Name TEJESWINI ALBERT

Question 1

Instance 1.

The first instance where the friction between Lisa and Linton was during her first day
in the office. Linton remarked that “ she doesn't like MBA’s”. This remark along with
the cool and disinterested welcome she got from her boss was a primary friction point.

Instance 2.

Richard Clark, the group product manager who had impressed her during the
recruitment process barely recognized her nor welcomed her into the organization. He
had given her a cold welcome.

Instance 3.

Scoville’s condescending manner in which he spoke to her and her was acting like an
overbearing big brother. He assigned her menial tasks like copying reports. This was
another friction point during her first few weeks.

Question 2
Write your answer for Part A here.

Trait Level: High/Low Example supporting the answer

Openness to HIGH Scoville moved from the operations department

Experience to marketing department with sharp contrasting
roles. This was the reasoning behind hid high
score.

Conscientiousness LOW The copying episode with Lisa where Scoville

was frantically making changes at the last
moment is evident for his low
conscientiousness.

Extraversion LOW He doesn't mingle well with other department

workers, this was evident when he doesn't join
them for lunch. This point can further be
supported by the fact that a challenge is getting
things done from other department.

Agreeableness LOW He was critical in his approach. This was

supported by the events of Lisa’s first day
interactions within where he was extremely
critical of MBA graduates. He was also found
to be extremely irritable by other employees
who took Lisa’s side later on.

Neuroticism HIGH Scoville was nice to Lisa in the beginning by

answering her questions and doubts. But he
 threw a temper tantrum during hid
disagreement on Pure and fresh’s pricing
strategy. Due to this emotional instability his
neuroticism score is high.

2B

Lisa can initiate an emotional connect with Scoville. She could assess what tricks him and
what doesn't by connection with him outside the office on an emotional level.

She can make herself indispensable to Scoville by using her relationships with other
department colleagues in getting work done quickly for him. Scoville increasing reliance on
her can improve her relationship with him.

Question 3
 Write your answer for Part A here.

It is hidden area / facade. Due to her initial interactions, she had subdued her characteristics.

Write your answer for Part B here.

Lisa should bring out her original character out more and more to show Linton her strengths.

Lisa should use her conversational skills with Linton and develop a relationship with her. The
drivers for both Linton and Lisa are that they are both women who are ambitious. Developing
a camaraderie with Linton should be easier if Lisa connected with her using this driver.

Lisa can make herself more visible by getting on to interesting projects that increases her
visibility to Scoville and Linton. Getting a project done well get other colleagues mention good
things about her, this creates a network of influence for Lisa.

Lisa should stop acting like a learner in the future and be assertive with her recommendations
and pitch relevant ideas during staff meeting.

Question 4

Write your answer here.

Instead of coming across and telling the positives and negatives directly to Lisa, Linton could
have presented the opportunities to Lisa where she can present herself more assertively and
empower her shine.

When Linton heard of how abhorrent Scoville's management was ,she could have reassured
Lisa that she would counsel him to alter his behavior.
 Linton could have mentored Lisa on her career progression and mapped out her career path
during the appraisal meeting.

Question 5

Write your answer here.

The three engagement tactics that could have helped Lisa in feeling more motivated are as
follows:

Linton could have encouraged Lisa to speak her mind freely without any fear of criticism or
judgement. The MBA comments on Lisa's first day on the job made her uneasy about speaking
her mind out of fear of criticism.

Linton should have provided a progress roadmap for Lisa. It should clearly stated her career
path and the way forward within the company. This would have motivated Lisa and would
have given her an incentive to work harder.

Linton always seemed cold and distressed whenever Lisa had a conversation with her. She
would have engaged her in conversations and developed a sense of affiliation with her and
should have connected with her.

Question 6

Write your answer for Part A here.

Both Scoville and Linton were demonstrating their silent authority over Lisa. The soft tactics
that can show Lisa personal power are:

Exchange:

She can also exchange Favours with both Linton and Scoville. For example, Lisa can help
with an urgent task or use her influence to get tasks from other departments done quickly for
Scoville trusting Lisa more and eventually accepting Lisa point of view.

Persuasion:

Lisa should have invested in relationships with both Linton and Scoville. After identifying their
individual drivers and what motivates them, she could have developed a personal relationship
with them which would have showcased Lisa’s various strengths to them.

Write your answer for Part B here.

Assertiveness:

Lisa can be more assertive in her conversations with Scoville and Linton. Lisa could have
given an assertive reply to Linton when she said she doesn't like MBA’s and she could have
given assertive feedback to Scoville about his abhorrent style of management. This could have
minimized her negative experiences.

Coalition Formation:

Lisa has friends in other departments who felt Linton was A “terrible manager and trainer”
and rallied in her support after hearing about Scoville’s shouting episode. Lisa even got
support on Linton’s terrible management style from another assistant product manager. She
should have used the support from her peer network to form a coalition to push her idea to
both Scoville and Linton
Question 7

Write your answer here.

YES, there was a breach of ethics by Lisa’s co-workers. To answer this question, i view the
case study through the rights approach and the fairness/ justice approach.

The fairness/ justice approach stated that Lisa should have been treated without any
discrimination or favoritism.

Lisa faced discrimination from both Linton and Scoville due her MBA degree, especially a
Harvard Business School MBA degree. Lisa was also a victim of favoritism as Linton
preferred Scoville over Lisa for the projects, which may stem from the fact of their rumored
affair.

The rights approach states that Lisa’s dignity should have been respected by Scoville. He
humiliated her in front of the entire office by throwing a temper tantrum when he didn’t agree
with her assumptions in the analysis of Pure and Fresh’s pricing. Linton, even after hearing
from multiple people about Scoville's behavior did not take action and brushed it aside which
was a breach of ethics from both of them.

Question 8

Write your answer here.

Lisa should not quit her job and continue to work in house world. As the saying goes ‘A known
devil is better than an unknown angel’.

Although Scoville humiliated Lisa on numerous occasions, once she developed a personal
connection with him over drinks. Scoville seemed to feedback and he even came across like a
warm and decent person. Lisa understood his frustrations of not getting promoted and
understood triggers. This would improve their cooperation in future.

The camaraderie between Lisa and her peers from other departments will be harder to
replicate again in another company.

Jack Vernon, the group product manager liked her which was evident from his commendation
to Lisa and from the chats the two had about Harvard. He recognized she was doing menial
tasks (typing incident) and he was looking out for her best interests by preventing her from
doing secretarial work.

The general advice from her peers was that Pure and Fresh was just a temporary project (12-
18 months) which is standard in the marketing department. Lisa could just hold on for a few
more months until she is moved to a different assignment.