CASE: DELTRONICS

Initial facts: In the Deltronics case we analyze the situation of their comptroller, Bill Riley, who suffered from severe depression and subsequently the emotional issues that arose for Bill’s superiors.
Recruiting: Even during the initial contacts with Bill, it should have been clear for his superiors that he has a withdrawn personality and that there might have been a need for further insight on his decision to quit his 2 previous jobs, before promoting him to Comptroller. When giving him such a key position in the company, his superiors should have made an effort to know his emotional mindset and not only his technical skills. As K. Pavlovich indicates in her article, “sharing encourages the integration of affective and cognitive consciousness which facilitates the ability to find common ground for solution building”. Eventhough the president, later on, worked closely with Bill, there were no real emotional attachments, whereas as a top manager, the president should have taken the time to encourage Bill to share his emotions and create an underlying connectivity, which would have also allowed the president to be aware of the real situation his employee was facing and actually monitor when changes occur, to be able to deal and resolve them on time.
Crisis: It’s clear from the details in the case that at the beginning of the year Bill was struggling to cope with the demands of the company and burning out. He was after all, responsible for cash management while Deltronics was on the verge of bankruptcy. The company’s executives were very satisfied with his outstanding performance during this period, but both the V.P. and the President should have at least been aware of the possible aftermath of such a stressful situation. As managers they have to realize this is a teamwork environment and therefore understanding the personality and coping