Case 1 (A) Kiran & Sons Company

The Role of the Store Manager

Among the more difficult to master, yet less obvious of human communication skills
is that of providing feedback to others in the workplace. For many managers,
feedback must often wait for specified, formal counseling occasions, such as a
performance review. Time is short, pressures to accomplish work goals are
substantial, and communication often takes on a one-way character: Feedback is
used, not to improve communication, but to correct job-related performance issues.

As managers rise from junior to more senior positions in an organization, they

gradually discover that more and more of their time is spent in interpersonal
communication, fact-to-face with subordinates, peers, and superiors. They are less
task-oriented, more process-oriented. Gathering information is far less difficult than
figuring out what it means.

The key to many management problems often lies in anothers perspective.

Finding out what others think of an issue, how they view the matter at hand, is
frequently useful to a manager. The danger lies in wasted time or misspent effort in
such conversations. Somehow learning to make feedback a more structured,
productive activity becomes increasingly important to managers who have the
talent and the will to succeed.

Feedback is more than simply sending messages or issuing orders. Often, the
process involves soliciting information from others so that you can first understand
their perspective or point of view. Then, under planned and carefully controlled
conditions, information regarding both performance and communication can assist
both managers and subordinates in achieving organizational goals.

Knowing that its possible to become more skilled in this process is the first
step. Recognizing that, managers must concentrate early and often on improving
their ability to both solicit and provide feedback.

The Role of the Store Manager

This case involves two roles, each played from a different perspective. One is the
manager of a [midsized] Kiran & Sons store in the Karol Bagh Area. The other is the
sales manager for a local Pepsi-Cola bottler.

The facts in this case are the same for both participants. As is usual, though,
both people see the facts through slightly different eyes. Each has a perspective
unique to the position he or she occupies, and each has a set of objectives and
goals that accompany the job. As you read the relevant facts in this case and
assume your role, keep in mind that you are evaluated by your supervisor on the
extent to which you can achieve those job-related goals. Keep in mind, as well, that
communication may be one of the tools you can use to reach your objectives.
Your task

Please read and familiarize yourself with the information contained in this case. You
have been selected to participate in a role-playing exercise designed to
demonstrate the importance of communication skills in practical everyday human
interaction. Make whatever assumptions you need to in order to play your role, but
be convincing as you create your character. The other person involved in this
exercise knows many of the same facts about the incident, but may have a different
perspective on those facts. Do your best to communicate effectively.

The facts of the case

You are the manager of Rosewater, Kiran & Sons store, a midsized store thats been
in operation for seven years. The store is profitable and has shown strong sales
growth over the past three years, despite competition from two other regional
chains, one of which opened a year ago, and another that has been in place for five
years.

You have been in the retail food business for 11 years, serving as manager of
the Rosewater store for the past three months. This is your first store managers job
and you are determined to show the marketing director that you have management
potential.

Soft drink vendors have long been difficult to deal with for several reasons:
First, they supply you with high-turn items that are nationally advertised and very
popular with your customers; second, they are in constant competition with their
rivals for display and shelf space; and finally, soft drink vendors are often under
great pressure from their distributors to push the product.

The local Pepsi-Cola sales manager is a fellow named Ramesh Kamath. He

works for a company called Southland Beverages, Inc., and is well known within the
company for moving high volumes of product, but for his temper, as well. His
drivers rarely speak back to him and are under considerable pressure to comply
with his tight schedules, large delivery loads, and nearly impossible quotas. You
have spoken with Mr. Kamath several times on the telephone but have not yet met
him in person.

You can deal with the drivers; after all, they have to earn a living, too, and
most of them do a fine job of keeping your store stocked with fresh products at
regular intervals. The local Pepsi vendor, however, is another story. Over the past
six months his drivers have routinely dropped products you dont want on your
loading dock, theyre often late with deliveries, they have left quantities you cant
sell, and they have been entirely uncooperative with your receiving staff on the
dock. Often, theyre just rude.
 As you ask one of your department heads what happened last Friday, he tells
a story that other Kiran & Sons employees regard as familiar. We had a new route
man for Pepsi last week and this guy just wouldnt listen to us.

How so? you ask. Whatd he do?

Well, your employee replies, in the first place, he dropped nine crates,
instead of the three that we asked for. Most of the order was 12-packs, and were
running low on 6-packs. And he arrived right at a shift change, so nobody was really
able to spend much time with him.

What did you say?

When I saw nine crates, I asked him, Why so many? He just said, Im
stocking you up for the weekend. Man, Im telling you, we couldnt sell nine crates
in a week, much less by Monday. You pause for a moment, then ask, Did you ask
him to reload six of those crates on the truck? Your department head replies, I
sure did, but he said, Look, heres whats on the invoice. I got no control over what
the invoice says or what they load in my truck. Im just here to deliver what they tell
me to deliver. Besides, itd take me half the night to re-slot all this stuff back in the
warehouse.

Well, you say, I think we can fix this.

Thats not all, your employee adds. He installed that new Pepsi endcap
display a week early. The Coke guy saw it this morning and had a fit. Hes upset and
wants to talk with you about it. A couple more phone calls to make, you think to
yourself. I think its time I met Ramesh Kamath.

Your meeting with Mr. Kamath

Your objective is to let Mr. Kamath know, in no uncertain terms, that their behaviour
has been unacceptable. You have spent too much time already dealing with the
antics of his drivers. You really want three things from him: First, you want his
unconditional assurance that his employees will quit delivering more product than
you order and will begin complying with your request for an appropriate product
mix.

Second, you want him to arrange for a Southland Beverages, Inc., employee
to disassemble the endcap display today. Their special promotion isnt scheduled for
another week and the display space belongs to another vendor just now. Finally, you
want an apology from them for the way they have behaved. Being an assertive
businessperson is one thing; being rude and arrogant is another. You want his
service to improve, but you also want him to recognize what he is doing to your
store, and an apology is in order.
Case 1 (B) Kiran & Sons Company

The Role of the Pepsi-Cola Sales Manager

Among the more difficult to master, yet less obvious of human communication skills
is that of providing feedback to others in the workplace. For many managers,
feedback must often wait for specified, formal counseling occasions, such as a
performance review. Time is short, pressures to accomplish work goals are
substantial, and communication often takes on a one-way character: Feedback is
used, not to improve communication, but to correct job-related performance issues.

As managers rise from junior to more senior positions in an organization, they

gradually discover that more and more of their time is spent in interpersonal
communication, fact-to-face with subordinates, peers, and superiors. They are less
task-oriented, more process-oriented. Gathering information is far less difficult than
figuring out what it means.

The key to many management problems often lies in anothers perspective.

Finding out what others think of an issue, how they view the matter at hand, is
frequently useful to a manager. The danger lies in wasted time or misspent effort in
such conversations. Somehow learning to make feedback a more structured,
productive activity becomes increasingly important to managers who have the
talent and the will to succeed.

Feedback is more than simply sending messages or issuing orders. Often, the
process involves soliciting information from others so that you can first understand
their perspective or point of view. Then, under planned and carefully controlled
conditions, information regarding both performance and communication can assist
both managers and subordinates in achieving organizational goals.

Knowing that its possible to become more skilled in this process is the first
step. Recognizing that, managers must concentrate early and often on improving
their ability to both solicit and provide feedback.

The Role of the Pepsi-Cola Sales Manager

You are the territorial sales manager for Southland Beverages, Inc., a nonunion
regional Pepsi-Cola bottler. While your firm handles other products including
Mountain Dew and Dr. Pepper Pepsi-Cola, Diet Pepsi, and Pepsi One are clearly
your most important products and account for nearly two-thirds of your companys
revenues.

The soft drink business isnt easy. After all, youre in constant competition with the
local Coca-Cola bottler, the RC Cola vendor, and another beer and soft drink
distributor who sells Seven-Up products. Your margins are narrow, largely because
of your cost structure. Most of your expenses come from delivery operations:
ownership, maintenance, and operation of your delivery fleet and your wage
structure. To cut your fixed costs just a bit, you have convinced your general
manager to let you implement a program of driver incentives. Their hourly wages
are lower by one-third, but they get a percentage of every product flat (a term used
to describe a shipping container) they deliver.

Your general manager likes the idea of driver incentives and is pushing you to lower
your costs even further with less frequent deliveries. Fewer stops at each retail
outlet, combined with longer stock leads will mean lower costs and more profit for
Southland. In general, the drivers are happy with the scheme, but they have
encountered some resistance from store managers with limited storeroom and
loading dock space.

Keep it up, Ramesh, says your boss. Youre doin a great job. Im really pleased
with the way weve been able to get control of our delivery costs.

Thanks, you say. I was pretty sure this system would work. Not everybodys
happy, but, hey, thats life. Right? Just as your general manager departs and
closes the door to your office, the intercom beeps. Its your assistant, Shirleen.

Mr. Kamath? Its Priyank Varun from Kiran & Sons on line two.

Thanks, you say. Hello. This is Ramesh Kamath.

Mr. Kamath, says the voice on the other end, this is Priyank Varun from
Rosewater, the Kiran & Sons store. If you have a few minutes today, Id really like to
meet with you about some problems weve been having. Id also like to show you
something in your Pepsi display area. Can we get together today?

I suppose, you say. How does four oclock sound? I can be there by four, but I
dont have much time.

This wont take long, Varun replies. Ill see you at four.