Erik Peterson integrative analysis - Case Study Example

?Insert Full s ERIK PETERSON INTEGRATIVE CASE ANALYSIS Erik Peterson Part I What problems are facing Erik Peterson? Group them as internal factors and external factors in two separate sections and use sub-headings for each factor. Internal Problems Lack of communication Peterson was very much prepared to work with Jenkins as his boss. Upon reporting, he met Hardy who was completely new to him. The new reporting structure made the working condition awkward from the beginning since neither Jenkins nor Hardy had communicated to Peterson on the changes. Lack of commutation also caused a lot of pressure on Peterson when he discovered that the production line was behind schedule. The result was production of substandard devices that failed to meet specifications. Equipment shortages Equipment shortage was felt when the management allocated very few expected orders on the Biometra for the following year. This limited Peterson’s scope of operation since he had to plan for only the few devices that will be available for supplies. Working with an inexperienced boss The fact that Hardy had no experience in product launch was enough problems since as a boss be could not give Peterson specific advice on how to go about it. They only came into contact when Peterson needed to inform him of a problem of which most of the times Hardy had no solutions for the problems. Unsupportive senior management Right from his subordinates to his seniors there seem to be a problem of disagreement. Hardy being the person Peterson is supposed to report to was expected to be there to provide necessary leadership. However, he seems to be only available when Peterson needs him. It was also discouraging when Peterson expected him to come up with a solution for a problem and he had no answer. Recalcitrant employees Andrew and Miczek portrayed uncooperative attitude towards Peterson. They both had more experience than Peterson did and some subordinates as Andrew earned more than Peterson did. Peterson’s promotion did not please them thus making them portrayed a lot of resentment that affected the quality of work the team got from them. Disputes among workers Backgrounds affected the team-working environment in that some members developed resentments over others based on experience and backgrounds prior to getting to Biometra. This lead to conflicts especially because some team members did not like seeing others progress. A case in point was between Wescott and Burns. They always had issues within themselves since Wescott never appreciated Burns ideas and suggestions. Green did not see Peterson as capable of meeting the demands of the task, Cantor considered Peterson as misinformed. These two attitudes from Green and Carton made Peterson avoid interfering with their work on KOL though KOL meant a lot to his marketing mandate. Working with an inexperienced team Andrew lack of flexibility and resourcefulness was a major drawback for Peterson especially now that he needed an individual he could rely on in the operations docket. This made Peterson to be derailed in delivering Biometra device within the given timeline. Lack of procedures and policies There were no clear structures on salary increment and promotion in SciMat. Having been given a general management position without experience in management caused him resentment from his managers like Andrew and Miczek who had more experience than he did. Lack of policies and procedures on salary increment also lead to Miczeks and Wescott salary problems. This set Peterson at an uncomfortable situation as he tried to work on standardizing the salaries. External problems Operating problems The relationship between Biometra and key opinion leaders was dependent on potential early adopters. This was a high-risk that was later felt when management turnover created uneasiness among the targeted KOL who feared being associated with any potential issues that could ruin their reputation. The Vice president’s derailed operation was also a problem to Peterson since it risked him loosing the KOLs he was working very hard to maintain. Zoning problem Delayed decision making by SciMat’s was a major cause of the manufacturing delay that faced Peterson and the team. Though Costa Rican manufacturer was the best for the catheter manufacturing, choosing unfamiliar place for the Biometra’s launch was a major problem in itself. Peterson, Andrew, and Jones had to visit the facility. The result was development of time issues that made the whole program to run behind schedules thus endangering Peterson’s ability to meet his responsibilities. Though he had assured KOL that he would deliver the device on time, he was not sure of the validity. 2. What are the underlying causes of these problems? Explicate each cause and tie it to the problems (factor) you identified in question1: again, use sub-headings for each cause that correspond to the problems (factors) identified in 1 above. Poor Human Resource management Human resources management is mandated with the task of hiring, firing, promoting, and creating salary structures (Bernarin & Russell, 2013). However, in SciMat it seems like any manger can perform the four mentioned HR duties as they so wish. This was the main cause of salary and promotion issues that Peterson faced as a General Manger. There was no clear policy and procedure to be taken when promoting an employee and increasing an employee’s salary. The same cause lead to a people owning positions they did not have deserve in terms of their qualifications. This caused some subordinates to work under people who could not give them proper guidance on what was expected of them. Lack of time to address issues within his docket Peterson had so much in his hands as far as product delivery was concerned that he could not get time to handle disagreeing colleagues. This went ahead in affecting some managers like Wescott and Burns who were always in dispute. The salary problem was steered by Peterson inability to negotiate due to his inexperience in working with the group and enough time to do that. Lack of negotiating powers caused him to be at a high risk of losing KOL as well as facing resentments from his subordinates. Though he was not directly involved in making sure key doctors were onboard, the task was relieving when it was picked from him. Lack of organization structures on promotions This was a major cause why Peterson had unsupportive senior managers. This problem cause made his subordinates look down on him and his seniors see him as unfit for the task. It was the same reason that made Green and Karen look at him as inexperienced and misinformed. They went to a point of lecturing him on the much he needed to learn to be up to the task. Lack of proper planning and adoption of feasible options in production The organization failed to outsource for manufacturers who could have been more competent. This lead to a significant operation problem since the contactor did not manage to resolve validation on the manufacturing process issues Peterson. Lack of team spirit Communication is one of the key areas that lack of team spirit affected greatly. This affected Peterson right from the start of his duty as a general manager to the time of his dismisal. He severally failed to consult with Hardy, which made Hardy delay responding to his demands for offering KOLs more technicians and trainers. The problem was repeated when he hired marketing consultants. He hired his own despite being given a recommendation on Consultants that had already worked with SciMat. Lack of conflict resolution mechanism This was a major cause of recalcitrant employee’s problem. Peterson had to continue working with uncooperative team, which made his job very strenuous. 3. How effective has Peterson been in taking charge of the Hanover startup in terms of a) Managing the new operation b)Of providing leadership? Use separate subheadings to address a) and b). In a separate section, evaluate the characteristics of effective leadership needed in this situation and make recommendations to enhance leadership effectiveness. Peterson’s effectiveness in managing the new operations Despite the fact that Peterson was experiencing various problems in his new appointments, he always had solutions readily available. His effectiveness in problem resolution was paramount when he had to satisfy KOL clinical staff. He had a plan to fly dedicated technicians and additional trainers. Peterson was also effective in conflict management. When the marketing and sales directors could not agree on the amount of money to be allocated on both departments, Peterson settled the issue by giving guidance. He allocated “60% of the marketing budget to print ads with the remainder for conference and trade show attendance by sales reps” (Gabarro, Delong, & Jevan, 2012, pp. 10). Conducting weekly meetings to discuss department’s problems was an effective way of ensuring that Biometra worked as a team. However, it could have been more effective if the team met to look for solutions to the problems than leaving the discussions at the problem levels. Peterson’s effectiveness in providing leadership Taking himself personally in the company of Biometra director of operations and quality control manager to the manufacturing facility was a way of making sure that he involved other people in looking for a solution to the problem. This proved that Peterson had embraced teamwork, which is paramount for every leader. He also believed in the potential of every worker. This gave him a reason to consider both Andrew and Jones productivity despite the disagreement that erupted between them. Follow-up and standing firm to his grounds as far as manufacturing is concerned was one way of proving that he was effective and up to the task as a leader. Peterson requested to have daily updates on the validation of quality issues as well as emphasized on timely product delivery. Characteristics of effective leadership needed in this situation and the Recommendation to enhance leadership effectiveness. Vision Peterson as a leader was required to be visionary. He needed to have a clear picture of where he was taking Biometra despite the many limitations he had at the beginning of his assignment. Through him, the team was to see the vision and work towards it within the given time. Problem solving skills Having been faced with a difficult situation of meeting the deadline, Peterson decided to shift some marketing money to manufacturing consultants. This was a great expression of leadership and temporally problem solving skills. However, it could have been more helpful if he consulted first before he dealt with the problem. Magnanimity Peterson has been mentioned severally in the text as an individual who gave credits where it was due. Like in the case of Wescott, he found him competent despite the fact that he was also described as one who liked rubbing colleagues the wrong way (Gabarro, Delong, & Jevan, 2012 pp. 3). However, Peterson lacked confrontation character, which calls for making corrections when a problem arises. He could have been more effective if he was both magnanimity and confrontational. Dedication Despite the fact that Peterson found the unit already messed up, he was dedicated to see that it launched the catheter within the set time. He worked hard to a point of even “flying in a dedicated technician together with more trainers for the KOL clinical staff before the product trial” (Gabarro, Delong, & Jevan, 2012 pp. 5). However, his efforts did not yield much since his dedication was bias to the product only. His dedication could have been more effective if he involved every stakeholder in the process. This could have made work easier for him and achieving the goals could have been much easier and faster. 4. What actions, if any, should Peterson take to turn the situation around and prepare for his meeting with Chip Knight? Use sub-headings for each action you suggest Andrew’s inability to be flexible and resourceful was a real drawback to Biometra’s performance. Instead of Peterson, considering firing him for a more competent person he could have taken the advice offered to him that Andrew’s only need was coaching and support. If that did not work, Peterson could have put his request further to HR and insisted on having Andrew replaced regardless of how headquarters could have viewed him. Peterson could have let Miczek go when she needed to since her retention made her work with less enthusiasm that later affected her quality of work. This was a great danger to the launch process bearing in mind that the success of Biometra meant a lot to SciMat. Peterson could have made sure he had hands on information on the product and its operation. This would give him a higher negotiation platform and hence cover him from being viewed as inexperience and misinformed before Knight, Jenkins, and Harper. Have a plan for dealing with the obstacles in the organization. This would present him as somebody who is ready and willing to deal with all the problems despite their magnitude. It would also present him as a fast learner who came for just a short while and had the organization interest at hand. The plan would also prove to knight that Peterson was still determined to meet the launch deadline despite the many challenges that made the whole operation to run behind schedule. Erik Peterson Part II 5. What went wrong during management’s visit, and what could Peterson have done differently. Answer each in a separate paragraph with sub-heading. Keep your answers and thoughts organized. What went wrong during the management visit? Peterson was very much aware of Jenkins toughness and aggressiveness. He knew that he could not take anything less than what had been expected for the pre-launch. Mentioning a lesser figure of catheter sales after the launch date was wrong since it was everybody’s expectations that the catheters will sell more since the catheters are applicable to a wide range of medical procedures. At the time of the meeting, it was expected that Peterson could have been through with looking for hospital centers. The problem came in when he presented himself, as inadequate on the marketing task when he said he was still targeting meaning not yet launched a plan. It showed that his marketing plan was still under development while it was expected to be fully developed and waiting for implementation. Despite the fact that the meeting had not gone as Peterson wished, Peterson could still have put an enthusiastic face by talking much about his plans before his seniors. It was wrong for him to have shown it openly to an extend that Jenkins questioned him about his enthusiasm. The team expected Peterson to talk much of his plans of attack, but Peterson seemed to be waiting for an appropriate forum to do that. Peterson portrayed a great loose of confidence in himself when he did not request to have an opportunity to discuss his plans before and after the launch. He had so many assumptions during the meetings, which affected his ability to negotiate for a moment with the executives. He always seemed to be waiting for the executives to call for a meeting to discuss his plans instead of him doing that. What Peterson could have done differently? Working under a tough and aggressive President called for Peterson to be equally aggressive in order to assure the president that he was up to the challenge his position presented. Peterson could have done a good groundwork survey on what his boss expected of him in terms of production and sales. This could have helped him adjust Biometra’s production level as he focus on a higher sell when the product will be launched. This could have given him a better negotiation position with his seniors even without experience in the industry. Having worked for 9 months before Knight asked him for a meeting; Peterson was in a better position to do proper marketing for the upcoming product. To ensure that he presented himself as effective, Peterson could have delegated many duties to his subordinates. Delegations would have allowed him and his team to achieve a lot as far as preparation for catheter launch was concerned. Peterson had been entrusted with the whole Biometra project by the management. It was expected that he should have owned the project and work towards achieving the output that was expected by every stakeholder. This aspect of owning the project could have come out clearly from his enthusiasm in describing what they had achieved so far, the challenges they have faced and projections to the launch and after the launch. Therefore, Peterson could have gone to the lengths of initiating conversations during the meeting regarding Biometra and its progress instead of keeping quiet and waiting for executives to start the conversation. 6. What lessons does Erik Peterson’s story yield? Recommend effective approaches motivating employees and managing relationships and discuss the implications of these recommendations for managing in a diverse organization. Use your OB and HRM text as resources for your recommendations. Integrate appropriate concepts from the texts and lectures to your answer. Erik Peterson’s story brings out so many issues. Among them are communication, employee motivation through remuneration, and company organization structures and behaviors, leadership, and management (Kreitner & Kinicki, 2013). They all revolve around an employee who is a key production unit in any organization. From the story, one can get that it is hard to achieve set goals without the mentioned issues being looked at effectively. Communication breakdown lead to production inefficiency since there is no clear chain of command. In such a case, an effective approach would be every organization to develop a clear and effective means of communication from the senior most member of the team to the least. This will avoid missing on key production features like meeting production deadlines. It is important for the management, through the HR, to device a clear employee motivation, promotion, and remuneration structure for the organization. This will help in avoiding high turnover rate that affects the company reliability to the target market (Bernarin & Russell, 2013). In Biometra’s case, the high turnover rate almost cost the team loosing KOL that Peterson and the team had worked so hard to develop. The HR is also mandated to conduct fair promotion to all members(Bernarin & Russell, 2013). This will help in avoiding some issues like having a manager who is less experienced than the subordinates are. The organizations leadership and management are entrusted with the vision and goals of the organization. It is important that the leadership make a good choice when choosing the people to lead others. This will avoid cases of resentments that Peterson faced with his managers. The team should be able to buy into the leadership’s ideas and with enthusiasm endeavor to put them to functionality. 7. Self-assessment and career choices a. What is the gap between what was needed at GM and what skills and qualities Peterson brought to the job? Was the gap too big? Why/not? Peterson was sufficient as a marketer and a team builder but not as a marketing manager. GM needed a marketing manager who could spearhead the team to launching one of their greatest innovations at a very high speed since there were constraints on time left for that. When Peterson came on board, a very big gap was created since for him he had to first learn how things were expected to be done. Due to lack of experience, he went against what was expected of him by working to build the team and solving issues that could have been dealt with thus making all his efforts look ineffective. b. Could Peterson have closed the gap? Why/not? It was not easy for Peterson to close the gap. This was because he was limited by his experience in the field. Another thing was that contributed to his inability to close the gap was that he had not received any formal training on marketing. This made him more limited to perform while working with a team that at times looked down on him. c. Discuss what this position really entails and the context in which a business operates and of determining whether the fit is the right one. An organization is in need of a general manager when developing a project. The general manager is the person in charge of all phases in a project. They are mandated with working towards timely completion and delivering required output. The position also entails the individual to do all the paper work, scheduling meetings required at each stage of the development. General Manager is also the person in the centre of communication during the project. The person does all the emails, attend and collect all minutes developed from the meetings attended by managers as well as report on the progress to the executives. The right candidate should be versatile and exercise a diverse set of skills. He should show a sense of responsibility in that he believe in the project and is willing to fight all challenges to bring forth the expected results on the project. The person should also be ready to work as a mediator and motivator to his team members and his senors. 8. Leadership and leadership challenges for Peterson a. What kinds of actions and attitudes are vital to strong leadership? Can do attitude Peterson was expected to believe in his power as a general manager and that of his team members. He was required to have the attitude that the task was manageable within the set time. This could have been more motivational to him and his team members. The same attitude could have been a great surety to the management that Peterson and the team were able to deliver the given mandate. Learning and growth Peterson was in experienced in the task while there were other people who had hands on information on what the task entailed. Peterson as a leader could have done more consultation than he did. This could have helped him meet the demands for his job in a more informed way than he did. Self worth and self esteem Peterson had a challenge in believing in himself. When he discovered that the project was running behind schedule, he concentrated on the lost time and his inability to meet the deadline than seeing a possibility of achieving the set targets. He also held so much in to KOL even after the responsibility was lifted off his shoulder. Fix Problems but not blames When things stopped flowing, Peterson started looking for loopholes and blamed on them for his every failure to meet the demands of his job. For instance, he blamed so much on Andrews’s lack of flexibility and resourcefulness and Wescott resentment of Burn. b. Was there a need to establish an agenda? To face conflict squarely? To build trust and credibility with superiors and subordinates? To secure help and support in achieving goals? Yes, there was a very great need for Peterson to establish an agenda. The agenda could have been based on how much he was projecting to achieve within the remaining time. This could have saved him of the much pressure that he had to endure which made him not to achieve his goals. Another thing was that Peterson was afraid of facing conflict squarely. It could have been more helpful to him and the team if he handled conflicts as they occurred. An issue like working with an ineffective team member could have been easily resolved if he presented the case to the management and insisted on the person’s transfer of dismissal. Peterson was a great team builder to his subordinated but not to his seniors. He used to make decisions on his own without consulting his seniors on the way forward. This affected his credibility with his superiors and subordinates hence making it hard for him to get solutions from them when he invited them on board. It also made it hard for him to achieve the many goals he had set since he did not have sufficient support from his team members. There was therefore a very great need for him to consult from the responsible authorities before he made any decision. 9. Managing Company performance a. Peterson faced a seemingly ceaseless stream of operating problems, recalcitrant employees, inexperience across the board, lack of procedures and policies, equipment shortages, disputes among workers, the zoning conflict, and unsupportive senior management. While he did not create these problems, it was his job to make sure they got resolved. How should a leader take action to deal with a unit’s performance and how should a leader align a unit’s practices and policies with an organization’s goals? Draw on your own knowledge, experience, and challenge and broaden your assumptions about leadership, management, motivation, and organizational behavior. When one is entrusted with the responsibility of leadership, it is expected that the person can have a good problem solving approach. This works well when the person’s attitude is that of “can do.” The leader should come in to the task willing and ready to change the situations despite the many challenges he might face in the process. He should be in the forefront showing others how conflicts are supposed to be resolved. Another thing that a leader should come in with is a desire to enhance an organization’s policies and procedures (Kreitner & Kinicki, 2013). Without them, many organizations are always not able to meet their goals. Though the leader is only assigned to a unit, the leader should aim at making sure all the policies in the unit are in operation. When an individual is given a new assignment, it is important for the candidate to first learn the organization’s behavior. This will help the person to be in a good position to come up with solutions to conflicts as they occur. The person should be able to portray key management principles. These include planning, organizing, influencing and controlling (Kreitner & Kinicki, 2013). A manger that is up to the task always makes sure all the mentioned principles are put into place. b. What are the constraints faced by first time managers? Do people at all levels of the organization necessarily comply with managers’ directives and expectations on the basis of their formal authority alone? First time managers are often faced with several challenges that lead them into problems. Among the challenges are how to deal with subordinates, dealing with the boss, how to remain focused amidst the excitement, how to display confidence, and how to build strong association with the relevant persons in the industry (Vedpuriswar, n.d). Among the challenges, dealing with subordinates and bosses takes the highest percentage of the constraints a first time manager faces. Most often, people look at the manager and evaluate them on the basis of their experience. Majority of the people would not take directives from first time managers especially if they have many years of experience than the new manager. For the first time manager to gain respect from these people, it is advisable that they take time to listen to them as they involve the team members in the management process (Vedpuriswar, n.d). Consulting with them gives the team a sense of belonging as they set goals together with the manager. c. How could managers recognize that they are in a position of interdependency and learn to build relationships with those inside and outside the organization? Often, managers are faced with tasks that they cannot perform without the help of other people. When a manager finds himself in such situations, the manager is supposed to know that they are in a position of interdependence. For effectiveness, they should build relationships that would help him meet the set goals in the task assigned. References Berardin, H. J., & Russell, J.E.A. (2013). Human Resource Management. 6 ed. New York, NY: Mcgraw-Hill/Irwin. Gabarro J. J., Delong, T., & Soo, J. (2012). EriK Peterson at Biometra(A). Kimberly Udeh. Kreitner, R., & Kinicki, A. (2013). Organizational Behavior. New York, NY: Mcgraw-Hill/Irwin. Vedpuriswar, A. V. (n.d). Developing First Line Leaders. 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