Case Study #2

In September 2009, Julius Walls resigned from his position as CEO of Greyston Bakery. William Mistretta became the new CEO after Walls’ resignation. These two men were different in that one had more corporate business experience than the other. More specifically, William Mistretta had about 25 years of experience in corporate when he became CEO of Greyston. In comparison, Walls had only worked in a chocolate company and served on the board of Greyston as a marketing director. In my opinion, the transition from Walls to Mistretta should be a smooth transition for the corporation. According to the text, Walls strongly valued a task-oriented system based work environment. He seemed to know exactly what he wanted from his employees, expecting them to hold themselves accountable for the overall quality of their performances. In Mistretta’s case, I believe he will carry on this type of management, if not improve it. Because he has much more experience in the corporate world, he has seen management strategies succeed and fail. Thus, Mistretta should be that much more able to choose the right strategy for the Greyston Bakery.
Companies that portray a greater interest in their communities are typically more popular in the corporate world. Greyston Bakery has managed to not only help its customers but also its employees. What is so attractive about this bakery is that it genuinely cares about its employees. Its creed even states “We don’t hire people to make brownies. We make brownies to hire people.” This statement is proof that their company cares about more than just food production. Another reason why Greyston has been so successful is because of the benefits it offers. First off, most employees who work at the company are individuals who have been “written off” by society. In other words, they have had difficulty finding jobs because they have either