The Centralized Manager - Research Paper Example

The Centralized Manager Introduction Looking at the Abu Dhabi National Oil Company (ADNOC), it is a case study that presents a management crisis within the organization and goes further to eliminate employee morale as well self-esteem. Management is an important aspect of Public Administration and it is important that whoever holds such an important position should abide by the principles of workmanship. Good public administration practices ensure that performance of employees as well as effective management practices. Managers should differentiate between management and leadership because they are supposed to be applied at different times and when situations call for either. In the case study, Suha’s situation in the Information Technology department during her placement at ADNOC will be analyzed. The manager of the IT Division Dr. Ahmed rendered his junior colleagues useless as he built a tough relationship with other employees considering that he was applying unprofessional practices toward them. His behavior was toxic, and as such, he led to certain trustable and dedicated employees leave ADNOC. The situation that escalated because of Ahmed led to the loss of important members who had great vision for the company. This means that poor management do have considerable effects on the performance of staff as well as their relationship with work. In this case study, the paper will analyze the reasons behind Suha, Abdulrahman, and Dania leaving the organization though they were still young and energetic. What was the problem? Was it them or management? That is something the paper will help use find out. The Organization Abu Dhabi National Oil Company (ADNOC) is one that was established in the United Arab Emirates as the maiden government-owned company. It is specialized in distribution and marketing of petroleum products with the UAE. As among the largest companies in the Gulf region dealing in petroleum, it operates within a large network of service area and convenient stores. The company’s service stations have the most advanced technology such as vacuuming and automated car wash, repair of tyre and lube services. The company also has auto car services which are found in Al Ain, Northern Emirates, Abu Dhabi, and Western Region. The company has different departments and divisions with each having clear roles and responsibilities. With respect to the case study, the main focus will be on the IT department headed by Dr. Ahmed. The IT Division at ADNOC has a distinct structure consisting of four different departments. IT Division Manager Office Administrator Application System Department Data Center and Network Technical Support IT Quality and Control The Organizational Structure and Staff The first important person in the organization is Dr. Ahmed, an Algerian who is 45 years old and has been a manager in the IT department in ADNOC Distribution for about 17 years. Having done his BSc in Engineering from Salford in Manchester, an MSc in Computer Based Design, and PhD in Computer Control and Simulation from University of Leeds, Ahmed had a wealth of experience from reputable institutions and a real professional in that regard. The experience means that he has everything needed to move the company forward when surrounded by young, energetic, and ambitious IT specialists. Ahmed had a large window that faces the corridor, he never closed that curtains Ahmed sat in a position where he could observe every movement made by every employee and ordered them to come to his office. This does not give freedom at work whatsoever; he was manhandling his juniors from time to time. He was that kind of a nosey manager who would want to know every move and make assumptions on every movement. In a working environment as busy as ADNOC Distribution, employees need not waste any time with certain questions even personal ones. Time is money and management is about saving the available time in pushing toward the goals of an organization. Being a chief gossiper in the office, he never had time for nothing, but gossip. Management is about bridging the gap between senior management and junior management in terms of working relationship and not other unhelpful pettiness such as gossiping. To top it all, Ahmed was a “one man show” character as he wanted to know everything and do everything by himself. He never delegated duties even the ones his juniors could do by themselves, he never offered that opportunity for others to grow. He never accepted other people’s opinions whatsoever even when they would seem important. To him, others were null and void, and as such, he did not see anything of value in them (Speakman and Lynette, 191). The second important employee at ADNOC Distribution is Ms. Dania. She is a Jordanian in her early thirties – 32 to be precise, a mother of two and is again pregnant. For four years she has been an ardent worker in the company as an Administration Assistant. She undertakes her work with perseverance, diligence, and is always ready to improve and go a notch higher. Dania was the only trusted employee by Ahmed and the only one who benefited from delegation – a rare thing in Ahmed. She was charged with the responsibilities of training, interviewing, and recruiting new employees within the IT department. She was the one that trained Ms. Suha and oriented her with all the necessary information as far as development of the IT department is concerned. She was more adaptable and understanding and knew how to handle Ahmed. She had been handy to Suha concerning work and her supposed responsibilities. He had developed a good working relationship with other colleagues. Ms. Suha is the other employee – 24 years old Emirati national and was employed as ADNOC Distribution’s Systems Engineer. Having graduated with a degree in Information Systems from Zayed University, she did not have any experience; the striking aspect about Suha was that she was enthusiastic about her work, social, clever, and had good citizenship. She gained a lot from Dania who always recommended her to Ahmed. She was introduced to other staff members by Dania. While others offered to give her a helping hand considering that she was a novice, there are those who vehemently refused to help her. She was however, guided by Ms. Dania. Though Ms. Dania wanted Suha to get firsthand experience directly from Ahmed the guru, she was ever pushed away by Ahmed who thought that she was not in good shape to work for the company. Despite her incessant enthusiasm and her ambition to learn, Ahmed did not see a thing in her. The other important employee was Abdulrahman, a 22 year-old Emirati national who had freshly graduated from Higher Colleges of Technology (HCT) with specialization in IT. Though he was still young, he had acquired a bit of experience having worked in three different organizations. In terms of programming, he was the best the company had acquired. In other words, he was perceived genius owing to his wealth of knowledge. This was a top talent that needed to be nurtured by all standards so that he can not think of looking elsewhere. He has come to the company to reduce the apparent errors as he was a person who never afforded making errors. He is the person who actually unearthed the reason behind inaccuracies in the company. This was attributed to Ahmed’s managerial antics. ADNOC had other 14 affiliate companies dealing in either similar or different but close activities. The company was an important tool in the Emirates, and as such, its IT system is also important to the UAE government. The company is also part of the Supreme Petroleum Council (SPC). The company’s manager of the Management Division Dr. Mohamed was the brother to Ahmed. Apparently, the reason behind Ahmed’s behavior was tied to his relationship with the senior management. That is why he took over everything even those that could have been delegated. There was a crisis because many who wanted to report the problems within the company feared there versions would not be heard because the senior person was a kinsman to the IT manager. Management in this case was compromised by the family ties in one of the most important divisions in the company. This is the hub of all the important information and when there were inaccuracies as stipulated by Abdulrahman, nothing could be done because the brother to the senior was the one in charge. Management does not work in that aspect. If there are glaring issues such as the ones mentioned, it would mean that the senior management had to take the necessary steps to iron out the complaints raised along the hierarchy. It is also understood that the two brothers were close friends with the General Manager making things even easier for them to defile the integrity of the company. They used to bypass other seniors in the hierarchy such as the Assistant General Manager. This made IT Division to have frosty relationship with other departments. This was because Ahmed had a centralized management system. He never wanted to delegate his duties to others such as subcontracting when dealing with external companies. He never attended exhibitions, seminars, and symposiums as he was trying to avoid the rest of the world because of his evident poor management (Speakman and Lynette 195). The problems and How the Affected Others Dania was heavily expectant and naturally, she would ask for maternity leave. Ahmed accepted her request, but never did she know that while on leave, her dismissal letter was being drafted. This heinous act came as a shock to other staff members, and as a result, it weakened the trust between members of the staff and management in different capacities. From historical perspective, Dania was a very important figure in the IT department as she handled most of the projects in the Division. She was always aware of what she was doing and documented every project the company undertook. After leaving the company, Ahmed took over, but he never documented his projects as he placed everything in his mind never letting others know the progress what he had designed. This sort of meanness threw away other staff members. This was very unprofessional. In order to be a good manager in a company as big as ADNOC Distribution, sharing information is very important especially when dealing with projects. To continue his mismanagement, Ahmed had an unassigned Suha at his disposal, very enthusiastic and readily available for assignment, she was never given any assignment, yet Ahmed was ever complaining that Suha was useless. Instead, he only rotated her from one department to the next without clear assignment. This was demoralizing to Suha and she felt like she was not doing enough for the company. Suha stayed for a year in the company, but was neither here nor there and that affected her passion for the job and finally quit. Abdulrahman was the last person to leave the company because he always had good ideas for the company but his efforts were thwarted by Dr. Ahmed from time to time. He rejected the need for growth and innovation; he was so obsessed with his own ideologies which were at times very unprofessional. Dr. Ahmed was one of the most important employees in the company, more so, in the IT department. His centralized of management blocked off others from the possible growth and enhancing innovation. He never offered others the opportunity to thrive, he only blocked their attempts to get higher or contribute more in the company. Management should be an all inclusive platform that enhances thriving of other employees. For instance, Abdulrahman was an important jewel for the company because of his genius character. His ideas seemed great, but he was denied the opportunity to help the company into greater heights. The same happened to Dania and Suha who also quit because of Ahmed’s selfishness and centralized approach to management (Speakman and Lynette 199). Delegation is also an important aspect in management and it was important for Ahmed to understand the need for incorporating others in the system in order to reach greater heights. Teamwork is always the name of the game in management because managers must not know everything, but helps in decision making and also gives guidance where necessary. Work Cited Speakman, James, and Lynette Ryals. “A Re-Evaluation of Conflict Theory for the Management of Multiple, Simultaneous Conflict Episodes.” International Journal of Conflict Management 21.2 (2010): 186-201. Read More