Case Map for Noe, Hollenbeck, Gerhart & Wright - Harvard Business ...

Product #: 391155
Length: 28p
Teaching Note: 392145
B case available
Workplace Safety at Alcoa (A): Kim
B. Clark; Joshua D. Margolis
Product #: 692042
Length: 22p
Teaching Note: 697128
Chapter 4 The Analysis and
Design of Work
Polycom, Inc.: Visualizing Culture:
Clayton M. Christensen
Product #: 601073
Length: 16p
Novartis Pharma: The Business
Unit Model: Srikant M. Datar;
Carin-Isabel Knoop; Cate Reavis
Product #: 101030
Length: 20p
The Medtek Corp.: Michael L.
Tushman
Product #: 400024
Length: 8p
case on business ethics, it encourages students to discuss what "fairness"
and "diversity" mean when an organization is also trying to create a sense
of teamwork and "fit." Based upon the open court records of Ann Hopkins
versus Price Waterhouse, a sexual discrimination and sexual stereotyping
suit brought by a woman who was denied partnership at Price
Waterhouse. (The court found in her favor.) Includes lengthy exhibits
drawn directly from Price Waterhouse.
Subjects Covered: Discrimination; Diversity; Ethics; Legal aspects of
business; Women
Examines the challenge facing the managers of a large aluminum
manufacturing plant in its drive to improve workplace safety. The CEO of
the company has made safety a top priority. The plant has made good
progress in reducing the injury rate, but now confronts the need to
accelerate its improvement. Doing so requires the safety director to
consider progress to date and analyze the opportunities for improvement,
many of which involve fundamental changes in behavior at all levels of the
organization. Designed to introduce students to the issues of safety in its
operating context. Students have information available that allows them to
analyze underlying causes and identify major opportunities for
improvement. However, the interactions between safety and other
dimensions of manufacturing performance are evident in developing and
implementing a plan for improvement.
Subjects Covered: Aluminum industry; Manufacturing strategy;
Occupational safety; Operating systems; Operations management;
Terminations
Abstract
Polycom is a rapidly growing maker of video conferencing and
teleconferencing equipment. Management is attempting to use "natural
work groups" as an organizing mechanism, and to build into the culture
implicit rules that will cause desired behaviors to be self-policing.
Learning Objective: To explore organizational forms that might robustly
handle continued growth.
In June 2000, Novartis reorganized its pharmaceutical business to form
global business units in oncology, transplantation, ophthalmology, and
mature products. The remaining products (primary care products) were
managed as before within global functions (R&D, marketing, etc.) The new
organization created a matrix structure and new roles for heads of
business functions, CEOs of new business units, and country managers.
Learning Objective: To explore the reasons for Novartis's reorganizing
into the new matrix structure, the tensions and challenges the new
structure creates, and the culture and accountability needed to make the
new structure work.
The R&D division at Medtek, a medical and laboratory equipment
company, is struggling to produce innovative new products. John
Torrence, recently appointed director of the division, must correct the lack
of innovation or risk losing the advantage the company has maintained
until now. The case focuses on organizational structure, work flow, and
internal alignment.
Subjects Covered: Innovation; Leadership; Management of change;