Appendix 1) and corrective measures were taken accordingly. Facilities of drinking water were arranged at 3 to 4 places in the production area which stopped employees from going to canteen for this purpose. Action was taken against the late arrivals of the buses. A proper time study was done and they were given ten minutes margin so that they could report on time. Operators were frequently questioned and stringent vigilance was kept for amenities. Regular counseling was also arranged. A grievance register was also kept and effective grievance redressal was undertaken. Groups were formed called 'Pragati' groups for solving work related problems. Employees were frequently checked for ensuring their strict adherence to personal hygiene standards. For ensuring timely processing and printing of attendance records, training was given to al! line officers and production of records was made mandatory on shift basis.
It was further decided that based on this action plan an audit should be carried out at regular periods so that actual performance could be measured. For quantification, a 5 point. scale 0- poor, 2-below average, 3-average, 4-good, 5-v.good) audit report was prepared featuring practices, criteria for evaluation, standards, observations/comments and rating :Appendix 2). For example, in canteen criteria for evaluation there were food quality, menu, timings and unauthorized presence of the employees in the kitchen. The standards were strict adherence to the rules defined. For transportation, arrival, departure and punching of cards by drivers were the criteria for evaluation. Internal teams of auditors were asked to observe and comment against the set standards and give the rating accordingly. Performance vas evaluated on the basis of percentage, the highest point being 215. For example, if the total points scored on various parameters in a audit report was one hundred and fifty five, hen percentage score would be seventy-two (l55/215xl00 = 72 per cent). The first audit "as carried out in August 1999 and percentage of performance was sixty two.
In the year 2000, the performance rose to sixty-five per cent. Proactive approach of solving le problems was adopted. For example, registers were maintained at different work areas, write down the complaints experienced by employees and action was taken by the concerned person. A complaint of tap leaking in a bathroom was recorded in register by a workman. It was attended by a supervisor in charge and he got it repaired immediately. At times these were reviewed and signed by H.R. department and the higher management. Due to these practices, a lot of improvement was observed. Better working conditions, increased productivity, rise in employees' commitment towards their goals and better superior -subordinate relationship could be seen. In 2001, the percentage of the performance rose to seventy two. While reviewing the Employee relation audit, Alok Trivedi was quite satisfied to note the steady though slow improvement in the figures of performance.

QUESTIONS:
1. Had you been in place of Alok Trivedi, what additional measures would you have taken?
2. Critically analyze the Employee Relations Audit in the light of its contribution to self motivation of employees.



CA S E III
EMPLOYEE TURNOVER AT XYZ MOON LIFE INSURANCE

In 1950, with the enactment of the Insurance Act, Government of India decided to bring all the insurance companies under one umbrella of the Life Insurance Corporation of India (LIC). Despite the monopoly of LIC, the insurance sector was not doing well. Till 1995, only 12% of the country's people had insurance cover. The need for exploring the insurance market was felt and consequently the Government of India set up the Malhotra Committee. On the basis of their recommendations, Insurance Development and Regulatory Authority (IRDA) Act was passed in parliament in 2000. This move allowed the private insurers in the market with the stop foreign players with 74:26% stake. XYZ- Moon life was one of the first three private players getting the license to operate in India in the year 2000.

XYZ Moon Life Insurance was a joint venture between the XYZ Group and Moon Inc. of US. XYZ starred off its operations in 1965, providing finance for industrial development and since then it had diversified into housing finance, consumer finance, mutual funds and now its latest venture was Life Insurance. Its foreign partner Moon Inc. was established in 1858 and had grown to be the largest life insurance and mutual fund company in the U.S. Moon Inc. had its presence in Asia since the past 75 years catering to over 1 million customers across 11 Asian countries.

Within a span of two years, twelve private players obtained the license from IRDA. IRDA had provided certain base policies like, Endowment Policies, Money back Policies, Retirement Policies, Term Policies, Whole Life Policies, and Health Policies. They were free to customize their products by adding on the riders. In the year 2003, the company became one of the market leaders amongst the private players. Till 2003, total market share of private insurers was about 4%, but Moon Life was performing well and had the market share of about 30% of the private insurance business.

In June 2002, XYZ Moon Life started its operations at Nagpur with one Sales Manager (SM) and ten Development Officers (DO). The role of a DO was to recruit the agents and sell a career to those who have an inclination towards insurance and could work either on part time or full time basis. They were very specific in recruiting the agents, because their contribution directly reflected their performance. All DOs faced three challenges such as Case Rate (number of policies), Case Size (amount of premium), and Recruitment of advisors by natural market, personal observations, nominators, and centre of influence. Incentives offered by the company to development officers and agents were based on their performance, which resulted into internal competition and finally converted into rivalry.

In August 2002, ,a Branch Manager joined along with one more Sales Manager and ten Development Officers. Initially, the branch was performing well and was able to build their image in the local market. As the industry was dynamic in nature, there were frequent opportunities bubbling in the market. In order to capitalize the outside opportunities, one sales manager left the organization in January 2003. As the sales manager was a real performer, he was able to convince all the good performers at XYZ Moon Life Insurance to join the new company. As a result of this, the organizational structure got disturbed and the development officers, who were earlier reporting to the SM had started reporting directly to the branch manager. Now, nepotism crept in and the branch manager began reallocating good agents to his favorite development officers. The sales team of another sales manager became weak (low performer). Seeing the low performance of the sales manager and his development officers, the company decided to terminate their services. As the employees' turnover rate of the organization was more than the industry rate, the company had to continuously recruit sales agents as well as development officers to sustain itself in a highly competitive environment. The internal competition among development officers resulted into problems like, high employee turnover and dissatisfaction. Hence the branch was not able to perform as per the benchmarks set by the company. Its performance was not even comparable to that of other branches of the same company.

In April 2004, the company faced a grave problem, when the Branch Manager left the organization for greener pastures. To fill the position, in May 2004, the company appointed a new Branch Manager, Shashank Malik, and a Sales Manager, Rohit Pandey. The Branch Manager in his early thirties had an experience of sales and training of about 12 years and was looking after two branches i.e., Nagpur and Nasik.

Malik was given one Assistant Manager and 25 Development Officers. Out of that, ten were reporting to Assistant Manager and remaining fifteen were directly reporting to him. He was given the responsibility of handling all the operations and the authority to make all the decisions, while informing the Branch Manager. Malik opined that the insurance industry is a sunrise industry where manpower plays an important role as the business is based on relationship. He wanted to encourage one-to-one interaction, transparency and 4iscipline in his organization. While managing his team, he wanted his co-workers to analyze themselves i.e., to understand their own strengths and weaknesses. He wanted them to be result-oriented and was willing to extend his full support. Finally, he wanted to introduce weekly analysis in his game plan along with inflow of new blood in his organization. Using his vast experience, he began informal interactions among .the employees, by organizing outings and parties, to inculcate the feelings of friendliness and belonging. He wanted to increase the commitment level and integrity of his young dynamic team by facilitating proper civilization of their energy. He believed that proper training could give his team a proper understanding of the business and the dynamics of insurance industry.


QUESTIONS:

1. If you were Malik, what strategies would you adopt to solve the problem?
2. With high employee turnover in insurance industry, how can the company retain a person like Malik?



CASE IV
FRAGRANCE COMPANY LIMITED

Petals Company Limited (PCL) was initiated in the year 1919. Since then, it had produced a number of brands which enjoyed customer loyalty. It had adapted well with the changing environment and had entered into a strategic alliance with the S & G Limited, the producer of personal care products. The new company Fragrance Company Limited Was formed as a result in 1993 with equity participation from S& G and Petals Company Limited. This company marketed the products manufactured by the PCL. This alliance had given PCL access to the latest international technology in soaps and detergents. Thus, Fragrance Company Limited was now ideally placed to offer high value, international quality products at competitive prices. It was already an exporter of toilet soaps, detergents and cosmetics. It was a private organisation headed by Dharamchand, with its company's headquarters at Mumbai and seven units all over the country with one of the units at Faridabad. The turnover of the company was Rs 900 crores. The company marketed the products using the latest international technology in soaps and detergents.

The organization structure was traditionally hierarchical with the senior vice president at the top of the management, the supervisory heads at the middle level and the workers at the shop floor. The company had 450 permanent workers, and 150 contract workers, with an average age of 32 years. The recruitment policy framed was to employ freshers. The various departments in the organization were: purchase, finance, systems, engineering services, excise and dispatch, operations and personnel department. The personnel and administration department were headed by Gyanchand and the functions of the personnel administration department were: recruitment, selection, training, counseling, performance appraisal, internal mobility of employees, negotiation With workers, fixation and implementation of rules and regulations regarding wages, salary, allowances and benefits to the workers. The philosophy of the company was based on Total Quality Management (TQM) and Kaizen. The company was highly environment-friendly and was oriented towards customer’s satisfaction.

Fragrance was facing an acute crisis due to high rate of absenteeism among its permanent workers. The losses were soaring high. There was loss in production, and high expenses and indiscipline were also observed. The personnel administration department conducted a survey in the year 1998. They found that the rate of absenteeism was about 20% on an average. The rules and regulations regarding leave were-12-17 days of leave with pay, 7 days casual leave with pay, 5 day sick leave with pay, extra leave without any pay. The benefits were provided as per the Employees State Insurance Act. The data collected revealed that 36% of the absenteeism was due to transportation problem, 48% was because of the workers staying away from their families, 52% due to festivals, 32% due to farming, 48% on account of alcholism, 80% on account of social occasions/marriages and 76% due to sickness of family members.

The other findings were that approximately 80% of the workers were married and they had children to look after and hence had a greater tendency towards taking leave, 8% of workers possessed dual jobs ,e.g., driving for others, mechanic work etc., so they felt that they could earn more on a particular day by remaining absent; 96% of the workers did not like night shifts and they remained absent from duty; 28% of the workers were not satisfied with the working conditions i.e. canteen facilities, drinking water, social and cultural activities and cleanliness. In 1998, the company tried to reduce absenteeism by introducing conveyance allowance for attendance and night shift allowance. The scheme called Inaam; was launched in which a worker who did not avail leave in three months, received Rs 200 per month. In¬house training was imparted to workers In order to educate them about the consequences of absenteeism. They were also sent for 3-6 months training to the Central Board of Workers Education on rotation.

Counseling sessions were held for the workers in order to increase their awareness. The company also introduced the philosophy of workers participation in the management to increase their involvement and commitment towards the work. The practice of organizing picnics, festival celebration, informal get-togethers, and sports activities were also adopted to increase the commitment. Regularity was made an important component of performance appraisal and promotion. After one year, Gyanchand was highly perplexed to see only a negligible improvement in the report of the survey conducted by the personnel administration department. The rate of absenteeism had dropped by only 3%, i.e. from. 20% to 17% in spite of introducing the aforesaid schemes.

QUESTIONS:

1. What role do the non-financial incentives play in motivating the workers and minimizing the rate of absenteeism?
2. What innovative solutions would you suggest to minimize the rate of absenteeism?



C A S E V
HE WHO RIDES A TIGER

In the Year of the Youth, the author took up a research project on young industrial workers. It involved comparing young and old workers. Two industries producing the same machines at similar technological level were selected. One belonged to the private sector and the other to the public sector. While the latter was started a decade later than the former, it had achieved greater expansion. Both were located in the same state.

After we obtained necessary permission to conduct our study, we reached the mofussil town where the private sector industry was located. Before we could launch our study, as a matter of principle, we wanted to meet the General Secretary of the workers' union. The Personnel Department was not willing for this. On our insistence they called the union official. We talked to him for about half an hour but Personnel Department people were all the time hovering around. So we fixed a time in the evening to meet him in the union office in the town. We visited the union office in the evening. The union was having problem regarding wage deduction of some workers who did not show up for overtime. The overtime notice was short and they had not consented either, even then the management was threatening wage deduction for one week. The union could hardly do a thing' as they in the past had burnt their hands when they had to unilaterally call off the 106 day old strike in which even their Treasurer had committed suicide. They were scared to the extent that they had productivity linked bonus agreement for even 12% bonus. Moreover, a new minuscue union was recently started in the company.

We visited the new union's office next evening and held a long discussion. They asked for' our suggestions. The union believed in legal battles more than agitations. After a visit to the industry the author visited the state headquarters of the new union. There every office bearer was surprisingly a lawyer. In the HQ we learnt that after we left, their union took out a procession and held a meeting in the temple. Perhaps this was the result of our discussion. While the older union was a prisoner of its past, the new union was free to write its own history. Workers' interests were being served perhaps by both.

QUESTIONS:
1. Discuss merits/demerits of the role of strike, agitation and legal approach in union¬management relations.
2. What role does mutual trust play in building union-management relations?

IIBM Exam papers/case studies:Contact us for answers at assignmentssolution@gmail.com

CASE I

EMPLOYEE MOTIVATION IN A GOVERNMENT ORGANIZATION"

Bhumika Services Ltd., one of the largest public sector companies of India, was serving more than 31 million customers. Along with its vast customer base, BSNL's financial and asset bases too were vast and strong. Changing regulations, converging markets, competition and ever demanding customers had generated challenges for BSNL. The Indore division of BSNL was the first in the country, which faced competition in basic telecom services from 1998. In spite of being a government department, Indore telephones had to face the competition, and relentless efforts were put in to improve the services and provide world¬class telecom services to its customers. Among the various services offered by Indore Telecom, 197 and 183 were two special services. 197 provided non-metered enquiry services to obtain telephone numbers by simply giving the name of person/name of organization/ name and designation of person, or by giving address. 183 on the other hand, was a non¬metered enquiry service that provided similar services for distant stations. ……
He wondered whether this change was a permanent phenomenon or he would have to strategize further.

QUESTIONS

1. Discuss the long-term relevance of motivational techniques used by Baheti in the light of prevailing environment in the organization.
2. Had you been Baheti, what other techniques you would have used to improve the special services provided by the organization?


CASE II

EMPLOYEE RELATIONS AUDIT

Triveni Foods Pvt. Ltd., a multinational confectionary company, having its branches in more than 50 countries and marketing its products in about 135 countries, established one of its production units in 1988 at Mathura near Delhi. It had a workforce of nearly 320 employees and sales turnover was more than Rs. 150 crores. Being a confectionary unit, hygiene was given the upper most priority to the extent that no one was allowed to enter the production area without taking bath and wearing sterilized clothes provided by the company. The entire process was automatic and required only food specialists and labor. In order to match the required standards, emphasis was given on training and welfare of employees on regular basis. Facilities like transportation were also provided since delay by ten minutes could cause production losses at the time of shift changes.

…….Due to these practices, a lot of improvement was observed. Better working conditions, increased productivity, rise in employees' commitment towards their goals and better superior -subordinate relationship could be seen. In 2001, the percentage of the performance rose to seventy two. While reviewing the Employee relation audit, Alok Trivedi was quite satisfied to note the steady though slow improvement in the figures of performance.


QUESTIONS

1. Had you been in place of Alok Trivedi, what additional measures would you have taken?
2. Critically analyze the Employee Relations Audit in the light of its contribution to self motivation of employees.


CA S E III

EMPLOYEE TURNOVER AT XYZ MOON LIFE INSURANCE

In 1950, with the enactment of the Insurance Act, Government of India decided to bring all the insurance companies under one umbrella of the Life Insurance Corporation of India (LIC). Despite the monopoly of LIC, the insurance sector was not doing well. Till 1995, only 12% of the country's people had insurance cover. The need for exploring the insurance market was felt and consequently the Government of India set up the Malhotra Committee. On the basis of their recommendations, Insurance Development and Regulatory Authority (IRDA) Act was passed in parliament in 2000. This move allowed the private insurers in the market with the stop foreign players with 74:26% stake. XYZ- Moon life was one of the first three private players getting the license to operate in India in the year 2000.

XYZ Moon Life Insurance was a joint venture between the XYZ Group and Moon Inc. of US. XYZ starred off its operations in 1965, providing finance for industrial development and since then it had diversified into housing finance, consumer finance, mutual funds and now its latest venture was Life Insurance. Its foreign partner Moon Inc. was established in 1858 and had grown to be the largest life insurance and mutual fund company in the U.S. Moon Inc. had its presence in Asia since the past 75 years catering to over 1 million customers across 11 Asian countries.

….He wanted to increase the commitment level and integrity of his young dynamic team by facilitating proper civilization of their energy. He believed that proper training could give his team a proper understanding of the business and the dynamics of insurance industry.


QUESTIONS:

1. If you were Malik, what strategies would you adopt to solve the problem?
2. With high employee turnover in insurance industry, how can the company retain a person like Malik?



CASE IV

FRAGRANCE COMPANY LIMITED

Petals Company Limited (PCL) was initiated in the year 1919. Since then, it had produced a number of brands which enjoyed customer loyalty. It had adapted well with the changing environment and had entered into a strategic alliance with the S & G Limited, the producer of personal care products. The new company Fragrance Company Limited Was formed as a result in 1993 with equity participation from S& G and Petals Company Limited. This company marketed the products manufactured by the PCL. This alliance had given PCL access to the latest international technology in soaps and detergents. Thus, Fragrance Company Limited was now ideally placed to offer high value, international quality products at competitive prices. It was already an exporter of toilet soaps, detergents and cosmetics. It was a private organisation headed by Dharamchand, with its company's headquarters at Mumbai and seven units all over the country with one of the units at Faridabad. The turnover of the company was Rs 900 crores. The company marketed the products using the latest international technology in soaps and detergents.

….After one year, Gyanchand was highly perplexed to see only a negligible improvement in the report of the survey conducted by the personnel administration department. The rate of absenteeism had dropped by only 3%, i.e. from. 20% to 17% in spite of introducing the aforesaid schemes.

QUESTIONS:

1. What role do the non-financial incentives play in motivating the workers and minimizing the rate of absenteeism?
2. What innovative solutions would you suggest to minimize the rate of absenteeism?




C A S E V

Vetements Ltee


Vetements Ltee is a chain of men’s retail clothing stores located throughout the province of Quebec, Canada. Two years ago, the company introduced new incentive systems for both store managers and sales employees. Store managers receive a salary with annual merit increasing based on sales above targeted goals, store appearance, store inventory management, customer complaints, and several other performance measures. Some of this information (e.g., store appearance) is gathered during visits by senior management, while other information is based on company records (e.g., sales volume).

          Sales employees are paid a fixed salary plus a commission based on the percentage of sales credited to that employee over the pay period. The commission represents about 30 per cent of a typical paycheck and is intended to encourage employees to actively serve customers and to increase sales volume. Because returned merchandise is discounted from commission, sales staff are discouraged from selling products that customers do not really want.


…Some staff openly complained of lower paychecks because they were assigned to a slow area of the store or were given more than their share of inventory duties.



Question

1. What symptom(s) exist in this case to suggest that something has gone wrong?

2. What are the root causes that have led to these symptoms?


3. What actions should the organization take to correct these problems?

IIBM Exam papers/case studies:Contact us for answers at assignmentssolution@gmail.com

      N. B.: 1) Attempt all Cases.
2) All Cases carry equal marks.

Case 1:

PROMOTING THE PROTÉGÉ

The die was cast.  Prem Nath Divan, executive chairman of Vertigo, the country’s largest engineering project organization, decided to switch tracks for a career in academics.  Divan was still six years short of the company’s retirement age of 65.  His premature exit was bound to create a flutter at the Vertigo board.  Having joined Vertigo as a management trainee soon after college, he had gradually risen through the hierarchy to take a board position as the marketing director of the firm at 32.  He had become …
of it all had missed me completely.  There is no way I can allow a split at the top just before I quit.  I must leave on a high note in my own interest.  I must find a way out of he imminent mess.”

Question:
1. What should Divan do?















Case 2:

PREJUDICES IN WORKPLACES : REAL OR PERCEIVED ?

Manjula Srivastav had been head of marketing for the last four years at Blue Chips, a computer products firm.  The company’s turnover had increased by two – and a half times during the period and its market share in a number of precuts had also moved up marginally.  What was creditable was that all this had happened in an environment in which computer prices had been crashing.
Although she had a talent for striking an instant report with people – particularly with the company’s dealers – Srivastav often found herself battling …
“I need to think about this.  I will let you know tomorrow,” said Srivastav and left the office.
What should she do?











Case 3:

MECHANIST’S INDISCIPLINED BEHAVIOUR
Dinesh, a machine operator, worked as a mechanist for Ganesh, the supervisor.  Ganesh told Dinesh to pick up some trash that had fallen from Dinesh’s work area, and Dinesh replied, “I won’t do the janitor’s work.”
Ganesh replied, “When you drop it, you pick it up”.  Dinesh became angry and abusive, calling Ganesh a number of names in a loud voice and refusing to pick up the trash.  All employees in the department heard Dinesh’s comments.
Ganesh had been trying for two weeks to get his employees to pick up trash in order to have cleaner workplace and prevent accidents.  He talked to all employees in a weekly departmental meeting and to each employee ..
Questions:
1. How would you rate Dinesh’s behaviour?  What method of appraisal would you use?
2. Do you assess any training needs of employees?  If yes, what inputs should be embodied in the training programme?



Case 4:

 RISE AND FALL
Jagannath (Jaggu to his friends) is an over ambitious young man.  For him ends justify means.
With a diploma in engineering.  Jaggu joined, in 1977, a Bangalore-based company as a Technical Assistant.  He got himself enrolled as a student in an evening college and obtained his degree in engineering in 1982.  Recognizing as Engineer-Sales in 1984.
Jaggu excelled himself in the new role and became the blue-eyed boy of the management.  Promotions came to him in quick succession.  He was made ..
Questions:
1. Bring out the principles of promotion that were employed in promoting Jaggu.
2. What would you do if you were (i) Suresh, (ii) Prahalad or (iii) Ravi?
3. Bring out the ethical issues involved in Jaggu’s behaviour.

IIBM Exam papers/case studies:Contact us for answers at assignmentssolution@gmail.com

CASE 1

COMPANY BACKGROUND
The Bronson Insurance Group was originally founded in 1900 in Auxvasse, Missouri, by James Bronson. The Bronson Group owns a variety of companies that underwrite personal and commercial insurance policies. Annual sales of the Bronson Group are $100 million. In recent years, the company has suffered operating losses. In 1990, the company was heavily invested in computer hardware and software. One of the problems the Bronson Group faced (as well as many insurance companies) was a conflict …
would require underwriters to go to a single keyboard to request paper copies of files. The cost of a microfilm system was $5 million.

1. What do you recommend? Should the company implement one of the new technologies? Why or why not?

2. An operations analyst suggested that company employees shared a “dump on the clerks”
mentality. Explain.

CASE 2
Harrison T. Wenk III is 43, married, and has two children, ages 10 and 14. He has a master’s degree in education and teachers junior high school music in a small town in Ohio. Harrison’s father passed away two months ago, leaving his only child an …interested in finding out as much as possible about operations. Harrison believes he owes it to his wife and children to fairly evaluate this opportunity.

1. Prepare a worksheet of operations activities that Harrison should inquire about this summer.

2. If you were Harrison, what would you do? Why?

CASE 3
Trust them with knee-jerk reactions," said Vikram Koshy, CEO, Delta Software India, as he looked at the quarterly report of Top Line Securities, a well-known equity research firm. The firm had announced a downgrade of Delta, a company listed both on Indian bourses and the NASDAQ. The reason? "One out of every six development …
nd the US and strike alliances with firms in Europe- and also Japan-as part of developing new products for global markets."

1. Should benching be a matter of concern at Delta?

2. What are the risks involved in moving from a project-centric mode to a mix of projects and products?

CASE 4
The war on drugs is an expensive battle, as a great deal of resources go into catching those who buy or sell illegal drugs on the black market, prosecuting them in court, and housing them in jail. These costs seem particularly exorbitant when dealing with the drug marijuana, as it is widely used, and is likely no more harmful than currently legal drugs such as tobacco and alcohol. There's another cost to the war on drugs, however, which is the revenue lost by governments who cannot collect taxes on illegal drugs. In a recent study for the Fraser Institute, Canada, Economist Stephen T. Easton attempted to calculate how much tax revenue the government of the country could gain by …care and education expect to see the idea raised in Parliament sooner rather than later.

1. Plot the demand schedule and draw the demand curve for the data given for Marijuana in the case above.

2. On the basis of the analysis of the case above, what is your opinion about legalizing marijuana in

CASE 5

Companies that attend to productivity and growth simultaneously manage cost reductions very differently
from companies that focus on cost cutting alone and they drive …
to Rs 170 at the
end of 1994. Unfortunately, Arvind's deteriorating financial returns over the last few years is also typical
of the Indian textile industry. The top three Indian companies actually showed a decline in their return
ratios in contrast to the international majors. Nike, VF Corp and Coats Viyella showed a growth in their
returns on capital employed of 6.2 per cent, while the ROCE of Grasim and Coats Viyella (India) fell by
almost 2 per cent per annum. Even in absolute returns on assets or on capital employed, Indian companies
fare a lot worse. While Indian textile companies just about cover their WACC, their international rivals
earn about 8 per cent in excess of their cost of capital.



1.  Is Indian companies running a risk by not giving attention to cost cutting?
2.  Discuss whether Indian Consumer goods industry is growing at the cost of future profitability.
3.  Discuss capital and labour productivity in engineering context and pharmaceutical industries in India.
4.  Is textile industry in India performing better than its global competitors?


CASE 6
Mr. and Mrs. Sharma went to Woodlands Apparel to buy a shirt. Mr. Sharma did not read the price tag on the piece selected by him. At the counter, while making the payment he asked for the price. Rs. 950 was the answer. Meanwhile, Mrs. Sharma, who was still shopping came back and joined her husband. She was glad that he had selected a nice black shirt for himself. She pointed out that there was a 25% discount on that item. The counter person nodded in agreement. Mr. Sharma was thrilled to hear that “It means the price of this shirt is just Rs. 712. That’s fantastic”, said Mr. Sharma. He decided to buy one more shirt in blue color. In no time, he returned with the second shirt and asked them to be packed. When he received the cash memo for payment, he was astonished to find that he had to pay Rs. 1,900 and Rs. 1,424. Mr. Sharma could hardly reconcile himself to the fact that the counter person had quoted the discounted price which was Rs. 950. The original price printed on the price tag was Rs. 1,266.


1. What should Mr. Sharma have done to avoid the misunderstanding?
2. Discuss the main features involved in this case.


CASE 7
The Benson Hotel, a mid-sized independent property required new leadership. Mike Schwartz,
Vice-president of operations, pondered his next move as he reviewed last month’s financial
statements. The Benson was an eighty-five-room three-star property with a full-service
restaurant, lounge, banquet and health club facilities. The rapidly changing marketplace and
new competition from well-established franchises had made Mike’s job and the Benson’s
position more tenuous. Mike decided to commission a consultant’s report on the property. He
called up his longtime friend Jim Burke, who had worked for major chains across the country
and was now a hospitality consultant.
“Jim, how are you old buddy?” Mike asked.
“I am doing very well Mike. This consulting work has run me off my feet. What can I do for you?”
Jim Asked.
“Well Jim, I need an independent review of the Benson. We’re holding our own but these
franchise guys with their management contracts are really getting aggressive,” Mike said.
“Yes, I know what you mean Mike. I ….
the
actions of a general manager with this type of comportment and still maintain a workable
relationship with its employees. My opinion at this point is that something has to change.”

1. Do you feel it was necessary for Mike to commission a consultant’s report on the Benson? Why
or why not? How would you have approached the situation?
2. Identify and propose solutions for the supervisory challenges in the kitchen and dining areas of Benson Hotel.
CASE 8
The Rainbow Golf resort had something to celebrate. The 120- unit golf resort consisting of villas and
condominiums had recently been “re-branded” from a franchise to an independent property. The new
owner, Ken Okura, was reviewing the present organizational structure of the Rainbow along with the
files of key personnel presently running the operation. During the transition period Ken had recruited his
own team including a Vice-President of operations, Director of sales and ….
• It is difficult to know who to go if someone has a problem with his or her manager. There should
be someone designated as the resort manager so that employees have someone to
communicate with should the need to do so arise.
Ken assembled his new team to map out strategies to address the operational challenges and employee
concerns.

1. Identify and describe four short-term operational strategies Ken should implement immediately
at the Rainbow Golf Resort?
2. Which form of top-down communication would be most suitable for the Rainbow Golf Resort to
achieve its objectives?


CASE 9
The Pierre has been able to maximize profitability through a sales program that realigned its sales mix.
The Pierre, a luxury hotel in New York City, experienced high demand and periods of limited availability.
An analysis of the business indicated that gross operating profit was not as much as it could be because
groups were occupying rooms at discounted rates during peak periods of the year. As a result, new track
rate business (nondiscounted) was often turned away.
It was calculated that The Pierre sells out for at least 100 days a year. During these dates the hotel could
command rack rate. Group business was then targeted for the shoulder and softer time periods. Based
on historic patterns of business, a limitation was placed on the …
nd in the city as well as for the
past five years of hotel occupancy, and keeping tight tabs on room sales, yield, and revenue per
available room (REVPAR).


1. Would this kind of plan work for any sort of hotel chain?
2. Does this type of strategy helps in increasing the revenues of the hotel.
CASE 10
The climate dimensions described relates to a specific management strategy.
Clarity:
?? Dana Corporation has a corporate policy that, in part, says “The people who know best how the
job should be done are the ones doing it.”
Commitment:
• Boston’s New England Securities Corporation issues T-shirts to its employees with the slogan
“See it, Do it, Own it.”
• To develop a shared vision, United Technologies Corporation says:

?? Talk honestly and directly to employees about their performance;
?? Give people the information they need to do the job;
?? Let employees influence their own performance objectives;
?? Walk around-be visible;
?? Listen to others before evaluating their ideas;
?? Demonstrate high performance standards in your own behavior;
?? Let people know your long-term direction.
Standards:
• The quality of written reports increased after the CEO of Winter Gardens Salad Company stamps
“Read by Harry” on the report before sending it back to employees.
• Supervisors at the Mirage Treasure Island …
and free
dinner coupons to the spouses or significant others of the employees.

1. How does the organizational climate in a hotel translate into total satisfaction of guests?
2. What can managers do to ensure that such a climate is being created in his or her operations?

CASE 11
THE EU’S LAGGING COMPETITIVENESS
In a report produced for the European Commission, published in November 1998, it was argued that
the EU lags behind the USA and Japan on most measures of international competitiveness. Gross
domestic product per capita, sometimes used as an indicator of international competitiveness at the
country level, was 33 per cent lower in the EU as a whole than in the USA and 13 per cent lower
than in Japan. The EU’s poor record in creating employment was singled out for particular criticism.
As this appeared to apply across the board in most industrial sectors, it suggested that the EU’s poor
performance related to the business environment in general and, in particular, to the inflexibility of
Europe’s labour markets for goods and services. A shortage of risk …


1. Is gross domestic product per capita a useful indicator of International competitiveness in the EU?
2. Is it fair to point the blame for the EU’s poor international competitiveness at inflexible labour
markets, regulated goods and services markets, and a general lack of competition? What
alternative explanations might be suggested?


CASE 12
PERU
Peru is located on the west coast of South America. It is the third largest nation of the continent (after
Brazil and Argentina), and covers almost 500,000 square miles (about 14 per cent of the size of the
United States). The land has enormous contrasts, with a desert (drier than the Sahara), the towering
snow-capped Andes mountains, sparkling grass-covered plateaus, and thick rain forests. Peru has
approximately 27 million people, of which about 20 per cent live in Lima, the capital. More Indians
(one half of the population) live in Peru than in any other country in the western hemisphere. The
ancestors of Peru’s Indians were the famous Incas, who built a great empire. The rest of the
population is mixed and a small percentage is white. The economy depends heavily on agriculture,
fishing, mining, and services. GDP is approximately $115 billion and per capita income in recent
years has been around $4,300. In recent years the economy has gained some relative strength and
multinationals are now beginning to consider investing in the country. One of these potential
investors is a large New York based that is considering a $25 million loan to the owner of a Peruvian
fishing fleet. The owner wants to refurbish the fleet and add one more ship. During the 1970s, the
Peruvian government nationalised a number of industries and factories and began running them for
the profit of the state. In most cases, these state-run ventures became disasters. In the late 1970s, the
fishing fleet owner was given back his ships and are getting old and he needs an influx of capital to
make repairs and add new technology. As he explained it to the NEW YORK banker: “fishing is no
longer just un art. There is a great deal of technology involved. And to keep costs low and be
competitive on the world market , you have to have the latest equipment for both locating as well
as catching and then loading and unloading the fish.”Having reviewed the fleet owner’ operation, the
large multinational bank believes that the loan is justified. The financial institution is concerned ,
however , that the Peruvian government might step in during the next couple of years and again
take over the business . If this were to happen, it might take an additional decade, for the loan to be
repaid. If the government were to allow the fleet owner to operate the fleet the way he has over the
last decade, the loan could be rapid within seven years. Right now, the bank is deciding on the
specific terms of the agreement. Once these have been worked out , either a loan officer will fly
down to lima and close the deal or the owner will be asked to come to NEW YORK for the signing.
Whichever approach is used, the bank realize that final adjustments in the agreement will have
to be made on the spot. Therefore, if the bank sends a representative to Lima, the individual will have
to the authority to commit the bank to specific terms. These final matters should be worked out within
the next ten days.

1. What are some current issues Facing Peru? What is the climate for doing business in Peru today?
2. Would the bank be better off negotiating the loan in New York or in Lima? Why?
CASE 13
Which Company Is Transnational?
Four senior executives of companies operating in many countries speaks:
COMPANY A
We are transnational company. We sell our products in over 80 countries, and we manufacturer in 14
countries. Our overseas subsidiaries manage our business in their respective countries. They have
complete responsibility for their country operations including strategy formulation. Most of the key
executives in our subsidiaries are host-country nationals, although we still rely on home-country
persons for the CEO and often the CFO (chief financial officer) slots. Recently, we have divided the
world regions and the United States. Each of the world regions reports to our world trade
organization, which is responsible for all of our business ….
low
income to lower middle, or from lower middle to upper middle, or from upper middle to high income
we commit our best effort to expand our positions, or, if we don’t have a positions, to establish a
position. Since our objective is to achieve an undisputed leadership position in our industry, we
simply cannot afford not to be in every growing market in the world.
We have always had a European CEO, and this will probably not change. The executives in this
company from Europe tend to serve all over the world, whereas the executives from the United States
and Japan serve only in their home countries. They are very able and valuable executives, but they
lack the necessary perspective of the world required for the top jobs here at headquarters.

1. Which company is transnational?
2. What are the attributes of a transnational company?
3. What is the difference between a domestic, international, multinational, global, and transnational
company?
4. At what stage of development are your company and your line of business today? Where should you be.

CASE 14


Parker Pen Co. (A)
INTRODUCTION
The meeting at sunny Palm Beach concluded with nary a whimper of dissent from its participants.
After years of being run as a completely decentralized company whose managers in all corners of the
world enjoyed a high degree of flexibility, Parker Pen Co., Janesville, Wisconsin, was forced to
reexamine itself. The company had enjoyed decade after decade of success until the early 1980s. By
this time, Parker faced strong competitive threats and a deteriorating internal situation. A new
management team was bought in from outside the company – an unprecedented step for what had
been until then an essentially family-run business. At the March 1984 Palm Beach meeting, this new
group of decision makers would outline a course of action that would hopefully set Parker back on a
path to success.
The men behind the new strategy were supremely confident of its chances for success – and with
good reason. Each was recognized as a highly skilled practitioner of international business and their
combined extensive experience gave them an air of invincibility. They had been recruited from larger
companies, had left high-paying, rewarding jobs, and each had come to Janesville with a grand sense
of purpose. For decades, Parker had been a dominant player in the pen industry. In the early 1980s,
hoe-ever, the company had seen its market share dwindle to a mere 6 percent and, in 1982, net
income plunged a whopping 60 percent.
To reverse this decline, Parker recruited James Peterson, an executive vice president at R.L.
Reynolds, as the new president and CEO. Peterson hired Manville Smith as president of the writing
instruments group at Parker Smith, who was born in Ecuador and had a broad international
background, came from 3M where he had been appointed division president at the tender age of 30.
Richard Swart was vice president/marketing of the writing instruments group. He spent 11 years at
the advertising agency BBDO and was an expert on marketing planning and theory. Jack Marks was
head of writing instruments advertising. Marks came to Parker from Gillette, where, among other
things, he assisted in the worldwide marketing of Paper Mate pens. Rounding out the team was Carlos
Del Nero, manager of global marketing planning, who brought with him considerable international
experience at Fisher-Price. Each of these men was convinced that Parker would right itself by
following the plan they unveiled at Palm Beach.
A BRIEF HISTORY OF PARKER PEN
The “Rolls Royce” of the Pen Industry
The Parker name has been identified with pens since 1888 when George S. Parker delighted inksplotched
pen users everywhere by introducing a leakproof fountain model called the Parker Lucky
Curve. Parker Pen would eventually blossom into America’s, if not the world’s, largest and bestknown
pen market. Parker’s products, which …
examined, not the least of which was Parker’s decentralization of global operations.


1. What would you do if you were in James Peterson’s shoes in January 1982?
2. What changes, if any, would you make in Parker’s marketing strategy?
3. Which aspects of Parker’s structure would you discard? Which would you keep?
4. Assume that you are James Peterson and you have just hired a new management team composed
of highly qualified executives from outside companies. You and your new team are convinced
that you have the solution to Parker’s problems but there are many hold overs who disagree with
you. How would you implement your plan? To what extent would you incorporate the views of
Parker management into your plan?



Detailed information should form the part of your answer (Word limit 200 to 250 words).


1. Consider the equation Y=f(A,B,C,D,E,F,G), where Y stands for consumption of soft drinks
and D is the variable for cultural elements. How would this equation help a soft-drink
marketer understand demand for soft drinks in global markets?

2. The president of XYZ Manufacturing Company of Buffalo, New York, comes to you with a
license offer from a company in Osaka. In return for sharing the company’s patents and
know-how, the Japanese company will pay a license fee of 5percent of the ex-factory price of
all products sold based on the U.S. Company’s license. The president wants your advice what
would you tell him?

3. Imagine that you are the director of a major international lending institution supported by funds
from member countries. What one area in newly industrialized and developing economics would
be your priority for receiving development aid? Do you suspect that any member country will be
politically opposed to aid in this area? Why or Why not?

4. The principle problem in analyzing different forms of export financing is the distribution of risks
between the exporter and the importer. Analyze the following export financing instruments in this
respect:
(a) Letter of Credit
(b) Cash in advance
(c) Draft
(d) Consignment
(e) Open Account