Case Incident: The Expansion of Blue Streak
Questions:
- What suggestions would you offer to Art to improve his operation?
- What management skills must Art master if he is to resolve his problems and continue to grow? Which of the categories from the textbook relate to these skills?
Case Incident 1.1
Due Date: By midnight EST/EDT on the last day of Module 1 Save the file as your lastname_ci1-1 (e.g., lindbergh_ci1-1.doc or .docx).
The Expansion of Blue Streak
Arthur Benton started the Blue Streak Delivery Company five years ago. Blue Streak initially provided commercial delivery services for all packages within the city of Unionville (population 1 million).
Art started with himself, one clerk, and one driver. Within three years, Blue Streak had grown to the point of requiring 4 clerks and 16 drivers. It was then that Art decided to expand and provide statewide service. He figured this would initially require the addition of two new offices, one located at Logantown (population 500,000) in the southern part of the state, and one at Thomas City (population 250,000) in the northern part of the state. Each office was staffed with a manager, two clerks, and four drivers. Because both Logantown and Thomas City were within 150 miles of Unionville, Art was able to visit each office at least once a week and personally coordinate the operations in addition to providing general management assistance. The statewide delivery system met with immediate success and reported a healthy profit for the first year.
The next year Art decided to expand and include two neighboring states. Art set up two offices in each of the two neighboring states. However, operations never seemed to go smoothly in the neighboring states. Schedules were constantly being fouled up, deliveries were lost, and customer complaints multiplied. After nine months, Art changed office managers in all four outof-state offices. Things still did not improve. Convinced that he was the only one capable of straightening out the out-of-state offices, Art began visiting them once every two weeks. This schedule required Art to spend at least half of his time on the road traveling between offices.
After four months of this activity. Art began to be tired of the constant travel; operations in the two neighboring states still had not improved. In fact, on each trip Art found himself spending all his time putting out fires that should have been handled by the office managers.
Art decided to have a one-day meeting that all of his office managers would attend to discuss problems and come up with some answers. At the meeting, several issues were raised. First, all of the managers thought Art’s visits were too frequent. Second, most of the managers did not seem to know exactly what Art expected them to do. Finally, each of the managers believed they should have the authority to make changes in their office procedures without checking with Art before making the change.
Rue, L. W., Ibrahim, N. A., & Byars, L. L. (2013). Management: Skills and application (14th ed.). New York, NY: McGraw-Hill.
Questions
1. What suggestions would you offer to Art to improve his operation?
2. What management skills must Art master if he is to resolve his problems and continue to grow? Which of the categories from the textbook relate to these skills?
Note= please follow instruction
MGMT 201: 1.5 Case Incident Rubric
| Criteria |
Ratings |
Pts |
|
Identification and Analysis of the Main Issues/Problem
|
(Excellent – A) Identifies and understands all of the main issues in the case study. Insightful and thorough analysis of all the issues.
25.0 pts
|
(Above-Average – B) Identifies and understands most of the main issues in the case study. Thorough analysis of most of the issues.
23.0 pts
|
(Average – C) Identifies and understands some of the issues in the case study. Superficial analysis of some of the issues in the case.
21.0 pts
|
(Near-Failing – D) Identifies and understands few of the issues in case study. Incomplete analysis of the issues.
19.0 pts
|
(Failing – F) Identifies and understands very little of the issues in case study. No analysis of the issues.
17.0 pts
|
|
25.0 pts
|
|
Answers to Case Study Questions
|
(Excellent – A) Answers to case study questions are clear throughout. Connection with class and study material goes well beyond the obvious connections among ideas; demonstrates insight and original thinking.
20.0 pts
|
(Above-Average – B) Answers to case study questions present some irrelevant information on topic etc., but very little; treatment goes beyond obvious connections with class and study material.
18.0 pts
|
(Average – C) Answers to case study questions are vague in places; some irrelevant or distracting information.
16.0 pts
|
(Near-Failing – D) Answers to case study questions are unclear and/or confusing. Treatment is very superficial; paper may be well written but says nothing.
14.0 pts
|
(Failing – F) Does not address the case study questions. Treatment is very superficial and says very little.
12.0 pts
|
|
20.0 pts
|
|
Comments on effective solutions/strategies
|
(Excellent – A) Well documented, reasoned, and pedagogically appropriate comments on solutions, or proposals for solutions, to all issues in the case study.
20.0 pts
|
(Above-Average – B) Appropriate, well thought out comments about solutions, or proposals for solutions, to most of the issues in the case study.
18.0 pts
|
(Average – C) Superficial and/or inappropriate solutions to some of the issues in the case study.
16.0 pts
|
(Near-Failing – D) Little or no action suggested, and/or inappropriate solutions to all of the issues in the case study.
14.0 pts
|
(Failing – F) Provided no feasible solutions or strategies to the issues in the case study.
12.0 pts
|
|
20.0 pts
|
|
Links to Course Readings and Additional Research
|
(Excellent – A) Excellent research into the issues with clearly documented links to class (and/or outside) readings.
20.0 pts
|
(Above-Average – B) Good research and documented links to the material read.
18.0 pts
|
(Average – C) Limited research and documented links to any readings.
16.0 pts
|
(Near-Failing – D) Incomplete research and links to any readings.
14.0 pts
|
(Failing – F) Provided no references or support of analysis.
12.0 pts
|
|
20.0 pts
|
|
Style and Mechanics
|
(Excellent – A) Chooses words for their precise meaning and uses an appropriate level of specificity. Sentence style fits audience and purpose. Sentences clearly structured and carefully focused. Almost entirely free of spelling, punctuation, and grammatical errors.
15.0 pts
|
(Above-Average – B) Generally uses words accurately and effectively, but may be too general. Sentences generally clear, structured, and focused, though some may be awkward or ineffective. May contain a few errors, which may annoy the reader but not impede understanding.
12.0 pts
|
(Average – C) Uses relatively vague and general words, may use some inappropriate language. Sentence’s structure generally correct, but sentences may be wordy, unfocused, repetitive, or confusing. Usually contains several mechanical errors, which may temporarily confuse the reader but not impede the overall understanding.
10.0 pts
|
(Near-Failing – D) Tends to being vague and abstract, or very personal and specific. Usually contains several awkward or ungrammatical sentences; sentence structure is simple or monotonous. Usually contains either many mechanical errors or a few important errors that block the reader’s understanding and ability to see connections between thoughts.
8.0 pts
|
(Failing – F) Misuse of words throughout. Awkward sentences throughout. Difficult to attach a thought process. Poorly punctuated, misspelled words, grammatically abusive.
6.0 pts
|
|
15.0 pts
|
|
Total Points: 100.0
|
