Question

CASE STUDY

The president of Simplex Mills sat at his desk in the hushed atmosphere, so typical of business offices, after the close of working hours. He was thinking about Rehman, the manager in-charge of purchasing, and his ability to work with George, the production manager, and Vipulabh, the marketing and sales manager in the firm. When the purchasing department was established two years ago, both George and Vipulabh agreed with the need to centralise this function and place a specialist in charge. George was of the view that this would free his supervisors from detailed ordering activities. Vipulabh opined that the flow of materials into the firm was important enough to warrant a specialised management assignment. Yet since the purchasing department began operating it has been precisely these two managers who have had a number of confrontations with the new purchase manager, and occasionally with one another, in regard to the way the purchasing function in being carried out. From George’s point of view, instead of simplifying his job as production manager by taking care of purchasing for him, the purchasing department has developed a formal set of procedures that has resulted in as much time commitment on his part as he had previously spent in placing his orders directly with vendors. Further, he is specially irritated by the fact that his need for particular items or particular specification is constantly being questioned by the purchasing department. When the department was established, George assumed that the purchasing manager was there to fill his needs, not to question them. As Vipulabh sees it, the purchasing function is an integral part of marketing function, and the two therefore need to be jointly managed as a unified process. Purchasing function cannot be separated from a firm’s overall marketing strategy. However, Rehman has attempted to carry out the purchasing function without regard for this obvious relationship between his responsibilities and those of Vipulabh, thus making a unified marketing strategy impossible. In his previous position, Rehman had worked in the purchasing department of a firm considerably larger than Simplex. Before being hired, he was interviewed by all the top managers, including George and Vipulabh, but it was the president himself who negotiated the details of the job offer. As Rehman sees it, he was hired as a professional to do a professional job. Both George and Vipulabh have been distracting him from this goal by presuming that he is somehow subordinate to them, which he believes is not the case. The people in the production department, who use the purchasing function most, have complained about the detail that he requires on their requisitions. But he has documented proof that materials are now being purchased much more economically than they were under the former decentralised system. He finds Vipulabh’s interests more difficult to understand, since he sees no particular relationship between his responsibilities for efficient procurement, and Vipulabh’s responsibilities to market the firm’s products. The president has been aware of the continuing conflict among three managers for some time, but on the theory that a little rivalry is healthy and stimulating, he has felt that it was nothing to be unduly concerned about. But now that much of his time is being taken up by much of what he considers to be petty bickering, the time has come to take some positive action.

Questions

1. Is George’s view of the situation realistic?

2. How do you evaluate Vipulabh’s position?

3. How might this conflict be associated with factors in the formal organisation?

4. Identify a suitable TITLE to the case and justify it.

Answer 1

Answer 1:

George's view of the situation is not realistic. Hiring Rehman as the purchase manager would result in him analyzing the purchasing function and question certain purchase decisions. It is in his profile to understand specifications and buying requirements. His role requires negotiating payment terms and lead time to optimize his function. George was expecting Rehman to function as per his requirements and to simply book orders as required by him. Rehman is functioning as a specialist taking a keen interest in specifications, putting in processes, and also trying to minimize costs. George was assuming the situation would remain as is without intervention or questioning by Rehman. He was assuming Rehman would be a facilitator for the production department. The purchase manager role is much wider and has a larger scope. His role requires him to understand and manage the purchase requirements to maximize returns to the company. To conclude Rehman is working for the organization and to optimize purchase function, not as an assistant to George.

Answer 2:

Vipulabh’s position is that he considers purchase as a part of marketing. He feels they need a unified strategy as both departments to interface with external stakeholders. Vipulabh’s position is partially correct because the purchase pattern has to match the marketing strategy but Rehman’s activity of making purchase systematic processes, reducing costs, and improving the sourcing process has no relevance to Vipulabh directly. As long as Rehman is efficiently managing to purchase and is reducing the costs of the material, he is manging his profile efficiently. Vipulabh’s intervention is primarily to keep a hold over the function which has no direct relevance with his activity. He is playing a power game and indulging in office politics by trying to show purchase is part of the marketing function. To conclude Vipulabh is unnecessarily meddling with Rehman’s function to keep control over the purchase function which has no relevance to his profile.

Answer 3:

The formal organization has a clear hierarchical structure and defined roles. The reporting structure is clearly defined. The authority, responsibility, and accountability are fixed. All three managers are reporting to the president and assigned the responsibility of their respective departments. The conflict in the organization is basically because George and Vipulabh have been independently managing the purchase activities along with their functions. They are working as heads of their departments with minimal questioning and intervention from a third department. Rehman heading purchase has created a third person at the same level. The purchase department is a separate function and is a third function at the same level. They are mot giving him space to manage his activities. Both George and Vipulabh are unable to let go of the activity for which Rehman is hired. They are trying to control him and manage him as a subordinate. They are used to things working in a particular manner and are unable to adapt to the changing dynamics of the organization. As an organization grows the functions will increase and become more specialized. George and Vipulabh’s are just instances of individuals who are not evolving and adapting to changes required as an organization grows.

Answer 4:
Title: Conflicting Roles and Management Dynamics
The article discusses the dynamics of simplex industries. It discusses and explores conflict amongst managers in relation to processes and systems. It is primarily discussing the business dynamics of the organization and the complicated relationship between the senior function managers