2BBL132 Business Management

CE Exam 40 marks

Important Instructions

 Attempt all the answers

 Answers should be written in legible handwriting
 Adhere to the word limit
 In case of technical difficulty inform between 12 noon to 12.15 pm by mail
or on 07971652813 or 9662051304

1 a. BCG matrix – You are a venture capitalist and the following information has
been given to you about my product line. You need to decide where you will park
your funds when it comes to the product I am selling in the market. Decide and
explain why you chose the products? 125 – 150 words 5 marks
b. Assume you are the general manager of a large hotel and have formulated a
strategy of renting banquet facilities to corporations for big events. At a monthly
management meeting, your sales manager informed the head of food operations
that a big reception in one week will require converting a large hall from a
meeting room to a banquet facility in only 60 minutes, a difficult but doable
operation that will require precise planning and extra help. The food operations
manager is furious about not being informed earlier. What is wrong here? How
can it be resolved. 5 marks
OR
b. Connect the growth in e commerce to Porter’s Five Forces. 5 marks
2 a.
Luisa was sitting in her office thinking about her company’s future, she has been
appointed as the CEO of SuperJuice, a Florida based company that makes juice
and juice drinks that are marketed to high schools and restaurants throughout
the Southeast. For nearly two decades. Super juice has been the most successful
juice drink maker in the region. However profits have not risen for our straight
years and several new competitors continue to steal marker share. In fact, one
of the new companies was started by two former SuperJuice. Employees who left
the company after top management continually rejected their ideas for their new
exotic drink mixes or new approaches to marketing. It made Luisa cringe to
realize that the hottest selling drink flavors in Florida and several other states
had been invented in Super Juice’s own labs but were now being made and sold
by a competitor. Competitors were setting up drink carts at outdoor festivals and
advertising with jingles and slogans that caught the imaginations of the regions
youth. Even Luisa’s own 17 year old son often purchased her competitors’
products saying that “Super Juice is for kids. This stuff is hot.”
SuperJuice management has always prided itself on the company’s efficient set
of systems, both in the factory and at headquarters. Managers concentrated on
making a high quality product as inexpensively as possible. “Superjuice is like
well-oiled machine.” Luisa told herself with some pride. Most of the company’s
200 employees had joined SuperJuice right out of high school or college and
liked the way the company operated. They showed up for work on time performed
their jobs efficiently and rarely complained. The long standing rules and
procedures combined with an organizational culture that reflected the
traditional, family oriented background of SuperJuice’s Cuban-born founder
contributed to a level of politeness and civility in the company that sometimes
seemed like a throwback to the 1950’s. SuperJuice is a calm and civilized place
to work in the midst of a rapidly changing chaotic world. Luisa reflected with
pleasure.
But her pleasure evaporated as she realized that the company could collapse
beneath her if it did not somehow respond to the changes in the environment.
She remembered the scandal that had erupted several years ago when two new
employees started ‘breaking the rules’ and pushing or changes in the company.
The two worked odd hours, played rock music, and decorated their offices with
brightly colored posters unique photographs and fanciful ‘dreamcatchers’ hung
from the ceiling. Occasionally one would tape a note to his door that read, ‘Gone
to the movies to get my creative juices flowing” Although both worker were highly
productive, top management quickly took action to try to bring the two back in
line. They worried that this kind of attitude would have a negative impact on the
productivity of other employees, who were accustomed to coming to work and
putting in their solid eight hours. The previous CEO really blew his stack when
the two presented four new drink flavors they had concocted on the sly. He was
so angry about the unauthorized use of lab time that he nearly fired both the
employees on the spot. Luisa remembered finding one of the employees in the
lab dejectedly pouring the prototypes down the drain. ‘You know you can’t do
anything new in this company,” Louisa told her at that time. ‘It is not the
SuperJuice way.’ Since that time, SuperJuice has lost a few other young,
ambitious employees who have chafed under the right management control.
Luisa knew she was promoted because she had always followed the rules. But
she also realized that continuing to follow the rules could take this company she
loved right into bankruptcy. She knew the company has a lot of potentials,
starting with its loyal committed workforce. But where should she begin? Can
SuperJuice really change itself into a forwarding thinking, creative company?
Questions 10 marks
 What are some external environmental factors affecting the company and
calling for a new approach to management? Which managerial roles will
be carried out by Luisa when she deals with the problem? (400-500 words)

2. b
Google does not do anything halfway. So when it decided to ‘build a better boss,’
it did what it does best… look at data. Using data from performance reviews
feedback surveys and supporting papers turned in for individuals being
nominated for top manager awards. Google tried to find what a great boss is and
does. The project, dubbed Project Oxygen examined some 100 variables and
ultimately identified eight characteristics or habits of Google’s most effective
managers. These eight attributes seems pretty simplistic and obvious. Google’s
vice president for people operations, Laszlo Bock said, “My first reactions was
that’s it?”
When Bock and his team began looking closer and rank ordering the 8 items by
importance, Project Oxygen became interesting. There is a need to understand
something about Google’s approach to management since its founding in 1999.
Plain and simple, managers were encouraged to “leave people alone. Let the
engineers do their stuff. If they become stuck they will ask their bosses whose
deep technical expertise propelled them to management in the first place.” It is
not hard to see what Google wanted its managers to be – outstanding technical
specialists. Mr. Bock explain “In the Google context we had always believed that
to be a manager particularly on the engineering, side, you need to be as deep or
deeper a technical expert than the people who work for you. However Project
oxygen revealed that technical expertise was ranked number eight (very last) on
the list. So here is the complete list from most important to least important, along
with what each entails.

 Provide Coaching support when needed – provide specific feedback and

have regular one on one meetings with employees; offer solutions tailored
to each employee’s strengths
 Avoid over-managing; let your team be responsible – give employees space
to tackle problems themselves, but be available to offer advice.
 Express interest in employees’ well-being – make new team members feel
welcome and get to know your employees as people.
 Focus on being productive and on end results – focus on helping the team
achieve its goals by prioritizing work and getting rid of obstacles
 Display good communication skills especially listening – learn to listen and
to share information; encourage open dialogue and pay attention to the
team’s concerns
 Help individuals to reach their long term work goals - notice employees’
efforts so they can see how their hard work is furthering their careers;
appreciate employees’ efforts and make that appreciation known
 Provide an unambiguous vision of the future – lead the team but keep
everyone involved in developing and working towards the team’s vision.
 Ensure you have the necessary technical abilities to support employee
efforts. Understand the challenges facing the team and be able to help
team members solve problems.
Now managers at Google are not just encouraged to be great managers, they
know what being a great manager involves. And the company is doing its part as
well. Using the list Google started training managers as well as providing
individual coaching and performance review session. You can say that Project
Oxygen breathed new life into Google’s managers. Bock says the company’s
efforts paid off quickly. “We were able to have a statistically significant
improvement in manager quality for 75 percent of our worst-performing
managers.”

Question: 10 marks

 Describe the findings of Project Oxygen using the insights you have gained
about managerial functions, Mintzberg’s roles and managerial skills. 700
– 800 words

3. a.
What was the reason that explains the performance of the workers during the
Relay Assembly test room experiment? (150 words)
4 marks
b.
As a global leader in satellite navigation equipment Garmin Ltd. Recently hit
a milestone number. It has sold more than 100 million of its products to
customers – who depend on the company’s equipment to help show them the
way. Despite this milestone, the company’s core business is in decline due to
changing circumstances. In response, manages at Garmin, the biggest maker
of personal navigation devices are shifting direction. Many of you probably
have a dashboard- mounted navigation devices in your car. A number of
people buy their devices from GRMIN. However sale of Garmin devices have
declined as consumers increasingly use their smart phones for directions and
maps. It is dangerous to hold a phone and steer. Also GPS apps can crash if
multiple apps are running. That’s why the Olathe, Kansas based company is
taking explicitly aggressive actions to team up with automakers to embed its
GPS systems in car dashboards. Right now it is biggest in – dash contract is
with Chrysler and its Uconnect dashboard system is found in several models
of Jeep Dodge and it is also working with Honda, Toyota for dashboard
systems in Asian market.
Despite the new market shifts, customers have gotten used to GPS devices
and it has become an essential part of their life. That’s why Garmin’s
executive team still believes there is a market for dedicated navigation
systems. It is trying tie breathe some life into the product with new features,
better designs and more value for the consumer’s money. For instance, some
of the new features include faster searching for addresses or points of interest,
voice activated navigation and highlighting exit services such as gas station
and restaurants.

Question 6 marks
 Based on your learning explain what types of plans would be needed in an
industry such as this one? (long term, medium term or short term) Explain
why you think these plans would be important. 200 – 250 words