Part 1

https://youtu.be/uZZOdpgH61E

1. In what ways would prejudice and stereotypes make it more difficult for the supervisors in this cookie business to improve relations with employees? How do the language differences contribute to the challenge?
2. The manager in this factory brought in a cultural expert to improve understanding of the Hispanic employees and enhance communication. Do you think this effort was more likely to improve communication or just reinforce prejudices? Why?
3. What else might supervisors in this factory do to improve the way the company manages diversity?

Part 2

https://youtu.be/a3NX5uinIiI

1. Without MBO, would it have been harder for Ingalls to detect and correct the problem the supervisor was having with cash application errors? Why or why not?
2. The examples of objectives for credit analysts and collectors include objectives for personal development through training. Why do you think Ingalls includes this category of goals? How, if at all, might they help Ingalls achieve his objectives for the credit department or contribute to the company's overall performance?
3. Write the personal development objective for yourself. Make sure it meets the criteria for effective objectives shown in6.1. Show your objective to a friend or classmate, and discuss with that person how you plan to achieve your objective.
4. How might a supervisor use the documented results of an employee's MBO performance to justify a promotion, raise or disciplinary action?

Part 3

https://youtu.be/CFj_OAc1NjI

1. Volkswagen's annual report explains that, "The Volkswagen Group consists of two divisions: the Automotive Division and the Financial Services Division. The Automotive Division comprises the Passenger Cars, Commercial Vehicles, and Power Engineering Business Areas." Does this description sound more like a functional, product, geographic, or customer structure, or some combination of these?
2. Do you think the responsibility for complying with emissions testing was delegated too far down the company's reporting structure? Why or why not?
3. If you were advising Volkswagen on what needs to change internally in response to the emissions scandal, what would you suggest?

Part 4

https://youtu.be/iv_UXo8l93w

1. It's often said that the ability to see the big picture, or the way in which a solution might affect the rest of the company, is another ingredient of creative problem-solving. Do you think Christensen's subordinate was able to see the big picture in the challenge she gave him? Why or why not? How would this ability contribute to creative problem solving?
2. If you were the employee in this case, are there any other resources you would have liked to have to assist you in coming up with a solution? If so, what are they? How would you obtain them, and how would they help you?
3. Working with one or two other students, apply what you learned from the case and the chapter to brainstorm a problem similar to the one Christensen's subordinate faced, but imagine the department you must become familiar with operates as a virtual team, none of whose members work in the same location as you. List as many potential solutions as you can. Which one is the most feasible?

Part 5

https://youtu.be/IdhF3aEOFQo

1. What forms does quality take in a fast-food restaurant? That is, what aspects of the food, service, atmosphere, and so on do you consider to be acceptable in terms of quality, and what would exceed your expectations?
2. Productivity efforts in a fast-food restaurant often include behind-the-scenes work in the kitchen. But in a service business, production includes interactions with the customer. Identify one or two ways in which Pal's supports its employees' productivity when it comes to working with customers.
3. Using Pal's as an example, work with one or two other students to develop a list of ways in which quality and productivity can interact. That is, do any of the steps Pal's takes to maintain productivity help to support the quality of its customer service, and vice versa?