BMGT 364 Case Study 3
BMGT
364 Case Study 3
Mike
Davis worked for one of the big outdoor sporting goods stores for more than seven
years. Although he never completed his degree, Mike took some management
courses at the local community college. The knowledge he gained from his
coursework along with his own tenacity enabled him to rise into entry-level
management. Although Mike enjoyed his job, he couldn’t help wondering if there
was more to life. Mike always wanted to open his own business because he
wanted to be his own boss and thought he might be able to earn a decent living.
Recently,
retired from a career with the school system as a PE teacher and sports coach,
Mike’s Aunt Daisy was looking to fulfill her dream of having an outdoor
adventure business. She had inherited some property years back but had
not done anything with the land to this point. When Aunt Daisy learned that
Mike was thinking along the same lines, she determined it was time to start a
business. The two decided to go into business together and brought in
Mike’s younger brother, Ethan, who was working part-time as an athletic
trainer. The trio combined their savings and started hashing out a plan to use
the five acres of land that Aunt Daisy had inherited.
The
concept was simple…to open a business where teenagers, young adults, and work
teams from local businesses could enjoy hours of outdoor fun and entertainment.
There was limited sports and entertainment for the target audience so the
family decided to open a themed outdoor paint ball park, which they called
Outdoor Adventure Paintball Park. Outdoor Adventure offers customers a
choice of five battlefields, each offering a different level of play.
Each
field provides a unique experience for hours of enjoyment. There is the
civil war field with a simulated headquarters and trenches; an old castle,
which is made of multiple levels and a tower; the woods, which offers a true
woodsy battle with placement of several man-made buildings for additional
cover; the village, which is a large field with a wooded section running down
one side, a two story building and bunkers in the middle, with a creek running
down the other side; and the hill, which contains a wooded section and a number
of bunkers on a steep incline. A small store is strategically placed in a
location central to the fields to eliminate the need for guests to leave the
playing area.
The
costs to customers vary, with rental packages starting at $25 per person.
Customers may also purchase a la carte based on their individual needs.
Additionally, season passes are available for a cost of $150 and birthday party
packages are available for $300. The minimum age to participate in a
paint ball event is 10 years.
In
addition to the five battle fields, there are six air ball fields that are
formatted for 3, 5 and 7-man tournament play. Air ball fields offer a
variety of layouts that are constantly changed to keep up with the latest craze
in tournament play. Many of the fields have dedicated fill stations to
eliminate the need for players to leave the field to reload.
The
facility also includes a shooting gallery designed to allow individuals to
sharpen their shooting skills. The gallery contains high velocity paint
guns and a variety of still and moving targets. Players may practice
aiming, have shootouts or just blast away at targets for sheer enjoyment.
Mike
manages the business and spends most of his time in his office with the door
closed, Ethan trains new employees and supervises paint ball events, and Aunt
Daisy has oversight of the shooting gallery. The business started with three
employees but has grown quickly to a staff of 20.
The
venture seemed like a good idea. The family’s passion for sports and
working with youth appeared to be paying off. There are loyal repeat
customers who purchase expensive equipment and supplies from Ethan. These
customers also enjoy attending extra training and information sessions. The
tournaments have become popular and the local news has been covering the
events. Moreover, the business has a reputation for being a safe family
friendly environment.
However,
recently, Outdoor Adventure has been experiencing growing pains.
Scheduling is becoming more challenging as the activities on the field
increase. Staff is pulled from one area of the park to provide coverage
in another. Employees are starting to complain that they do not
understand their job duties outside of the paint ball fields and feel they need
additional training and procedures. Additionally, a major event was
missed due to double-booking. A number of customers have expressed their
displeasure with the service and, as a result, spending less time on the field.
Local businesses are not responding to special discounts for employee
events. There has been an increase in workplace mistakes but fortunately
these have not resulted in serious accidents. Customers and employees are
starting to question the leadership and often ask, “How long can a business
like this one last?” or “Who’s running the show?”
Mike has
noticed a dip in sales and is now starting to feel they are losing control of
the business. While the two closest competitors are 30 – 45 miles away
and do not offer nearly the same amenities, Mike understands that if they do
not do something quickly, their customer base may decide travel to the
competition. Moreover, his passion for owning a sports-oriented business
is waning. He is concerned about the continued success of the business
but the work no longer seems fun or interesting.
Aunt
Daisy, on the other hand, is not interested in discussing the books and does
not see any need to worry. She is not concerned about what Mike calls “a
few random incidents” and sees the dip in sales as an indication that it would
be a good idea to expand the offering. In fact, she has been presented
with the possibility of forming a paint ball competing team. She feels
this opportunity is too big to pass up and wants to convince the others that
it’s a good time to pursue.
INSTRUCTIONS
You have
been hired as a consultant to help Mike Davis and his family to solve the
problems with his business both day-to-day and over the long term
(strategically). You will create a consultancy report that covers the
four functions of management. In creating the consultancy report, you
must also demonstrate how the four functions of management are interrelated
showing how issues in one function impact other functions.
In speaking
with Mike, Ethan and Daisy, you already know the following about the business
owners:
1.
failed to develop or share a
mission statement;
2.
failed to determine the best way
to organize resources, including personnel;
3.
underestimates the importance of
recruitment, job design and descriptions, and training;
4.
assumed that motivation will occur
naturally;
5.
fails to define standards and
other measurable outcomes;
6.
ignored negative information;
7.
delayed actions to improve
organizational outcomes.
Be
succinct in your writing but persuasive so that the recommendations will have
positive outcomes for the business.
Students
are not using buzz-word and are not defining terms using a dictionary.
Students are expected to present the material in a professional manner
describing and explaining to the owners. As a consultant, you should be
secure in your presentation to Mike, Ethan and Daisy. Avoid telling the
owners that they should do this or must do that but write in an action-oriented
manner. Students are expected to make connections between the facts of
the case study and concepts, theories, and ideas presented in the course
material.
Step
1: Create a Word or Rich Text Format (RTF) document.
This consultancy plan should be presented in a professional manner using single
space, double-spaced between paragraphs. The final product will be
between 6-8 pages in length excluding the title page, diagrams and reference
page.
Step
2: Title page with your name, the course name, the date, and the
instructor’s name.
Step
3: Since students are probably not familiar with writing a
consultancy report, the following resources have been provided to assist in
writing the report.
Step
4: In writing a case study, the writing is in the third
person. What this means is that there are no words such as “I, me, my,
we, or us” (first person writing), nor is there use of “you or your” (second
person writing). If uncertain how to write in the third person, view this
link: http://www.quickanddirtytips.com/education/grammar/first-second-and-third-person
Step
5: In writing this assignment, students are expected to
support the reasoning using in-text citations and a reference list. If
any material is used from a source, it must be cited and referenced. A
reference within a reference list cannot exist without an associated in-text
citation and vice versa. View the sample APA paper under Week 1 content.
Step
6: In writing this assignment, students are expected to
paraphrase and not use direct quotes. Learn to paraphrase by reviewing
this link: https://writing.wisc.edu/Handbook/QPA_paraphrase2.html
Step
7: In writing this assignment, students may use external
resources but the majority of resources will come from the course readings with
a wide array of readings used.
Step
8: Review the grading rubric for the assignment.
Step
9: Read critically and analyze the case study provided under
Week 5 content. Notate the key points in the case study.
Step
10: Create an executive summary. Although a
report must be complete when presenting to a client, the expectation is that
there is an executive summary so that the client can read quickly the main
features of the report. The executive summary should be written in a way
that makes the client want to read more so it must have enough information to
see the potential behind the recommendations without having to read the entire
report.
So you
aren’t sure how to write the executive summary. Check out this resource
to help you write the summary:
Step
11: Respond to the required elements of the assignment.
Be clear and concise in the writing and make sure the questions are
comprehensively answered.
·
In creating the consultancy report, students will first assess
the business and identify specific areas of strengths and weaknesses of the
business as it relates to the components of the P-O-L-C. In completing this
section, do not create a heading for each element of the P-O-L-C but write from
the perspective of the consultant discussing the strengths and weaknesses of
the business;
·
Select a management model (class hierarchy, democratic
hierarchy, collaborative management or collective management) and explain why
the selected model is most appropriate for Outdoor Adventure Paintball Park;
·
Develop roles and responsibility of the owners and employees (Be
creative in completing this task); Discuss why these positions are
necessary to the business;
·
Discuss communication and the flow of decision making in
relation to the management model;
·
Make specific recommendations for improving the management of
Outdoor Adventure Paintball Park. Cover all aspects of the P-O-L-C. This
area of the paper specifically addresses the areas of strengths and weaknesses
identified above and puts in place a plan for the short and long –term success
of the business;
·
Create a balanced scorecard that will help Outdoor Adventure
Paintball Park align its business activities to the vision and strategy of the
organization, improves communication and monitors performance against goals;
·
Students are expected to show what they have learned in the
course by applying theories and concepts. Be sure to support your reasoning.
Step
12: Using the grading rubric as a comparison, read
through the paper to ensure all required elements are presented.
Step
13: Proofread the paper for spelling and grammatical issues,
and third person writing.
·
Use the spell and grammar check in Word as a first measure;
·
Have someone who has excellent English skills to proof the
paper;
·
Consider submitting the paper to the Effective Writing Center
(EWC). The EWC will provide 4-6 areas that may need improvement.
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