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Brick By Brick Case Study Help

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Brick By Brick Case Study Help

Background and Facts

Brick By Brick a workplace supplies store for small as well as average sized businesses has lately been associated with planning for a merging with its rival Residence Deport, which has impacted effectiveness levels in departmentswith the elderly supervisor involved in lawful issues presented by the federal Trade Commission. With the Advertising and marketing Head putting forward the news of his separation from the company in one year, Jeannie Lewis, the existing head of procedures has been asked to take the function in the future. With challenges in the form of a prospective social adjustment and also reduced staff member morale, the organization requires a complete reengineering effort at the advertising division.

Issue Declaration
Porter's 5 Forces Analysis
The prospective social adjustment at the marketing department of Brick By Brick is increasing unpredictability in the workplace resulting in numerous obstacles for the Jeannie Lewis that would be changing the head of the department in one year. nalysis

PEST analysis

Political Factors: Political factors play a major function in influencing strategic decisions considering that Stapes Inc. had to desert its plans of combining with Office Deport after the Federal Trade Compensation's treatment at the same time. Provided the reality that the store has an international presence with branches in UK, USA, Canada and Germany, political factors in each of these countries might have the ability to influence performance or critical objectives. Federal Profession Payment's antitrust fit against the merging occupied beneficial time of the company's senior management recommending that 'political' factors can have serious implications for an international organisation.

Economic Factors: Economic factors such as the appearance of local business in the worldwide situation suggest that Brick By Brick is thriving in a setting where there is prospective development of organisations. Along with this, truth that shop clients are primarily searching for office supplies for office recommends that the marketplace has a climbing fad of business owners and home based companies.

Social factors: Social patterns in the economic situation show that consumers are searching for benefit along with attractive rates. Market research demonstrates how the customer for Brick By Brick lacks awareness concerning finding solutions which can supply a mix of ease and also low costs.

Technical factors: Modern technology plays a vital role in Brick By Brick's service approach particularly as the company is piloting Technology facilities which would offer technology sales and also support in the kind of memory upgrades, outer installations. (Summary of PARASITE in appendix 2).

OB Issues and also Effects.

Several underlying Organizational Behavior issues can be seen in Brick By Brick's case as highlighted in this section.

Concerns regarding cultural adjustment: There is uneasiness about a cultural modification that would certainly occur when Todd Krasnow leaves from his position as the Executive Vice Head Of State of Advertising with a lot of the team member already revealing discontent over this potential relocation. This expected change has developed stress in the office which has been combined with the previous tension of preparing the firm for a possible merging with House Deport.
Pest Analysis
Stressful Task Atmosphere for Newcomers: There is shortage of employees that can match the demanding environment of a fast-paced organization. Not only does this lead to trouble in locating the right people, it places anxiety on new hires as can not stand up to the pace and pressure that the company anticipates them to birth.

Dual Reporting Lines: Beginners locate this organizational society troublesome and also difficult to deal with particularly as populated line partnerships are meant to be weak generally and unbiased setting and also efficiency evaluation is still done by the strong line supervisor. This implies that novices might shed clearness about their corresponding duties and objectives specifically as populated line coverage does not keep them in direct interaction with the solid line managers.

Bitterness From Cross Departmental Hiring: Krasnow's choice to make Lewis his successor rather than Bridget Coles even though it had been hypothesized that the last would certainly take Krasnow's position came as a blow to her spirits. Lewis may have been capable as well as proper for the task yet the fact that Kransnow's separation would certainly make Coles a direct report to Lewis may have been the factor for Coles' resignation from solutions.

Concern & Work Instability: Concern as well as insecurity can be recognized as 2 major issues that Lewis would certainly be managing especially as the merging has currently be terminated and also two senior executives of the advertising and marketing division would certainly be leaving. The whole obligation of the division would certainly be dropping on Lewis's shoulders that would certainly not just be in charge of brining concerning a social modification however would additionally need to verify herself in her brand-new duty.

Inappropriate Monitoring Style of Leader: Lewis's administration style and its conflict with the marketing division's function can also be viewed as an OB obstacle particularly as she has actually been made use of to handling issues in the procedures division where workers are instructed to focus on procedures and get them right. The advertising and marketing department on the other hand can be seen as a team of individuals who are made use of to being supported by Krasnow that focused extra on outcome than processes.

Interdepartmental Disputes: Interdepartmental arguments in between three divisions, advertising and marketing, merchandizing and also procedures respectively over the allocation of the advertising mix can be determined as an additional OB issue. The marketing department does not share the exact same vision as the various other two departments concerning the aloocation of the marketing mix twoards promos and advertsing, the merchandizing and operations departments do not concur over the advertising and marketing mix appropriation amongst one another either.

Fragmentation in Marketing Division: Disintegration in between the marketing and advertising divisions can be identified as another OB problem which can need additional focus. The fact that the marketing and advertising areas in the marketing department are separated is preventing both departments from getting from each other's experience and also knowledge. Combination of advertising with retailing as well as procedures would come to be harder if the advertising department itself is broken down which can be one more prospective OB problem.

Brick By Brick Analysis

Various theories have actually been used to describe the conditions to get additional clarity concerning the scenario handy.
Swot Analysis
McGregor's Theory X & Y: According to Douglas McGregor's Theory X, the majority of supervisors believe that staffs are passive and careless, have little ambition and stand up to adjustment. The situation at Brick By Brick is not entirely complying with Theory X, it can be seen that new hires are finding this setting instead stressful which may eventually lead to a better inclination of the administration towards Concept X. Also while assessing Lewis's monitoring style, concept X may have been appropriate in the operations division to some degree however the Advertising department would certainly require dependence on Concept Y in order to get the creative thinking as well as creativity from the teams.

Tuckman's Synergy Concept: As much as Lewis's issue about bringing harmony between the marketing as well as marketing department is worried, this would at first lead to conflict as talked about by Bruce Tuckman in his 'Team effort Theory'. By combining the advertising and advertising department's job, there might be the very same preliminary disconnect which might lead to the second phase of 'storming' where the groups challenge one an additional.

Bridges' Shift Design: Based On William Bridge's concept (appendix 4), people are fairly uncomfortable with adjustment, which is obvious by the circumstance at Brick By Brick The scenario can be viewed as a regular course of life if is researched based on Bridge's concept where he clarifies that people go through three phases of shift when they experience modification. 'End, losing and also Letting go', The Neutral Zone and 'The New Beginning' (Bridges, 2004). When individuals exist with modification, they get in phase one therefore there may be feelings like unhappiness, uncertainty, disappointment, anger, anxiety, rejection and disorientation.The circumstance at the advertising department of Brick By Brick is comparable so Lewis can obtain comfy with the concept that it is not extraordinary habits. In the second stage, there might be a requirement to bridge the space between the new as well as old culture so Lewis may need to face this challenge once Krasnow leaves. There may be reduced morale and reduced efficiency at this stage which should not be taken as a problem. It is throughout this stage that Lewis will have to give guidance to the department to make sure that they can find an orientation. It can be seen just how Krasnow has already made this change easier by making Lewis obtain associated with the department a year before his actual separation. Based on Bridges' Model, phase three will certainly cause openness to knowing, High power and commitment as people will embrace the modification (Bridges, 2004).
Vrio Analysis
Abraham Maslow in his Theory of 'Needs Hierarchy' (appendix 5) has talks about the value of 'security needs as being a lower degree need of a human for activating inspiration. As seen in the pyramid shared in appendix 3, we can see exactly how 'the need to feel secure and out of danger' is at the 2nd degree of requirements. Prior to an employee can be made to develop mentally, he requires to have his 'Physiological 'and also 'Safety and security' requires met.

SWOT Analysis for Brick By Brick Case Study



Effects of Analysis.

The OB analysis has considered different theories to recognize how to deal with the existing circumstance handy. The complying with 3 alternatives have actually been suggested to assist Lewis take care of the business challenges in the marketing division. Each of these options has actually been proposed for reducing the shift required to bring the marketing department according to the demands of the marketplace as well as for making the social change that would follow as soon as the existing leader leaves.

Assimilation of marketing and advertising functions. Dividing Adverting and Production functions. Combination of Advertising with Procedures.

Examination of Alternatives.

Judith Shapiro that has actually earlier been spoken with by Lewis throughout the earlier merger days has competence in business-to-business advertising and marketing along with company and also retail marketing experience. When Krasnow leaves, Lewis can hire Shapiro as an EVP for advertising and marketing to take care of both marketing and also marketing features.

The benefit of this method is that it will certainly integrate both features while minimizing the requirement for employing an extra source for marketing. Lewis would be heading the marketing division and also in any type of case her substitute would certainly be required for the present role that she is carrying out. The negative aspect of this choice is that external hiring may cause animosity from interior workers that might be considering the position of EVP after Lewis takes control of Krasnow's placement.

Separating Adverting as well as Production: Provided the competitive pressures and also excellent quality work required from the ad agency, it is suggested that Lewis ought to enable the production device to be a separate function from the marketing device. Given that most ad agency had these two features as different systems, it makes more feeling to comply with the standard. In addition to this, both features may have the ability to focus on their core activates much more effectively. Nonetheless, the disadvantage of this technique would certainly be that extra costs would certainly need to be borne for setting up different production functions. A production head may have to be hired which can enhance overheads for the company.

Assimilation of Marketing with Workflows: Since Lewis is currently dealing with the advertising and marketing and also operations departments concurrently; it makes good sense to integrate both functions given that she has actually been efficiently dealing with both ends. The reality that both divisions currently have significant differences over allowance of resources suggests that this combination might be able to produce consistency particularly as Lewis would certainly be heading both ends.However there are numerous downsides of this move especially as it would place way too much burden over Lewis's shoulders. The reality that Lewis has to adjust her management style for the advertising and marketing division recommends that these 2 divisions would be culturally diverse. Lewis may not be able to use one kind of leadership design to both divisions which might result in inefficiency in either one of the two functions.

Recommendation.



An examination of the three options suggests that assimilation of advertising and procedures would not be a viable move due to the huge differences between the 2 departments regardless of the fact that presently Lewis is taking care of both. While separation of the production feature may have been a desirable relocation for the advertising and marketing department, the reality that it would certainly mean positioning a 3rd feature under Lewis's wing implies this should be avoided.

Action Strategy.
Recommendation
Lewis will take control of the role of EVP Marketing after Krasnow leaves.

Marketing and advertising functions would be merged.

Judith Shapiro will be hired to take Lewis's location as SVP of advertising and marketing.

Production feature will certainly remain component of advertising under advertising function.

Lewis will certainly divide herself from operations.

A democratic leadership design with worker empowerment will certainly be used in marketing department.

Open up door policy and emphasis on cross departmental communication will certainly be targeted at getting rid of dissonance.

Contingency strategy.

If the integration does not exercise as intended, a contingency strategy would adhere to which would certainly divide the production function from the advertising and marketing function to reduce the load on the SVP of marketing and advertising. In case Judith Shapiro does not obtain worked with, Lewis will be heading the advertising and marketing department without an SVP. In that case the production feature will certainly be divided by putting it under an SVP production.