Casual Togs is a 30-year-old company producing women’s wear, with its head office in Western Canada. Cy Geldmark is the president; although he says others can make decision, he personally makes most of them. His sister Judy Geldmark is the VP Administration is a busybody who interferes in the day-to-day operations of the company, hires and fires people at will and generally antagonizes the staff. Andy Johnson, a longtime employee, has recently been passed over in favours of a Geldmark family relative for a promotion. Company profits are down. Management team meetings typically deteriorate into shouting matches among the managers who are present, with Cy making all the decisions. Customer satisfaction has decreased, and shipments are being returned. Andy’s new assistant manager is meeting much resistance from Andy to his new budget and forecasting reports. Budgets have been cut, the new industrial relations VP has been fired by Judy, members of the leadership team aren’t talking to each other.

Use the rational decision-making model to diagnose some of the causes of this ineffective decision making.