Case Analysis:Questions & Answers

Question one:

Do the original goals of the team management system used at Marshall’s comport more with the philosophy of human relations or human resources management?

The goals of the team management system at Marshall’s comport more with human relations management, because management maintained the right to make the final decisions. Essentially, this program is a form of maintenance communication. The intentions of management are unlike those of the human resources style of management because management is not truly taking the ideas of the workers into consideration.

How would the theorists discussed

in this chapter (Maslow, McGregor,

Likert, and Blake and Mouton) analyze the current situation at

Marshall’s?

Abraham Maslow would say that the program is not working because the

workers’ self esteem needs are not being met (because management is not valuing

their opinions) and therefore, the workers are unable to

move up in the hierarchy of needs to reach self-

actualization and achieve their full potential.

Question 1: Part two

McGregor would observe that the managers want to be Theory Y managers, who

believe that workers desire responsibility and to be able to fully utilize their intellect,

but they are not having success with this. If they want

to be true Theory Y managers, they must put full

trust in their workers.

Question 1: Part two

How would the theorists discussed

in this chapter (Maslow, McGregor,

Likert, and Blake and Mouton) analyze the current situation at

Marshall’s?

Blake and Mouton, using their Managerial Grid as the model, would note that the managers are using “Middle of the Road”

management, because although they are moderately concerned

with production and with people, they are not reaching full

potential. “Team Management” is the goal of the managers at Marshall’s, and they can get

there by satisfying the workers, which will increase productivity

in turn.

Question 1: Part two

How would the theorists discussed

in this chapter (Maslow, McGregor,

Likert, and Blake and Mouton) analyze the current situation at

Marshall’s?

Likert would think that the “climate” of the

organization is consultative (System III): although there is a high

level of vertical communication and the views of the employees

are taken into consideration, decisions are still made at the top

and control still rests primarily at the upper

levels of the hierarchy.

Question 1: Part two

How would the theorists discussed

in this chapter (Maslow, McGregor,

Likert, and Blake and Mouton) analyze the current situation at

Marshall’s?

Question two:

• It is very desirable to satisfy all groups of employees within the company, because satisfied workers may work harder. It is possible to do this by studying and addressing the concerns of each group individually. For the first group, concerned with the extra “busywork,” the meetings should be short, concise, and optional. The team should send out newsletters or “minutes” detailing discussion at the meetings, as well as opening up discussion through email, so as to not waste anyone’s time. For the second group, who felt that these things should be in the hands of management, we suggest that a manager be present at each meeting in order to mediate discussion. For the final group, concerned that their views were not actually being considered, the employees should come up with multiple solutions/ideas that work for them, and then allow management to make the final decision among those choices. This method satisfies group two also, because management would have to be highly involved.

• The human relations approach would not see an issue with the program because management is doing their best to create maintenance communication. Human resources, however, would see an issue because the employees are not being used for what they are: assets. The company is therefore missing out on valuable ideas thus management would need to undergo training workshops in order to understand how they should be utilizing employee ideas and helping to stimulate new ones.

Employees identified three reasons for not participating in the program at Marshall’s. How would you deal with each of these problems? Is it possible (or desirable) to satisfy all groups of employees and achieve full participation? Would human relations and human resources theorists have different ideas about the importance of these various reasons for not participating in the team management system?

Question Three:

In order to increase participation, management must begin to actually value and utilize the ideas of the employees. This will renew the employees’ faith in the program. Management must be involved in the program, but still leave the control in the hands of the employees. In order to transition to a human resources approach, management must allow employees to come up with ideas and make decisions as a team in regards to those ideas. The work teams must be allowed to collectively make decisions for the plant. These changes in turn should be announced throughout the plant to renew the interest of employee participation within the work teams. Thus, increasing morale in this way will in turn increase production, the main goal of implementing this program.

What changes would you make in the team management system at Marshall’s that would increase participation? What changes would you make to enhance the effective use of human resources at Marshall’s? How would you institute these changes and communication them to employees?