Bold Flash

BoldFlash

Company Background

Bold BoldFl Flas ash h Inc. Inc. was was foun founde ded d in 1982 1982 in Waltham ltham Mass Massac achus huset etts ts and and was was invo involv lved ed in manufacturing of computer storage media like flopp disks as well as various other product mi!es. "resentl the compan is facing tur#ulent times #ecause of the ina#ilit to keep up with highl dnamic market and customer demands. $here have #een various reasons for #reakdown in communication and teamwork. Bad management and autocratic stle of leadership led to a decline of the compan in regards to product innovation. %t present& there is an urgent need for  introducing a new innovative product in the market to make a come#ack and an organi'ational change for a longer term.

1) What are the main problems and symptoms that the Mobile Division is experiencing? What are the causes o the conlict?

!roblem "tatement

$he Mo#ile division is e!periencing shrinking margins due to pricing pressure and having hard time to compete with its competitors in overseas.. More importantl& the compan missed the great opportunit in the ta#let market. $hese issues were mainl caused # poor management especi esp eciall all  # lac lack k of col colla# la#ora oratio tion n and com commun munica icatio tion n #et #etwee ween n dep depart artmen ments. ts.

$here $he re wer weree

various inter(departmental conflicts due to different goals and performance metrics of various depart dep artmen ments. ts. )ol )oles es and res respon ponsi# si#ili ilitie tiess wer weree not wel welll def define ined* d* the theref refore ore&& the there re was mi miss( ss( communication among various functions like marketing and product development and confusion

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around the focus. "roduct +evelopment fre,uentl re,uested manufacturing plant to run trials of  new products on the manufacturing lines. -ales did not consult Manufacturing department for  their decisions. "roduct +evelopment did not work in colla#oration with other departments and never sought feed#acks from -ales& Marketing and Manufacturing.

#) $o% %ould you describe Cahill&s leadership style?

ahill has the potential and the foresight to identif the right solutions for BoldFlash& and he is more proactive in meetings compared to /arrison. Furthermore& his lack of e!perience in the role onl means that he would eventuall #ecome competent in leadership and interpersonal skills as he grows into the role.

') What changes did Cahill make? Do you think they %ere all necessary? Did he do too much all at once? Did his changes create some o the diiculties?

When 0im /arrison& former ice "resident of the compans Mo#ile +ivision passed wa& 0ack  3oung& BoldFlashs 45 immediatel su#stituted /arrison with ahill who was a ver oung highl respected research scientist #ut lacked e!perience in leadership. -ince then the pro#lems had arisen. $here were four departments in the Mo#ile +ivision* "roduct +evelopment& Marketing& -ales and Manufacturing. $he four groups were constantl in conflict with each other  and didnt have the reinforcement to work as a team. %s coordination #etween different departments was a serious issue& ahill consolidated the divisions non(manufacturing emploees # relocating all %ustin #ased corporate staff and the -hanghai #ased +irector of  Manufacturing of Waltham head,uarters. /aving +irectors of all four departments at one place would help in coordination and proactive and collective decision making as a team. ahill also

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separated Marketing and -ales& which had previousl operated together. $he two departments were ver critical for the compan and the needed to #e full staffed # trained professional. %lthough& his decision to keep #oth departments autonomous was appropriate& it was e!ecuted  #adl. $he roles and o#6ectives of the departments were not clearl defined. $here was overlapping in the responsi#ilities of -ales with that of other departments. 5ther departments were also e!periencing pro#lems in communicating with the right department for a particular  task. Do you think they %ere all necessary?

 7ot all ahills changes were essential. /aving the sales and marketing departments split was necessar. /owever& the fact that each groups responsi#ilities were not clearl defined was a significant pro#lem. $he result of this was counter(interaction with performing the re,uired 6o#s for each group and a poor product development. Most of the resulting effects of the changes ahill made to BoldFlash are productive conflict #etween functional departments& and especiall with the product development process. %dditionall& with change in customer preferences the mo#ile division has to identif customer needs& which change ,uickl. $he compans new  products in the past have reduced considera#l.

() What additional changes %ould you make? $o% %ould you improve the product development process? What do you think %ould be the best leadership style or Cahill?

dditional Changes

$he compans profit margins are low and ahill has to take drive a change within Mo#ile +ivision. /is emploees have low morale and lack motivation. 5rgani'ational change is

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significant to deliver an outcome necessar to #e successful and generate higher profits. $he direction for short term and long term changes is necessar in order to make a come#ack in the market and sta there. %s ahill is ine!perienced& sponsorship is needed from other divisions of  the compan or the upper management to make some successful changes. $he management team should #e #rought together and seek for solutions and ideas to #e implemented. Moreover& a culture that emphasi'es on the open communication and where emploees are included in the decision making process so that divisions o#6ectives are well perceived # all emploees should  #e created. orporate visits to manufacturing plants should #e made a routine re,uirement. It will  #oost morale of the emploees and will #e helpful in monitoring progress as well. %lso& it is important to stress on developing newl hired college graduates marketing emploees who lacked e!perience& to specialists.

*mprovements in !roduct Development

In todas technologicall driven world& the importance of innovation and product development is crucial for availing market opportunities. BoldFlash Mo#ile +ivision was e!periencing  pressures on the a#ilit to get new products to the market. $his was not due to the lack of  research and product development. While a lot of research was going on& it was not focused on  primar #usiness goals. $he development did not alwas align with market needs and customer  demands. $he "roduct +evelopment developed redundant customi'ed chips for mo#ile phone market customers while completel missing critical market in storage devices used for ta#lets& handing its competitors an advantage in a critical growth market. %nalsts sometimes critici'ed the firm as doing research for its own sake rather than to improve product s or meet new customer needs and faulted a corporate culture that was not alwas focused on results. $o

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overcome this difficult situation& there was an urgent need for introducing new innovative  product to sta competitive in the marketplace and for an overall change in the functioning of  department. $o cater to the customer needs and meet market e!pectations& "roduct development team needs to #e encouraged not onl to focus on new technologies #ut also on anal'ing market trends and knowing customer demands in colla#oration with Marketing and -ales people. $he emploees should #e read to utili'e new market opportunities. Further& the "roduct +evelopment should not keep to itself. $he should emphasi'e on getting fre,uent feed#acks from Marketing and -ales department on customer e!pectations& guidance a#out marketa#ilit of  new products and competitive products in the market. It will ena#le them to align their research with market demands well and commerciali'e the new technologies the develop. -imilarl& the should also share information on their upcoming products and long term goals with Marketing and -ales +epartment. Because of rapid changes in technolog and customer preferences& the "roduct +evelopment had to identif customer needs with the help of Marketing and -ales and respond more swiftl with new products. Because of cost pressures& new products had to #e designed with cost of manufacturing in mind.

+he best leadership style or Cahill

$he four departments within the Mo#ile +ivision do not work in colla#oration and the unit recentl failed to capitali'e on a #ig product opportunit. $he focus on industr demand is minimal and the focus tends to #e onl on immediate superior goals of the department. $o address the pro#lem& ahill has to develop an action plan for improvement in cross functional colla#oration. %s the head of the Mo#ile +ivision& ahill has a ke role in the team and the organi'ation at large. /e should emphasi'e on creating and supporting an environment where

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+irectors from -ales& Marketing& "roduct +evelopment& and Manufacturing are open to new ideas& can provide constructive feed#ack& and will work to #ring via#le cost effective ideas. $he +irectors should #e made responsi#le for the activities within their department. For ever goal& all the departments within the division should #e e,uall responsi#le to perform activities which should #e defined properl. -ales and Marketing can help "roduct +evelopment to incorporate consumers voice in their innovations. Manufacturing can provide feed#acks on new products for  cost efficient techni,ues. ahill should get the senior staff on #oard and all the changes and o#6ectives should #e communicated properl with other emploees. )elationship and coordination #etween various departments should #e continuousl monitored to keep check on conflicts. Conclusion

)ecentl& Boldflashs Mo#ile +ivision missed a huge opportunit of co ming up with a successful  product in ta#lets market. $he failure of the division can #e attri#uted to #ad management& role am#iguit& lack of teamwork& inter(departmental conflicts etc. $o sta competitive in the marketplace and creating value for the compan and customers& there is a dire need for an organi'ational change. ahill correctl identified the need for some changes in the division #ut changes made were not sufficient and not e!ecuted properl. %dditional changes are needed to encourage team work and cross functional colla#oration. $o #oost the morale of emploees& he should encourage upward communication to create a participative culture. %long with driving a change& he should also communicate the logic of the changes to #uild a trust among all the emploees.

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