Gene One Problem Solution

Gene One Generic Benchmarking

Introduction

Today's business world is more complex than ever and organizations face numerous challenges that are increasingly more difficult to resolve than in the past. Successful companies examine both their leadership and management styles and evaluate how well their organizations handle communication issues, conflict, empowerment, and goal setting. Companies also ask questions to determine if their environment is motivating, if employees are committed to the success of the company, and if the employees are inspired. In addition, they have a mission and vision statement that clearly communicates the goals and objectives of the company. Effective leadership and management generally translate to company environments that are fun, rewarding, empowering, productive, and profitable.

Bebe Stores, Inc. and Krispy Kreme Doughnuts, Inc. are two companies that clearly illustrate how leadership styles influence individual performance and behavior. On the other hand, Kraft Foods Inc. and Diamond Foods, Inc., both leaders in their industries, have developed successful business strategies to manage group processes. Ford Motor Company and Starbucks Coffee Company are two companies that have successfully used conflict resolution and teams to grow business and increase profitability. Big 5 Sporting Goods and the Polo Ralph Lauren Corporation exemplify group interaction and team member involvement as two elements of successful organizations.

Leadership Styles

According to McShane and Von Glinow (2005), leadership is the ability "to influence, motivate, and enable others to contribute to the effectiveness and success of the organizations of which they are members." Yet in the case of Krispy Kreme Doughnuts, Inc., its employees may have found it hard to be motivated when the company lacks a clear mission and vision statement. Without a mission or a vision statement, the employees may find it hard to gain emotional attachment to the company. In the case of Gene One, Don Ruiz may find it difficult to motivate his team to support and commit to his project. Instead of explaining and discussing the project and issues concerning the project, Don basically gave his team the ultimatum of either going along with his plans or resigning.

Creative and dynamic leadership is needed in order to ensure a company's success. One way of ensuring the success of a company is for management to find ways to overcome the ongoing competitive pressure in its industry. Like Gene One, in order for bebe Stores, Inc. to remain successful, it needs new advertisement and marketing strategies. To attract continually current and new customers, bebe uses an outside advertising agency that produce quarterly ads which are featured in fashion and lifestyle magazines, outdoor advertising, catalog, in-store visual presentation, and on the website (Wikimedia Foundation, Inc., 2007a). Another of bebe's advertisement and marketing strategy is the use of celebrities for visual advertising campaigns. Bebe attracts its customers when its designs appear on trend-setting celebrities. As for Gene One, Charles Jones, the Marketing Officer created a Gene One brand image that is synonymous with technology innovation. But in order to get new products marketed and sold, he will need to develop and implement a Gene One marketing strategy.

Strategies for Managing the Group Process

Diamond Foods, Inc. and Kraft Foods Inc. are in the same industry, but under different leaders and different organizational strategies. The way organizational leaders manipulates the environment is to define the company's true resources and capabilities which impact the outcome of the company and shape the relationships with the stakeholders (McShane and Von Glinow, 2005, p. 468). Diamond Foods reflected the differentiation strategy in which by definition means "bringing unique products to the market or attracting clients who want customized goods and services" (McShane and Von Glinow, 2005, p. 468). Diamond Foods adopted this strategy in 2004 when they launched their Emerald brand to enter the snack nuts business. The packaging and material mixes were specialized to the customers' demands. They released their IPO in 2005 to raise capital, expand their snack nut business, and initiate new product lines in order to meet the customers' demands for product mixes (Walsh, 2007).

Kraft Foods Inc. is the second largest food company in the United States. They had established brand loyal customer base. Kraft Foods Inc. reflected the cost leadership strategy, which by definition means, "they maximize productivity and are thereby able to offer popular products and services at a competitive price" (McShane and Von Glinow, 2005, p. 468). Rather than initiating new products, Kraft Foods tried to strengthen their existing brand products. They renovated their product lines by initiating more job specialization and standardized work processes to maximize the production efficiency and meet the customers' demand at a lower cost (Kraft Foods Inc., 2007).

Diamond Foods, Inc. and Kraft Foods Inc. used different strategies to gain customer base, but they both had a common vision which is to be a leader in the snack nut industry. Diamond Foods, Inc. and Kraft Foods Inc. were privately or cooperatively-owned companies that desire to release IPO to raise capital in order to improve their market share in the snack nut industry.

Conflict Management Methods

Conflict management is a very effective management tool that minimizes conflict and incorporates processes that change the level and type of conflict to maximize benefits and outcomes while reducing negative behaviors and consequences. In many instances, conflict is beneficial to the organization if handled correctly because it may increase performance and results (McShane and Von Glinow, 2005, p. 18).

Ford Motor Company was faced with declining sales, environmentally unfriendly vehicles (gas guzzlers), and too many employees. They needed to find a way to overcome these challenges if they were to continue being a dominant player in the automobile industry (Ford Motor Company, 2007). Ford embraced a win-win mindset and has overcome many of their challenges (McShane and Von Glinow, 2005, p. 33). Ford's approach to the labor situation was to meet with key players and devise a strategy to reduce the workforce, decrease labor costs, and produce economical cars. They solicited input from both the management staff and labor unions to craft a workforce reduction plan. Ford could have used a win-lose philosophy and laid people off without involving input from the labor union (McShane and Von