Management has been having a great deal of trouble in the cone-making department

Question

Management has been having a great deal of trouble in the cone-making department in the Metalware plant. Cone-making used to be done by hand and required a great deal of skill, but is now done on machines. The process involves physical effort to feed the machines and a lot of heat and fumes to be endured. The department is isolated from the rest of the plant and is in an old building. The cone-makers have always been a tight-knit group and management has left them alone. When petty grievances have come up the men have gone on work slow-downs or used wildcat strikes to solve problems. Their foreman, Mike Malone, has seen his job as one of protecting the workers from management pressure. In recent years, productivity has been down and costs have gone up compared to other departments. Malone is now ready to retire and management is looking for his replacement. The possibilities: a.John Callahan, 50 years old, has been in the department for 33 years. He knows the work and is well liked by the other employees. He has been the union steward for many years. b.Gus Novak, 32 years old, a college graduate, has done an outstanding job as foreman in the assembly department. That department was low-skilled, had high turnover, and included many female employees. Which man do you choose? What leadership and decision-making factors should you use to make your choice? (30 points)

Explanation / Answer

According to me option (b) Gus Novak is a better option because;

1) He has an advantage of being young and energitic over the other employee.

2) He doesn't belong to the same department so, he will induce new techniques to increase productivity.

3) He is not from the same department so his mind set will not only be the protection of workers from management pressure.

4) He prior concern wil be the productivity because he belongs to the department where low skilled but still high turn over was there.

5) He may hire few low skilled energitic employees and train them because, now a days the machine has been introduced in the factory and before it was done by high skilled labour.

The 6 sigmas of decision making i.e.construct, compile, collect, compare and consider are followed here. It is an organisational, strategic, operative decision making where, I have considered that oraganisation is always bigger than an individual.

According to Trait theory of Leadership, personality trait involves three things a) abilities, b) personal trait, c) Motivators.

Mr. Gus Novak is most abled than Mr. John Callahan because he has the great supervising ability, intelligence and he takes initiatives. He has also self assurance, maturity, decisiviness. Though working class affinity is more in John Callahan because he belongs to same department but, still Mr. Gus can built it based on his experiences. Mr. Gus is a motivator because he has done well and managed well in his previous jobs to the organisation.

Based on Fiedler model of Leadership, matching leader and situations which, states either change the situation to fit the leader or change the leader to fit the situation. So if Mr. Gus will be the boss the situation needs to be changed.

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