BOH4M Case Study Selection
Camp Happy Valley
The programmer for Camp Happy Valley, a day camp for children, was wondering what he could do to boost the camp's morale and improve its organization. Last summer's disappointing season had resulted in many complaints from staff, campers and parents. Changes would have to be made to ensure that the camp's upcoming season would be successful. The young programmer must examine several aspects of the camp's organization in order to assess where change is needed. Staff selection, staff training and remuneration are some of the obvious areas that need attention. Camp morale and overall environment need a major overhaul as well. The programmer must decide how best to use his own leadership style to influence and motivate his staff to bring about the necessary changes.
Tepperman's Home Furnishings
The unionized warehouse employees at Tepperman's Home Furnishings, a large furniture retailer, had been on strike for more than three weeks. Tepperman's, a family-owned and operated business, had a reputation for commitment to its employees and the community. Since the strike began, store sales were declining and picketers were causing difficulties for customers and other employees. Management needed to make some fast strategic decisions in order to manage the crisis situation. The supplement Tepperman's Home Furnishings (B), product 9B03C029, looks at the situation two months after the strike.
High Performance Tire
Jenny Chen, CA, CFA, CMC has been hired by Jane Wallace of High Performance Tire. Jane, who inherited the firm from her parents, had successfully run the company for many years. When she transferred the responsibility to her son William in 2001, he began to make several changes in order to expand the number of outlets, diversify the product offering, and cut costs in the company. In 2004, the company was having difficulties and Jane decided to become more involved in the family business once again. Jenny's task is to review and analyze the company operations and make recommendations.
Rogers Cable: First Time Right
In the fall of 2002, the directors of process engineering at Rogers Cable had discovered that a significant portion of Rogers Cable's installations and service activities had been followed by repeat visits within the following 30 days. This meant that services were not properly completed the first time. If high numbers of repeat and rework problems continued, customers would readily take their business elsewhere in the highly competitive environment. Eliminating repeat visits is the focus and driving force behind the First Time Right initiative, aimed to satisfy customers on the first try. The directors must devise an action plan that will motivate and retain behavioral change among field service technicians.
Please Stop Working So Hard
A new production supervisor at an automobile engine plant has encountered his first challenging task. The production supervisor must find a way to diffuse the tension between his team leader and other machine operators on the line. The team leader, the hardest worker among the group, was repeatedly criticized for over-exerting himself in many areas of the line. The workers feared that their jobs would be in jeopardy if workaholics like the team leader started undertaking multiple tasks. In addition, the workers began to feel that they were receiving unequal treatment from the production supervisor as the team leader was given special permission to break team norms. As the morale of the group continued to deteriorate, the production supervisor wanted to confront the team leader about this unique quandary. The production supervisor needed to figure out a solution to best please the team leader and the entire group.
Rockwater Insurance*
After four months in his new position, the assistant operations manager of a family-run, mid-sized insurance company must deal with the performance issues of a long-time employee. The offender’s high rate of errors and his slow completion times, along with his increasingly defiant attitude, have gone on for too long, especially since this performance is negatively affecting the other employees in the operations department. Since past efforts have done little to remedy the issues, the assistant operations manager knows his next move needs to resolve them. New to his role, he wants to ensure that he handles this difficult situation well.
* advanced case study