Answer the 4 questions from the case.

HOW DO YOU SEE IT? Shedding Some Light on Decision let in light at the ceiling, and the chic modern design and Making finished interior made the 1012-foot structure suitable for working and relaxing as well as storage. Smith and Holder "Ultimately, the market is going to tell us called it a "studio shed." where to put our energies." Today, Smith and Holder's company (which was -SCOTt PEARL, SALES CONSULTANT, MODERN SHED launched in 2005) will sell you a 1012-foot shed for anywhere from $9,349 to $17,535. It all depends on Husband and wife Ryan Grey Smith and Ahna Holder both whether you want birch interior wall paneling and fingraduated from the University of Southern California's ished cedar open-joint siding along with your standard architecture program in the mid-1990s. When they moved insulated roof, fir-plywood ceiling liner, and framed to Seattle in 1998, they bought a 1940s-era house advertised transom glass. Obviously, the Modern Shed is not your in industry parlance as a "teardown"-something that could grandfather's shed: It's a sleekly designed, functionally be demolished with no regrets and the land put to better use. equipped alternative to adding a room to your houseBeing architects, however, the couple decided to renovate or even adding another dwelling to your dwelling. People instead. As the house had neither basement nor attic, nor use Modern Shed structures as studios, offices, guestrooms, even a garage, one obvious problem was storage, and their backyard getaways, and even as alternatives to apartments solution wasn't all that uncommon: They put up a shed. But for family members or live-in employees. Modern Shed this was no garden-variety shed: A sloping roof, for example, options range from 610 to 1640, with larger models Shed is," he says. "I would love for Modern Shed to be [and] making sure that the long-term goals are at least the source for prefabricated structures in the United being addressed on a weekly basis." From that point on, States." Meanwhile, his sales consultant, Scott Pearl, is he admits, it's often necessary to play it by ear, especially busy looking specifically at "high-net-worth neighbor- with a young and growing company like Modern Shed. hoods that have mid-century modern architecture," "The more long-term goals," he admits, "are something because he's convinced that they represent the company's that, as a team ..., we really need to pick and choose." best sales prospects, at least for the foreseeable future. "As an independent contractor," says Pearl, "I con- CASE QUESTIONS stantly have to stay focused on the most likely opportu- 1. According to Pearl, what are the most important facnities for me to make sales... Ultimately, the market is tors about which every business has to make critical going to tell us where to put our energies." And for decisions? Does this principle apply to the "business" Pearl, a former marketing consultant with a background of managing your life? Explain your answer in as much in real estate, the current market is pointing to dual- detail as possible. income families needing housing for nannies and au 2. Explain how Pearl's approach to optimizing sales at pairs and would-be first-time homeowners wanting to Modern Shed combines decision making with problem take advantage of Seattle's severely depressed market for solving. To what extent can the model of decision makresidential land. "Modern Shed," he explains, "has been ing in Figure 8.1 be applied to the decisions that Pearl really popular with folks who are doing backyard offices, has made at Modern Shed? studios, guestrooms. But the potential in the residential 3. To what extent does the rational approach to the arenaisreallyonceinalifetime."ThusthemostrecentadjustmentinPearlssalesstrategyforModernShed:decision-makingprocesscharacterizePearlsapproachtooptimizingsalesatModernShed?Explainyour "Rather than selling the smaller structures that we've answer by going through the steps of the process. been [selling], I've actually set the goal of every fourth Which steps definitely seem applicable? Which steps structure [being] one of dwelling structures." may or may not be applicable? Smith clearly values Pearl's creativity in thinking up 4. For each of the following questions, explain how your and searching out original sales ideas: "He's always ... response is consistent with everything else you've said coming to the table with these really fascinating proposals about Pearl: To what extent does intuition probably and thinking out of the box," says Smith, who also play a role in his approach to optimizing sales at appreciates the practical approach that Pearl brings to the Modern Shed? Do you see any danger of escalation of "big-picture perspective." He also likes the results that commitment in his approach (or his personality)? Why Pearl gets by taking a measured approach to getting things or why not? What level of risk propensity would you done: Pearl, he reports, "has this really subtle way of being assign to Pearl-high, moderate, low? incredibly effective.... He has this kind of steady, thought