1. Explain how you would respond if you were Palmer at the end of the case.
It appears as though Palmer was operating in a weak matrix structure where he had indirect authority to expedite the project and very little influence over the staff assigned. If I were him in this situation, I would express to Ruby Sands the office manager that this situation was beyond my control as a result of Olds being assigned to a task that was very demanding of his time and him not being able to balance that with the expectations of the Johnsonville audit. I would confirm awareness of the importance of the Springfield consulting project to the company’s strategic objectives i.e. to grow its consulting services by 40 percent within 5 years however, I would suggest that for a venture as important as Springfield the team should be chosen carefully and a compromise worked out by management in the event staff must be shared.
I would also bring to her attention that the Johnsonville audit was behind schedule as a result of the decision to assign Olds to Crosby’s project which resulted in him being consistently late due to the demands of the Springfield project. I would inform her of the times that was wasted when Olds should have been working on the Johnsonville audit and instead worked on Crosby’s assignment.
I would recommend that Sands communicate with management to make them aware of the new developments so that the situation is not used against me for future promotions in the event I am not able to complete the audit within the projected time. Also I would try to negotiate a replacement to fill Olds spot so that we can deliver on the expected date or request that an extension be given based on the change of events.

2. Discuss what Palmer could do, if anything, to avoid losing Olds.

Had Palmer been fully aware of the importance of the Springfield project and how it tied