Brainy Brian

This week's assignment is the analysis of a mini-case. This assignment should only be completed AFTER you have thoroughly read and reviewed this week's assigned readings AND you have thoroughly read and reviewed the assignment instructions and criteria in the assignment grading rubric. As you develop your response throughout the week, be sure to continually review the instructions and grading rubric to ensure that your response takes ALL the included criteria into consideration.

Your responses to each question within the case should also be clearly numbered.

Please keep the following in mind about your assignment response:

Before you submit your assignment response, ensure that it includes appropriate number and types of citations and references, presented in the appropriate format.

Your submission will receive a Turnitin similarity score which must meet the required less than 20% threshold. This may take minutes, several hours and possibly up to 24 hours depending on Turnitin's queue length so please ensure that you complete your submission within enough time to edit it and received a revised score prior to the due date.

If your score is greater than the 20% threshold, please redo your response and resubmit it here again. You will be able to edit and resubmit your response as many times as necessary until the deadline. Submissions which exceed the 20% threshold after the deadline on Sunday night at 11.55pm CST will be assigned a grade of zero.

If you opt to reference the course text, this does NOT count as an external reference but is a reference which is internal to the course. It should be cited appropriately.

Within this course, Wikipedia and other open source sites are NOT considered reputable sources. Webster's dictionary and other online dictionaries WILL NOT be counted as a valid external reference.

Be sure to place a header "References"above your list of references to reduce the likelihood that Turnitin will include those items in your similarity score.

More detail is better than less. Be thorough in your responses and ensure that your submission reflects sufficient depth, analysis, and critical thinking consistent with a graduate level business course. Look beyond the words provided in the case to assess what may have led to the situation presented and possible unidentified consequences.

ASSIGNMENT

To fully address this case assignment, please read and analyze each assigned case. Your responses should be numbered and provide the following:

1. Summarize the key OB issues in the case that you have identified from this week's material (at least 2 key issues MUST be identified). Be sure to speak in OB language, using appropriate terminology to identify the concepts and issues you identify.

2. Clearly link the key issues that you have identified in #1 back to relevant and specific course material covered. Be specific by identifying specific instances and scenarios in the case which demonstrate the OB issues and concepts identified. Explain IN DETAIL how these instances/scenarios are reflective and demonstrative of those specific OB issues.

3. Make at least one recommendation for how each of the key issues you identified should be handled at the organizational level of the case's main character. The main character reflects the point of view from which the case is written (i.e., an employee, organization, customer). Justify the merit of each of your recommendations and be sure to include your rationale for how and why you expect them to be effective in addressing the issues. This response should provide detailed explanations and justifications to support your position.

4. Propose at least one executive or corporate level intervention for any one of the key issues you have identified to recommend how upper management can also play a part in addressing that issue. This response should be different from any of the recommendations offered in #3. Be sure to clearly identify which OB issue your organization level/executive level intervention is meant to address and how the intervention would be of benefit. This response should provide detailed explanations and justifications to support your position.

Case

When the Budder Mining Equipment company decided to set up a branch office in Peru, top management felt that there were two basic avenues the company could travel. One was to export its machinery and have an agent in that country be responsible for the selling. The other was to set up an on-site operation and be directly responsible for the sales effort. After giving the matter a great deal of thought, management decided to assign one of their own people to this overseas market. The person who was chosen, Frank Knight, had expressed an interest in the assignment, but had no experience in South America. He was selected because of his selling skills and was given a week to clear out his desk and be on location. When Frank arrived, he was met at the airport by Pablo Gutierrez, the local who was hired to run the office and break Frank in. Pablo had rented an apartment and car for Frank and taken care of all the chores associated with getting him settled. Frank was very impressed. Thanks to Pablo, he could devote all his efforts to the business challenges that lay ahead. After about six months, the vice president for marketing received a call from Frank. In a tired voice Frank indicated that even though sales were okay, he couldn’t take it anymore. He wanted to come home. If nothing could be worked out within the next three months, Frank made it clear that he would resign. When his boss pressed him regarding the problems he was having, here is what Frank reported:

Doing business over here is a nightmare. Everyone comes to work late and leaves early. They also take a two-hour rest period during the afternoon. All the offices close down during this afternoon break. So even if I wanted to conduct some business during this period, there would be no customers around anyway. Also, no one works very hard, and they seem to assume no responsibility whatsoever. There seems to be no support for the work ethic among the people. Even Pablo, who looked like he was going to turn out great, has proved to be as lazy as the rest of them. Sales are 5 percent over forecasted but a good 30 percent lower than they could be if everyone here would just work a little harder. If I stay here any longer, I’m afraid I’ll start becoming like these people. I want out, while I still can.