CASE STUDY

Let’s return our attention to Sun City Boards and its owner, Tom Wilson. Dani travelled to Tom’s operations on the West Coast and confirmed her suspicions that the problems the organization is facing are due to a lack of planning. Dani is meeting with Tom to report on her findings and to submit her recommendations.

“OK Tom, I’ve spent the last several days going through your operations and records, and I’m confident that there are actions you can take that will help turn around the business.”

Tom lets out a long sigh and says, “Dani, you have no idea how glad I am to hear that. So at a high level, what’s the problem?”

“In a nutshell, the problem with Sun City Boards is that you have lost your focus and there is no clear plan for moving forward.” Tom looks confused, so Dani explains. “When you started the business, what was your vision?”

Tom answers, “To set people free from the earth … free to ride the waves.”

“Perfect!” Dani responds. “And how were you going to do that?”

Tom thinks for a moment and then emphatically declares, “We will strive to provide the absolute best in high-end surfboard design and production!”

Dani tells Tom that he has just created the vision and mission statements for Sun City Boards. She further explains, “You have to start creating a focused plan that will help the organization deliver on its vision and mission. The reason your company is struggling is that there is no clear roadmap to success.”

Tom asks, “What do you mean?”

Dani continues, “When you started the company you were very successful because you focused on one key thing—making the best surfboards anyone had seen. As a result, everything your business did revolved around that core idea.”

Tom interrupts, “OK Dani, I think I see where you’re headed. When we started making money in the early days, I began to start expanding into other areas without a lot of thought. I listened to salespeople who came in and told me that I should branch out into low-end surf gear, then swimwear, then camping gear. Customers don’t know what we’re all about any more. And neither do my managers and employees.”

Dani can see Tom is getting his arms around the concept of vision and mission, so she moves on. Next, she presents her recommendation that Tom and his key leaders should come together regularly to create, review and update Sun City’s business plan. This is new to the team, so she gives them a quick example:

  1. Define Objectives: Sun City Boards should look to reduce noncore product lines and associated inventory. Minimum margin target is 35 percent across all remaining product lines.
  2. Develop Premises: Monitor competitor’s plans to implement a new polymer board and determine potential impact to Sun City’s sales.
  3. Evaluate Alternatives: Evaluate opportunity of opening new retail outlets along the West Coast. Also, explore international sales options for high-end surf boards.
  4. Identify Resources: Analyze the level of capital necessary to achieve expansion goals and incorporate plan to close financial gaps in the annual budget.
  5. Plan and Implement Tasks: Create a Gantt chart or other project planning tool that outlines the actions necessary to reach the goals outlined earlier.
  6. Determine Tracking and Evaluation Methods: Create SMART goals for both managers and employees that align with direction the overall business plan provides.

Finally, Dani reminds Tom that the planning process is only a tool and that the plan should be regularly reviewed and updated. Dani warns him that planning is no substitute for taking action, but it is a guide for him and his team as to what actions should be taken.

This consulting project has reminded Dani how important it is for an organization to have a clear vision and mission to know where it’s headed. Likewise, the planning process is critical to know how it’s going to get there. The alternative is like trying to take a cross-country trip without a map—you don’t know where you might end up!

Preparation

The Decision Making module of your text provided numerous decision tools and methods to use during the decision process. In this assignment, you will draw upon your personal decision-making experience. As you learned in the module, people make decisions with our biases and preferred styles in play. You will describe your decision, what choices were involved, how you made your decision, and what the outcome was, relating your process to the rational decision-making process described in the text. The following steps will help you prepare for your written assignment:

  1. Thoroughly read the Decision Making module.
  2. Carefully consider the tools and methods described in the reading to assist with Management Decision Making.
  3. Think of a decision you have made or been involved in making. This could be a personal decision or a work-related decision.

Your Task

  1. Outline your decision process as it relates to the six steps of the rational decision-making process described in the text:

Step 1. Identify the Problem

Step 2. Establish Decision Criteria

Step 3. Weigh Decision Criteria

Step 4. Generate Alternatives

Step 5. Evaluate Alternatives

Step 6. Select the Best Alternative

For example, if you’re writing about your decision to adopt a pet, the problem you identify in Step 1 might be that you were lonely in your apartment at night, and you’d always wanted to rescue a dog. In Step 2, you could describe the decision criteria you used to select a dog: your apartment only allows dogs under 25 pounds, you wanted a dog with short hair for easier cleanup, you would only travel to a rescue facility within 50 miles of your house, and so on. If you skipped any of the steps above, note that. Include this outline in your written assignment submission.

  1. Write a two-paragraph essay describing your decision process (as outlined above), including its strengths and weaknesses. Your essay must include at least two properly described and referenced decision methods or styles from the text. For example, if your decision was impeded by bias, describe if it was confirmation bias, anchoring, or some other kind of bias. Answer and address these questions:
    • What is your preferred decision-making style?
    • How does your style work for you? Are you always satisfied with your decisions?
    • What method from the text would you consider for your future decision making?
    • How important is decision making in the role of a business leader? Provide an example.

In addition to the text, you are encouraged to research decision-making methods using reliable and properly cited Internet resources. You may also draw from your personal experience with appropriate examples to support your references.