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How did Matt Leads get into the situation? Background: Current situation: bored, lack of responsibility and frustrated with his relationship with his boss Dan Lyle and colleague eleanor swift. A bias from his boss Could he have done anything differently to help himself Are there things he should ve done that he didn’t? Any key mistakes? Matt leads personality Saturday, 27 September, 2008 8:31 PM Background : •Settled for chicago because of family. •Chose Danner over Right away because of too much concentration and responsibility over marketing. Personality Action oriented person •Indecisive about what he wanted •Narrow focused on training •He was just impressed and biased over consulting because others did so. •Expectations not maintained. Eg: from disappointment when Clark didn’t recognize him. And his boss’s reception given that he was busy. •Influenced by other people “seemed to be affected by the grimace from the consultant about swift and Lyle. •Shy about asking questions •Intimidated by Swift’s personality Mistakes •Gave away an opportunity for quick upward career movement as he was reporting to VP while he would start as an Assistant consultant at Danner Could have better handled the initial conversation with Dan about his Confirmation bias about MBAs. Page 5 •Missed out on Dan’s word of 2 weeks specifics about his responsibility Choice of job Interview process @ Danner Met Howard Greer Met Richard Clark MD of Chicago-initial impression impressive. Info that Chicagooffice was a supportive bunck and worked hard and liked to have fun. Saturday, 27 September, 2008 8:41 PM Right-away •Already a track record •Apprehensive about his relationship with his new boss Failed to leverage on his past relationship with president and a social belonging •Failed to realize that he was accustomed to the culture •Afraid of responsibility •Too much weight on the physical attributes of the company’s looks •Failed to do more research on the company’s health. •Good beginning with the cookout. •Good project at Right away stores implied a good prospective job. •Opportunity for a social identity •Didn’t want to specialize too soon •Denied the job in late april. 8 months after he got the job. Disappointed his president kingston in the process Danner Entry level associate consultant role. •Conformed with other classmates rather than believing on himself and his past experience •Assumed that he would get responsibility quickly and become and engagement manager in 2 or 3 yrs. •Better opportunity in comparison to other firms (3-4 yrs) Danner’s company profile Saturday, 27 September, 2008 9:12 PM •People were professional, educated and outgoing. •’conservative’ company. •Didn’t realize that the direct marketing division had little market scope and some of them had little work which was the chicago’s office strength. Recruitment for mass merchant and luxury practice: good senior partner- aggressive innovator, great reputation among clients. Good practice area but @ Danner morale was low because of fewer career prospects @ senior management. •Used the MBO evaluation process in January. Goal setting specific. •Majority of promotions from within. •MBA hiring patterns because of BOB Mitchell, senior partner, harvard MBA. •Didn’t go well with the old guard •High atrition levels because of the internet boom. •’key way to get visibility to engagement director- Presentations MD responsibility •Admin stuff •Selling business •And became ED’s when study was sold Staffing for study •Manage client relationship •P&L •Coordinate with other offices for staffing of study. •Develop a good group of EMS who’s work THEY respected (subjective) Practice manager /Engagement manager: •Hiring •Recruiting •Primary p&l •Focused on one client at a time. •Develop a good group of consultants whose work THEY respected. (subject to prejudice) •Groom consultants to be promotable See multiple and overlapping responsibilities. Will give rise to politics. Wrong assignment of responsibility- client relationship. Profit maximization: staff efficiently, maximize the bill for each consultant staffed .
Consultant challenges: •Work efficiently in different areas at different stages of engagement •Difficult to develop close working relationships Team /Office Saturday, 27 September, 2008 8:30 PM Dan’s Lyle personality: •Background: assistant buyer to buyer over past decade. •Only been in the company for 18 months and now an Engagement manager. Probably did not know his role completely. •Harvard MBA confirmation bias. •Didn’t have an MBA. Might have felt threatened. Esp because of the hiring policies lately. •Set himself clear that leeds has to prove himself. But didn’t tell what he had to do. Intelligent and articulate. Swift’s problems: •Mass merchant to marketing and then into consulting •No MBA •Strong personality and slightly boastful? •Aggressive no-nonsense, absolutely no patience for politics. •Tried to establish control by attacking leeds on MBA. Perception of a strong personality •Stormy exchanges. Office: 20th floor, sophisticated Politics existed within engagement managers and consultants Project Fashion Mart Maintained by Matt Hopper Saturday, 27 September, 2008 9:24 PM First project Fashion Mart: •Develop a mechandizing optimization model •Includes decision analytics, models, processes For the next 6 months- project planning. not to be staffed until 1st of january. •What was due for the next few months? •Chalk out major tasks on four components of Fasion mart •Figure out interdependencies •What order to undertake various componites Matt’s Responsibility: •Initial project plan for each piece •Assist swift but not report to her! Team Brainstorm Sunday, 28 September, 2008 10:09 AM John: What should he have done differently? •Take the job in New york •Strongest office, promotions better there •Cleared up the air with swift and lyle. Bias against MBA. Particularly because they were’nt MBAs. The policy polarity. Clarify what he meant by ‘assisting ‘ swift. Reactive vs proactive. Leading to the blow up •Clarified what his goals and objectives were with Lyle. Not done •Take initiative with lyle. Actively pursue. Eg. Invite lyle out for lunch. •Lyle’s appointment. Address questions to your boss. Fix an appointment in advance. Example phone or email asking for 5 mins. Will help him prepare a better case •Doesn’t speak up or ask for more work. Looks aggressive he thought. He made assumptions. •Billing by the hour so speak . •Stop talking behind people’s back. You look an ass. Clarify the problem. Listen and not participate. Rebecca’s buddy not good. Need to have a formal relationship. The perception is not good. •Hopper talk to lyle- he tells lyle everything. Feeds into the company’s politics. •Fight with Swift childish. Handled in a more professinoal way. Not badmouth him. •Should ve taken a polar stand. Or told nothing. Hopper is the guy incharge of the project. Clarity-o4 Sunday, 28 September, 2008 11:38 AM • Objectives and job responsibilities from lyle. M3 Organizational structure-M3 o reporting to swift. T1, T3,4 T4:instance of a blow out What does ‘assisting swift meanT1, T3 • Not enough research done on the company that he joined.
M1 Not knowing the culture @ work (not knowing 3 months review period)M4 What was the best forum to interact with lyle. M4, T2, O1 Being defensive on the review rather than asking what he is expected of. M1 Clarity regarding key message to client: He didn’t know that hopper was going to do the presentation and didn’t get hoppers expectationsO1 Not understanding why lyle and Swift dint like MBAs earlier M2, T3, O1 Document his review process for accountabilityO4 Initiative Sunday, 28 September, 2008 11:50 AM •Taking an effort to know which team he would be in? • Initiating social time T1
Meeting people prior to starting workT1 Offer to help on other projects Inputs to case work To differentiate himself as a non-stereotype harvard MBA adopt himself to the social group. O1 Needs to find people who worked with lyle before. What he expects out of you and how you can succeed under himT1 Act professionally-M4,O4 Sunday, 28 September, 2008 12:02 PM • Talking behind team’s backM1,2, T3 Don’t hang out with rebecca as much as receptionist’sM4, T1,2,4, O1 Shouting matches- more composedM2,T4 Too discouraged- Be more optimistic and consistent with is attitudeM1,T4 Manage his problems M1 Understand office culture.
Specifically when it comes to role of a consultant. T1,2 More listening- doesn’t address the given feedback. M2,T4 More enthusiasticM1 MPO PYRAMID Sunday, 28 September, 2008 12:13 PM Matt Team Office Matt: 1. Skills and attitude-attitude behavior inconsistency 2. Confirmation bias 3. Order effect 4. Managing relations Team 1. Swift: inflated sense of power 2. Variance with power: Lyle 3. Heuristic cognition- Lyle and swift a. Social bias- against MBAs 4. Objectificatino and Devaluation Office 1. Social inequality-power distance 2. Understand that danen is a protestant organization 3. Mavericks encouraged 4. Motivation framework