Acetate department
Case : Acetate Department
1) What were the objectives of the production reorganization at Acetate ?
The main objective of the production reorganization at Acetate Department was to improve production capacity, to increase productivity.
2) Why do you think the objectives of the reorganization were not realized, even though no employees lost their jobs, and salaries were increased ?
Even though no employees lost their jobs and salaries were increased, we can note that the productivity of the output productions of the company faced a colossal slowdown in the several months after the construction of work and technical training were completed.
3) Would the company have been better served leaving the production system as it was ?
Yes, because if the company didn’t change the organizational structure of the Acetate Department, the firm would not be facing losses as a result of the mistakes made by some of the operators.
4) Imagine you were hired as an external management consultant to come up with a plan to address the problems at Acetate. How would you go about developing a strategy, and what would that strategy involve ?
Production was almost identical under the old technology, absenteeism had increased markedly, and several judgemental errors by operators had resulted in substancial losses. The principal reason for these is the lack of motivation, as work in this department became a routine for the employees. Even though no one was dismissed, the workforce in the department was reduced. Working became boring, and the department was not a pleasant place in which to work anymore for them. The Acetate Department was completely redesigned and the technology changed from batches to continuous processing. But these changes didn’t reach the results expected. The company has also to face an incerase in absenteeism by employees.
So, the main problem is the absenteeism of workers. We propose to develop a strategy focused on workers in
1) What were the objectives of the production reorganization at Acetate ?
The main objective of the production reorganization at Acetate Department was to improve production capacity, to increase productivity.
2) Why do you think the objectives of the reorganization were not realized, even though no employees lost their jobs, and salaries were increased ?
Even though no employees lost their jobs and salaries were increased, we can note that the productivity of the output productions of the company faced a colossal slowdown in the several months after the construction of work and technical training were completed.
3) Would the company have been better served leaving the production system as it was ?
Yes, because if the company didn’t change the organizational structure of the Acetate Department, the firm would not be facing losses as a result of the mistakes made by some of the operators.
4) Imagine you were hired as an external management consultant to come up with a plan to address the problems at Acetate. How would you go about developing a strategy, and what would that strategy involve ?
Production was almost identical under the old technology, absenteeism had increased markedly, and several judgemental errors by operators had resulted in substancial losses. The principal reason for these is the lack of motivation, as work in this department became a routine for the employees. Even though no one was dismissed, the workforce in the department was reduced. Working became boring, and the department was not a pleasant place in which to work anymore for them. The Acetate Department was completely redesigned and the technology changed from batches to continuous processing. But these changes didn’t reach the results expected. The company has also to face an incerase in absenteeism by employees.
So, the main problem is the absenteeism of workers. We propose to develop a strategy focused on workers in