THE MORNING STAR

COMPANY
Self-Management At Work

Ashutosh Vyas
 Introduction
This case study is based on the company “The
Morning Star”. It is basically an agribusiness and
food processing company.
It was started by Mr. Chris Rufer in 1970. The
company believed in self management &
implication
Thus, like any other organization it has some
advantage & disadvantages. So, today we will
discuss solution to issues and propose our
inference / conclusion .
 missions & Principles
Individual
goal Personal
&teamwork responsibility
Mission and initiatives

Doing what is
Tolerance
right Caring and
sharing
 Self management

 Management of or by oneself; the taking of

responsibility for one's own behaviour and well-
being.
 Morning Star Unique Approach
 Individual Freedom
 Self-Management is an alternative to the
traditional, hierarchical method of organizing we
see most often in modern organizations.
 But no appointed managers.
CLOU (Colleague Letter of Understanding)

 CLOU consists of interests or skills, responsibilities and

agreement of an independent agent with the other
colleagues to fulfil their missions.
 Each Morning Star Employee has their own CLOU and the
same is revised every year
 Before finalising CLOU which will be negotiated with the
colleagues who would be affected by proposed work.
 CLOU started as a letter which further taken the shape of
spreadsheet and even moved to the intranet and can be
edited at any time.
 CLOU was implemented with a belief that voluntary
agreements among individuals would generate higher level
of coordination and productivity.
 CORE ISSUE
Peer Accountability : No one was
ready to
take others
responsibility

 Coordination
 Communication
 No title and no promotions
Lack of Development of skills: There was
no proper guidance

Compensation:
 No centrally defined roles

 Colleagues differentiated in certain areas

though compensation

 Lack of decision making authority

 Learnings
Modification : Bringing new things

Effective organization structure: Post and

designation
Self management with proper execution

Taking initiatives: Crafting talent strategies &

people development

Innovation and affiliation

Proposal to address compensation and
accountability
Premium Pay : Top performer premium
Self management premium
Improvement premium
Current compensation evaluation process:
 Assumed to be ineffective : ( no mechanism &
Avoided making tough decision )
 Diverged from actual performance
 Alternative Compensation Model

This compensation model has two components

i.e., “minimum” fixed component and “premium
component”
This model is different from the traditional fixed
salary which has a variable component
Total fixed compensation = Minimum Fixed
Compensation + Premium Fixed Compensation
Minimum fixed compensation is at market rate
Premium Fixed compensation is decreased by
20% for every consecutive year.
 conclusion
 Self management should not be self centered but it
should be possessed with peer accountability.
 Targets are specified which make them question their
ability of dealing with reality .
 Higher authority not only bring changes but every
colleague takes initiative.
 Ownership of the work with positive towards competition.
 These might not solve the whole problem but it can be
initial step.
 This is how we can solidify a culture of accountability in
our enterprise.