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Individual Case Analysis - Ellen Moore
Individual case analysis - Ellen Moore
Zhang Zirui (First M. Last)
School or Institution Name (University at Place or Town, State)
Individual Case Analysis Assignment II: "Ellen Moore: Living and working in Korea"
In recent years, businesses are expanding globally as a result of globalization in the form of alliances and joint ventures and in many other forms as well. This paper seeks to discuss a case on Ellen Moore, who works as an experienced system consultant for Systems Consulting Group (SCG), and she is being sent to Korea to manage a project which involved a team of North American and Korean consultants CITATION Cha97 \l 1033 (Nicholls & Ellement, 1997). WSI newly entered this international market by starting a joint venture (JVI) with a Korean organization named as Korean Conglomerate Inc. (KCI). Ellen was elected based on her strong management skills and past experiences in which she proved her abilities.
What are the problems and why do they exist?
The thorough and detailed reading of the case helped identify Number of problems and issues. The first issue highlighted was Jack's unwillingness to co-operate and work with Ellen. This issue started when Jack was told that he will be the only project manager and leader for SI on a daily basis. However, Ellen was already informed that she will be co-manager with Jack When he was made a co-project manager with Ellen, it could be confusing for him becase4 he was misinformed about Ellen’s role and his own role in the project. When Ellen started leading and directing the team, he found it very strange.
The other issue identified was that the team members were working on activities that stood beyond the scope of the project as Ellen and Scott noticed that Jack would as the team to perform activities beyond project scope and the Koreans were ready to follow the directions and they were helpless in this situation. The difference in team management norms in America and that of Korea is also the point of issue and problem. Ellen and Scott were having difficulty in managing the team of Korean consultants. The more emphasis on hierarchy also impacted client and consultant’s relationship as it made the role of a consultant distinguished from America. However, Ellen and Scott tried their best to fit in, but they were considered outsiders.
One of the issue form others was that Korean consultants were not having the right set of skills to accomplish the job within a given time constraint, they were not experienced to work with any SI project and they just tried to do as directed. All these smaller issues will lead to one major problem that is the delay in project schedule and wastage of resources due to disagreements (Nicholls & Ellement, 1997).
What alternatives exist at this point?
The rising issues in the project need to be solved immediately so as to avoid project failure. A number of possible solutions can be considered in this regard. One of the clear solutions that must be given significance is that Ellen Moore must be made the only project manager of the team and Jack Kim should be taken off the project. It seems like Kim contributes to the major issues of the project, he is the one directing the team to do irrelevant tasks, and he is very inexperienced and uncooperative. He also tried to alter the project scope. One proof of Ellen can be a good leader is that when Jack went on the trip, Ellen got the chance to manage the project and obtained desirable results in a very short time. Sending Jack away can be the solution to the disrupting problems and the team will be able to complete the project efficiently.
Another alternative is to arrange a face-to-face meeting of all the concerned people involved in the team including Jack, Ellen, Andrew, and Mr. Song. The leadership conflict between Jack and Ellen can be resolved in this manner. Having open and effective communication can resolve a lot of issues and misunderstandings between the project team and leaders. At this critical stage of the project, a face-to-face meeting can be beneficial for the whole team and project success (Winger, 2005). The third alternative could be to train Jack, as he is inexperienced. In this case, Andrew can head the project by training Jack to take over after he and Ellen leave. It can increase the probability of project completion on time and Jack will be able to save face. Having one project lead will also enable the team to follow directions comfortably as the hierarchy is very important in Korea and they follow leader's direction very quickly ADDIN ZOTERO_ITEM CSL_CITATION {"citationID":"h7w6yysd","properties":{"formattedCitation":"{\\rtf (\\uc0\\u8220{}South Korean Culture - Doing Business in South Korea,\\uc0\\u8221{} n.d.)}","plainCitation":"(“South Korean Culture - Doing Business in South Korea,” n.d.)"},"citationItems":[{"id":1494,"uris":["http://zotero.org/users/local/FGhKhGPG/items/3CFDXZY2"],"uri":["http://zotero.org/users/local/FGhKhGPG/items/3CFDXZY2"],"itemData":{"id":1494,"type":"webpage","title":"South Korean Culture - Doing Business in South Korea","URL":"http://www.southkorea.doingbusinessguide.co.uk/the-guide/south-korean-culture/","accessed":{"date-parts":[["2019",4,8]]}}}],"schema":"https://github.com/citation-style-language/schema/raw/master/csl-citation.json"} (“South Korean Culture - Doing Business in South Korea,” n.d.).
In Andrew’s position, what would you do?
If I would be in Andrew's position, I would have researched that if the Korean team will accept Ellen as their leader or not. It is observed that Ellen is not accepted and considered as competent in the eyes of many due to gender biases. Jack is considered as an effective, qualified, and competitive causing difficulty for Ellen in the success of this team leadership. When Andrew arrived he noticed that the project is one month behind the schedule, he had a discussion with Mr. Park who considered Ellen as the cause of issues. I would have made a report regarding Ellen progress and the leading causes of the issues in team goals accomplishment to present the case indirectly inform of Robert Brown. Without making any complaints regarding Korean team inefficiency I would have told Mr. Brown all the issues along with the possible alternative solutions to quickly get rid of these problems. In this way, he would understand that Andrew is not just complaining but is ready to solve the issues.
One of the mistakes Andrew made is regarding the communication norms in Korea. He started shouting which will make the situation worse. I would always have considered the communication norms and right, acceptable behavior in Korea before making any point in from of Mr. Brown and Mr. Park. The discussion and meetings must lead to the solution, not towards increased conflicts and tensions. In Korea, as business rules and manners are given high significance CITATION Men14 \l 1033 (Mente, 2014) , Andrew must take care of his behavior and chose the appropriate behavior accordingly.
What changes would you recommend making for future projects?
The problems, in this case, need a sudden solution because the project deliverables and scope is going to be affected. In my opinion, the urgent solution to the issue is to make Andrew the head of the project and his presence in Korea must be ensured. In his presence, Jack will not be able to misguide team and the conflicts between Jack and Ellen can be avoided. In addition, having one project leader will make the team trust his decisions and follow his directions in a comfortable way. Andrew can also train Jack along with the project activities and he can ensure the team and Jack both realize the efficiency and expertise of Ellen. Sudden kick off of Jack can r4duce the team morale and they may consider Andrew’s act as favoritism towards Ellen.
In my opinion, a face-to-face meeting must be held which address several points. Everyone must be asked about the relevant issues they find and the team will be ensured a possible solution to all their issues. The meeting must announce that Andrew will be leading the project with given significance to project completion with time and budget constraint.
References ADDIN ZOTERO_BIBL {"custom":[]} CSL_BIBLIOGRAPHY
BIBLIOGRAPHY Mente, B. D. (2014). The Korean way in business : understanding and dealing with the South Koreans in business. Tokyo: Tuttle.
Nicholls, C., & Ellement, G. (1997). Ellen Moore: Living and Working in Korea. Ontario: Richard Ivey School of Business Foundation.
South Korean Culture - Doing Business in South Korea. (n.d.). Retrieved April 8, 2019, from http://www.southkorea.doingbusinessguide.co.uk/the-guide/south-korean-culture/
Winger, A. R. (2005). Face-to-face communication: Is it really necessary in a digitizing world? Business Horizons, 48, 247-253. Retrieved from http://citeseerx.ist.psu.edu/viewdoc/download?doi=10.1.1.459.2519&rep=rep1&type=pdf
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