Central engineering company

In the case of the Central Engineering Firm

The family business is facing serious difficulties due to a lack of careful preparation and execution of appropriate corrective measures; mostly, Henry Wolfram is directly interested in nearly all of the company’s activities. This engrossment is not only needless, but it also has the negative effect of slowing down the tasks. In truth, this characteristic is more of a reflex than a chosen mode of business operation. An in-depth examination of the family’s strategy shows that many reforms are required, especially in human resources and management as a whole.

Areas of Concern

The two primary areas of concern in this case scenario include the management aspect of decision-making shouldered by one individual and the problem of counter-checking and verifying invoices and cheques before mailing to customers and suppliers consecutively. The amount of work that requires Henry’s approval and ratification makes him both a professional and personal bottleneck hence increasing the lag in payment of vendors and delivery of services to the various consumers. As a result, the other employees do not focus their attention on making things right but instead leave all the work to Henry, his wife, and son Jeff. The aim and objectives of the company require prompt redirection towards the provision of efficient and effective processes, production of the right goods and services in the required amount coupled with timely distribution to customers as well as the payment of vendors (Voss & Brettel, 2014).

Recommendations

As a consultant, the recommended changes must revolve around the resolution of these two issues mentioned above. In other words, all the solutions to the problems the company is experiencing are quickly dealt with by focusing on the human resource aspect as well as management. Achieving the best results requires proper planning, development, and implementation of the recommendations.

Delegation of Duties

This process involves the allocation of responsibilities to the various individuals who have the capacity to perform the work accurately and more efficiently. This approach ensures that one person is not overwhelmed with the burden of performing multiple tasks to the extent of compromising smooth operations of the firms. For instance, the work of counter-checking and verifying customer invoices and supplier cheques can be allocated to another qualified employee such as the installation manager who seems to be proficient (Heathfield, 2016).

Increasing Staff

If the workload remains too much for the available employees, then additional staff can be employed. In this case, an operations manager is required to conduct the tasks regarding the review of customer billing as well as the accounts payable (Heathfield, 2016). Additionally, the involvement of this manager in some of Henry’s work will increase his free time which can be allocated to participation in church activities and family matters too.

Shifting Employee Positions (Rotation)

This is another human resource recommendation that may work in this company. Apparently, one of the managers in the installation section is much more aggressive when it comes to the reviewing of customer billing. Since Jeff is not well conversant, shifting the non-performing service manager to another role and bringing in the more competent installation manager to manage this issue is an option that may improve accuracy and relieve Henry the headache of looking at each transaction by himself.

Staff development and Training

Apparently, most people in this firm lack the necessary skills to perform customer billing and vendor payments tasks accurately and efficiently. As such, one of the best ways is to provide training to Jeff, the service manager, and Jami so that they can help in doing this work.

Automation

With the advancements in information technology, errors and increased efficiency is easy to achieve by installing systems that are fully automated. For instance, the issue of overpayment of vendors during special prices is a matter that can be detected by the relevant computer software which indicates the agreed price. Likewise, the same system comes in handy when allocating services to customers particularly on a first-come-first-served basis as well as a check-off system to ensure that items match with the activities (Heathfield, 2016).

Controls

Management Controls

This includes the development of a plan after which the actual performance is compared with the expected. Measuring the difference between these two aspects eventually lead to the identification of specific issues that can be countered through corrective action. The management controls involve the setting of standards to prevent or minimize errors as well as measuring the performance of the firm concerning effectiveness and accuracy (Mamoon, 2013).

Human Resource Controls

The company can employ a variety of controls such as performance appraisals to evaluate staff performance in relation to the company’s operational standards. Secondly, employee observation is also a critical tool in human resource controls which establishes how employees perform their duties in the firm. Additionally, discipline policies also help in addressing staff performance as well as behavior. This control includes the implementation of corrective action to enhance the performance of those who are lagging behind schedules. Finally, automation is another control that replaces human operations through programmed control and can be a good way of facilitating accuracy, limiting discrepancies and assuring the long term maintenance of performance (Heathfield, 2016).

Conclusion

In any business, it is crucial to ensure that growth and maintenance of performance are sustainable. For this reason, firms must develop strategies that facilitate smooth operations, proper communication, and performance assessment so that improvements can be made where necessary.

References

Heathfield, S. M. (2016, October 2). Beyond Hiring and Firing: What is HR Management? Retrieved from The Balance: https://www.thebalance.com/susan-m-heathfield-1916605

Mamoon, Z. (2013). Management Control System– MBO. International Journal of Business and Management , 8(5), 1-7. DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.5539/ijbm.v8n5p82.

Voss, U., & Brettel, M. (2014). The Effectiveness of Management Control in Small Firms: Perspectives from Resource Dependence Theory. Journal of Small business Management, 52(3), 560-587. DOI: 10.1111/jsbm.12050.