Proj 430 Week 1 Case 1 1. J & D accounting created an Information Services Division for studies and analysis to be able to compete against larger firms. With its increased employees and customers there is no structure keeping them in order. Projects are incomplete, customers do not know where to get answers from, and the director of ISD is forced to handle daily activities instead of strategic planning and policy formulation. The director will be reassigned and the systems manager will be taking her spot.
Regular conflicts and disagreements have been seen in the meetings and there is no integrator to resolve these conflicts. Intergroup conflicts have been common due to goals incompatibility and task interdependence. For instance, Ralph Parker from Signal Processor Design team thinks there is no need for any digital signal processors or any strategic alliance with other companies for purchase of components whereas Dan Stella and Monica from Manufacture and Design team thinks otherwise. Power and influence is used each time to reach decisions. Hence it is a political organization.
Case: The New Director of Human Resource 1. After investigation of Mount Ridge Engineering’s corporate human resource structure and plant operation procedures, in my opinion currently the relationships between human resource policies and actual plant operations are very weak. Although we can say that the human resource department has established a fairly complete set of procedures and policies, the actual implementation of the policies at plant level operations do not seem to be thorough enough, no employee implement those rules. Especially, the staffing function is very weak. There is no proper linkage between corporate HR structure and operations at the plant level.
The 6 people chosen for this particular team are not compatible, personality wise. There is an overwhelming sense of “backstabbing” between all the group members This is seen when Bret O’Brien asks to meet with Jack alone about some issues on the project because he “can’t afford the time to deal with Valerie’s [Merz] predictable drama.” The pressure that Merz is placing on the group to meet the deadline for the project and incorporate the modular design has created tension within the team as they see her as pushy and intrusive. There is a lack of communication and information sharing within the team, which has challenged the decision-making ability of the team. 3) How does the functional structure at MediSys impact the success of the team dynamics? c. The key point of a functional structure is having employees with a specialization in one of the key tasks or areas for the specified project.
Daniel Baker (July 8, 2013). Janice Bryant Howroyd Selected as a Regional Ernst & Young Entrepreneur Of The Year Award recognizes outstanding entrepreneurs who demonstrate excellence. http://www.blackenterprise.com/small-business/janice-bryant-howroyd-award/ 3) Carolyn M. Brown (May 17, 2012). Entrepreneurs Conference: How Janice Bryant Howroyd Built A Billion-Dollar Business: The founder and CEO of the largest minority woman-owned employment agency to share her 7 keys to business success. http://www.blackenterprise.com/small-business/entrepreneurs-conference-how-janice-bryant-howroyd-built-a-billion-dollar-business/ 4) Janice Bryant Howroyd, Chairman and CEO of the ACT-1 Group, to be Honored Along With Six Others as One of LA's Most Influential Business Leaders By the National Association of Women Business Owners - Los Angeles NAWBO-LA.
The IT team had the business team so confused during the meeting that they eventually just tuned out and IT never actually got to talking about how the new technology could be used for marketing and why it was a good idea. The next issue is the lack of integration between IT and business. Not only do they have problems communicating the points they are trying to get across in language that can be easily understood, but the business end feels as though IT does not know how to meet their goals. A good example of this is on page 76 where it is discussed that “IT people don’t even know some of our basic business functions” and “We don’t feel IT is contributing to creating new business value for Hefty.” Lastly it seems as though there is bad time management and planning on the IT end. I cannot be too harsh on this considering that many projects do not go as planned, on schedule or on budget but this did raise a red flag in the mini case.
He has re-clarified GE’s corporate values, redesigned GE’s strategy, and also dissolved some of GE’s businesses, all while creating new jobs in manufacturing at the same time (Heifetz & Laurie, 2002). Throughout his tenure as CEO, Immelt has promoted change within GE as a transformation leader by successfully navigating through the first seven stages of change as outlined in the HBR article: Leading Change. Step 1: Establish a Sense of Urgency When Immelt was appointed as CEO in 2001, he immediately established a sense of urgency among his employees to foster growth from within and across all businesses. As a strategic, innovative, and entrepreneurial leader, Immelt pushed his employees from day 1 launching an “…all-out effort to make GE as renowned for innovation and organic growth as it was for operational excellence – the hallmark of his predecessor, Jack Welch” (Prokesch, 2009). He also “…ushered in a strategy fueled by technology, innovation, global markets, and strong customer ties” (Comstock, Gulati, & Liguori, 2010).
Like all writers in this field, she sees the modern era as one of downsizing and globalization, which has radically altered this contract in favor of the employer. For her, the new contract revolves around the "self-reliant" employee, one to whom a firm owes no benefits at all. As the old contract based on loyalty and job security has broken down. The scramble for jobs is intense, and workers are seen as "earning" their jobs and their position, rather than having it is a "reward" for good behavior and solid work. Byster goes even
The research In a study involving MBA students, Simmering and Wilcox (1995) identified five factors that largely influence the decision to pursue the MBA graduate degree. These factors center around the personal prestige associated with the MBA, career exploration opportunities, goals for developing and improving interpersonal skills, entrepreneurial aspirations, and increasing career mobility. Among the internal and external factors cited in studies aimed at identifying the primary determinants of career decisions are salary, influence by parents and family, perceived ability/personality fit, high job demand, image/prestige, and interest in an area ( Duffy & Dik, 2009). Duffy & Dik found that the common assumption of “free choice” in making career decisions can be limited significantly by “life experiences and circumstances.” One would expect the recent recession, for example, to be a prominent factor in decisions related to job searches and enrollment in education programs (Bruce, Edgington, & Olkin, 2003). Value of an MBA Degree A recent report published by the Bureau of Labor Statistics projected the fastest growing occupations between the years of 2006 and 2016.
My short term goal subsequent to the MBA program is to join a financial consultancy, such as The Boston Consulting Group or Deloitte Consulting LLP, at managerial level. This will help me apply all the theoretical knowledge I have gained through an established curriculum of my MBA program. This will also provide me an opportunity to interact with leading financial firms and multinational business houses, thus contribute in expanding my real life knowledge base by helping me get a better understanding of global industry practices and different financial systems prevailing in the world. With a span of ten years I plan to rise through the levels of management to strategic business position of an executive officer at a financial consulting firm. After having worked at the uppermost level of a top financial firm for some time, when I feel I have gathered the requisite amount of knowledge pertaining to every aspect of the firm, I plan to start my own consultancy with my father.