...CONTEXT: Main character of the case: Maureen Frye who joined the company Quaker Steel and Alloy Corporation after graduating with an MBA from Harvard Business School. She joined the company first as a trainee moving on to be a market analyst and eventually became an assistant product manager for Titanium Alloys which is her current role. Her background is in marketing and finance. Maureen is responsible for coordinating the efforts of the salespeople selling extruded titanium alloy products which amounted to $300 million in 1995. Maureen had to face some difficulties in her current role mainly being: there are few women managers at Quaker, she was hired as an outsider, she had to learn the Quaker way of working, she has less experience in the field and only knows a small number of the salespeople well. A brief overview of the company: Quaker Steel and Alloy specializes in high-margin and high quality metal alloys. The company has a strong philosophy for servicing and assisting customers. They enjoy customers’ loyalty in spite of the higher margin charged. The company has a small-town feeling, work culture is friendly and open. There is lack of hierarchy and managerial positions are usually filled from within. Issue on hand: Maureen has been asked to roll out an action plan for adjusting the call patterns of the salespeople. Presently the salespeople spends a large portion of their time on small business accounts. Maureen had attempted earlier to implement changes...
Words: 1823 - Pages: 8
...MAUREEN FRYE AT QUAKER STEEL AND ALLOY CORP. CASE ANALYSIS REPORT DIAGNOSIS Maureen Frye failed to implement the proposed plan to change the call patterns of salespeople responsible for selling extruded titanium products at Quaker Steel and Alloy Corporation. The failure was due to a lack of understanding of the following components: Organization Communication Culture Structure Directives Interpersonal The principle error Maureen made was underestimating how significant company culture could impact decision-making at every responsibility level. Even though Quaker had strict functional reporting lines, the organization supported an informal culture based on friendliness and openness. Most importantly, Quaker’s ethos required a high degree of influence by persuasion and charisma—not formal authority. Secondly, the communication vehicle that Maureen chose to carry and deliver her proposed plan was ill suited for interconnecting the plan and expectations. Instead of going with the organization’s pattern of utilizing personal relationships, teamwork, and the openness to express opinions and feedback, Maureen sent a memo directly to the titanium extrusion sales representatives. In the memo, she simply gave a rationale for making the change. In response, a District Sales Manager (DSM) called Maureen to ask for a more detailed explanation for the change due to its arbitrary nature. Therefore, Maureen presented her findings to the DSMs in a yearly sales...
Words: 1333 - Pages: 6
...Maureen Frye, an assistant product manager at Quaker Steel & Alloy Corporation, was given a mandate to develop a plan to change the call patterns of salespeople responsible for selling extruded titanium alloy products. Her previous attempt at this in 1994 had failed, and in December 1995 she was instructed to come up with an implementation plan that would work. Quaker’s strategy to specialize in high margin, high quality metal alloys had seen them become one of the major manufacturers of specialized metal alloys. A large company with a small town, friendly feel, where the culture was one which encouraged participation in decision making and abandoned rigid hierarchical structures. The company philosophy was very customer focused, aimed at providing the best technical service and customer assistance available. This enabled Quaker to set higher prices and benefit from higher margins, leading to larger sales revenues in 1993 despite a reduction in actual quantity sold. Even Quaker’s competitors viewed them as ‘being very different from other manufacturers of steel and alloyed metals’ . This differentiation was a result of the original founders of the company, both were Quakers. Our analysis of the case highlights a number of mistakes behind the unsuccessful execution of Maureen’s plan. She knew that there were very few female managers and there was a tendency for these women to only occupy the lower level management positions both at Quaker and in the industry. She had discussed...
Words: 3069 - Pages: 13
...62118 0/nm 1/n1 2/nm 3/nm 4/nm 5/nm 6/nm 7/nm 8/nm 9/nm 1990s 0th/pt 1st/p 1th/tc 2nd/p 2th/tc 3rd/p 3th/tc 4th/pt 5th/pt 6th/pt 7th/pt 8th/pt 9th/pt 0s/pt a A AA AAA Aachen/M aardvark/SM Aaren/M Aarhus/M Aarika/M Aaron/M AB aback abacus/SM abaft Abagael/M Abagail/M abalone/SM abandoner/M abandon/LGDRS abandonment/SM abase/LGDSR abasement/S abaser/M abashed/UY abashment/MS abash/SDLG abate/DSRLG abated/U abatement/MS abater/M abattoir/SM Abba/M Abbe/M abbé/S abbess/SM Abbey/M abbey/MS Abbie/M Abbi/M Abbot/M abbot/MS Abbott/M abbr abbrev abbreviated/UA abbreviates/A abbreviate/XDSNG abbreviating/A abbreviation/M Abbye/M Abby/M ABC/M Abdel/M abdicate/NGDSX abdication/M abdomen/SM abdominal/YS abduct/DGS abduction/SM abductor/SM Abdul/M ab/DY abeam Abelard/M Abel/M Abelson/M Abe/M Aberdeen/M Abernathy/M aberrant/YS aberrational aberration/SM abet/S abetted abetting abettor/SM Abeu/M abeyance/MS abeyant Abey/M abhorred abhorrence/MS abhorrent/Y abhorrer/M abhorring abhor/S abidance/MS abide/JGSR abider/M abiding/Y Abidjan/M Abie/M Abigael/M Abigail/M Abigale/M Abilene/M ability/IMES abjection/MS abjectness/SM abject/SGPDY abjuration/SM abjuratory abjurer/M abjure/ZGSRD ablate/VGNSDX ablation/M ablative/SY ablaze abler/E ables/E ablest able/U abloom ablution/MS Ab/M ABM/S abnegate/NGSDX abnegation/M Abner/M abnormality/SM abnormal/SY aboard ...
Words: 113589 - Pages: 455
