Case study

Frederick W. Smith FedEx

1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. 7. Nguyen Dai Cuong Le Thi Phuong Thao Dang Thi Lien Nguyen Thi Thuy Nguyen Thi Van Mai Chan Hoang Vu Thi Loan

Outline
1.Case summary 2.Answering main questions

3.Discussion

1. Case summary
Frederick W. Smith FedEx Foundation: 1971 Headquarter: Memphis, Tennessee, United States Chairman, President, and CEO: Frederick W.Smith 38 years along being the market leader in a delivery industry Operation sphere: 220 countries and territories; 672 aircrafts and 80,000 vehicles; 290,000team members to create over 7.5 million shipments per day. FedEx has expanded, achieved a lot of important outcomes: Malcolm Baldrige National Quality Award (1990), ranked on Fortune magazines industry lists.

Restructuring by emphasizing the team approach to getting work done. + purpose: remaining dominant overnight delivery service, giving employees the flexibility and freedom environment, improving productivity and customer satisfaction. + Implementation: Formed the Quality Action Team Organizing super team with self-managing Setting standards and reinforces their teams.

Golden package idea: every package FedEx is critical and must be delivery on time

Encouraging innovative thinking by creating a job-secure environment

Shifting from traditional leader-centered to team-centered leadership approach (leadership by doing, not by telling).

Results
FedEx has built the most seamless global air and ground

network in its industry, connecting more than 90% of the worlds economic activity.

FedEx has become more open, flexible, team-based,

remaining lead position in overnight package service.

2. Answering questions
Question 1

What were the main issues that FedEx faced?

coordinate the activity

meet customers expectation s

Companys growth

maintain efficiency

manage employees

Solutions

1. Strategic Business Units

Splitting the company in eight business units

Strategic Business Units

Easily to control the efficiency More flexible Respond much better to the customer expectations A better managing of the employees.

2. A team approach
a hierarchical structure v mi tn sang 2. a team approach

A team approach
Transferred the leadership roles Teams are task oriented golden package concept

 an increase in team accountability and responsibility. more productive

Superteams
self managed more innovative speed and quality

 Organizing the company in business units improved both the quality of the

services provided by FedEx but also the efficiency and profitability. Going
further organizing self managed teams allowed FedEx to boost its services quality, efficiency and profitability trough a better usage of the employees

skills and creativity and by having them motivated by this organizational

model.

Question 2
what is the effect of organizing people in self-managed teams? what is to be done in order to maintain their level of engagement?

the most important characteristic is the fact that

SMT have a higher decision making authority

team members are highly motivated because they have a sense of belonging and ownership in ones work and they feel accountable for the result of their decision

Another characteristic of SMT is that team members roles are interchangeable The employees are much more motivated because through this role changes they have the opportunity to do new tasks and avoid to be bored In a SMT work effort is cohesive compared with a normal team were it is individual All the team members are focused on the final team objective This powerful motivational factor keeps the team members engaged Quality Action Team, the super teams increase efficacy but also to keep all employees involved and motivated

Actions:
First action was to create a job-secure environment

Another method used to keep FedEx members highly engaged is

reward and recognition offered through the Circle of Excellence award offered to the best FedEx station.

Question 3
Describe the role FedEx managers play in facilitating team effectiveness

Self Managed Teams (SMT) leadership is inside the team, not outside the manager role is shifting from management to a facilitator role.

Manager role as a facilitor: stimulate team members to take assume responsibilities and to take charge for problem solving processes.

empower the teams by giving them the power to make changes

needed to improve productivity & customer satisfaction. power transfer from managers to teams came with a responsibilities

Result: improving team effectiveness accountable for the results motivation is improved due to this power and responsibilities transfer.

FedEx managers involved in the goal setting process: set clear and attainable goals

using team members input and ideas (team memberss solutionto reach
the goal) act on the best employees suggestions.

setting goals and finding solutions is mostly a team task.

coach and give feedback: focused on team activity rather than on individual like in normal teams.

3. Discussion