"Imagine what life would be like if your product was never finished, if you never completed your work, if your market changed 30 times a day. Computer virus hunters at Symantec Corp. don't have to guess." This is the reality of your daily work life. At the company's Response Lab in Santa Monica, California, described as the "dirtiest of all our Symantec networks," software analysts collect viruses and other suspicious code and try to figure out how they work so the company can provide updates. security to your customers. There's even a hazmat box on the lab door, marked DANGER, where they put all the disks, tapes, and hard drives with the nasty viruses that they have to completely eliminate. Symantec's situation might seem unique, but the company, which produces network security software and content for both consumers and businesses, reflects the reality facing many organizations today: rapidly changing customer expectations and the continual emergence from global competitors that have drastically shortened product life cycles. Managing talented people in such environments can be another huge challenge.

Vince Weafer, originally from Ireland, has been the leader of Symantec's team of virus hunters since 1999. Looking back at that time, he said, "There were less than two dozen people and...really nothing was happening. We were seeing maybe five new viruses a day, and they spread in a matter of months, not minutes." Now Symantec's virus hunters around the world deal with approximately 20,000 virus samples each month, and not all of them are unique, stand-alone viruses. To make the job of hunters even more interesting, attacks on computers are becoming more and more widespread thanks to criminals who want to steal corporate or personal information from users to commit fraud. Dealing with these time-sensitive and critical issues requires special talents. The response center team is a diverse group whose members were not easy to find. Weafer said "it is not that universities are training security or anti-malware experts every year so that we can hire them. If you find them anywhere in the world, just go get them." The character of the response center team reflects that. For example, one of the oldest researchers is originally from Hungary, another from Iceland, and yet another works from his home in Melbourne, Florida. But they all share something in common: they are all motivated by solving problems.

The release of the Blaster B worm changed the company's approach to handling viruses. The effect of Blaster B and other virus outbreaks meant that front-line software analysts were working around the clock for nearly two weeks. Employees getting burned" made the company realize that its team of virus hunters had to be much stronger, more talented. Now the response center team numbers in the hundreds, and managers can rotate frontline staff, who are responsible for responding to newly emerging security threats, into groups where they can assist in new product development. Others write internal research papers, and still others are assigned to develop new tools that will help their colleagues fend off the next wave of threats. There's even a guy trying to figure out what motivates virus writers; and the day never ends for these virus hunters. When the Santa Monica team finishes their day, their colleagues in Tokyo take over. When the Japanese team finishes their day, the Dublin team enters, which is then replaced by the Santa Monica team for a new day. It's a hectic, chaotic and challenging work environment that spans the globe. But Weafer said his goals were to "try to eliminate the chaos, to make the exciting boring," to have a well-defined and predictable process, to deal with virus threats, and to distribute work evenly across company offices throughout. the world.

3. After reading the case study, answer the analysis questions.

ANALYSIS QUESTIONS

1. Keeping professionals excited about work that is routine, standardized, and chaotic is a major challenge for Symantec Corp. and Vincent Weafer. Briefly explain how Vincent Weafer used each of the managerial skills (technical, human, political (or power), and conceptual) to maintain a work environment that fostered innovation and professionalism among virus hunters.

(Explain the use of each of the abilities individually.)

2. Indicate what managerial role (interpersonal, information transfer, decision making) Vincent plays in each of the following situations:

a) Study the feasibility of adding a new network security consulting service for new clients. Role ______________

b) Assign different activities to the teams to make them enjoyable and thus keep employees focused on the company's commitment to customers. Role___________

c) Attend weekly safety briefings via conference calls with co-workers around the world. Role______________

3. Indicate what managerial function (planning, organization, integration of personnel, direction, control) Vincent exercises in each of the following situations:

a) Hire and select staff from Hungary, Iceland and Florida. Function ___________;

b) Establish tasks and responsibilities in the work team. Function ____________,

c) Have a work team where something is shared in common: "Everyone is motivated by solving problems". Function_________,

d) To make the work team more effective, strong, and talented, Weber and the company rotated staff, did new research, and developed new tools. Function_______________

e) Development of security products for both consumers and businesses. Function ___________________

4. What could other managers learn from Vincent Weafer and Symantec Corp.'s approach?