SAMPLE Case Study no. 2

Read the following Case Study and answer ALL questions

Approx. 50 100 words in your answer is expected per question

INSIGHTS into MANGING CONTROL

Business is booming recently - Mohammed and Yusefs business has been performing very well, enjoying successful, steady growth and expansion. Friends, now business partners have been running a successful gaming accessory shop in Manama and their business has seen a sharp increase in profitability in the past year. The friends have worked hard to keep their running costs low by managing their supplier costs and keeping them low. They have also dramatically increased their sales with more and more customers coming into the shop, both regulars and new customers. If the item cant be found in the shop they will have it delivered within three working days to the customer. They have four fulltime staff working in the shop serving customers. Business is good! Yusef looks after the day to day work whilst Mohammed manages the marketing, stakeholder relationships and the accounting side of things.

Its time to expand and to open shops elsewhere in Bahrain. However, to do this, the guys need to look at increasing staff numbers. So, they hire some managers; a marketing manager, a finance manager and a shop floor manager and eventually some team leaders and more staff and the team grew to over thirty employees.

After a couple of years, due to market demand, Mohammed has an idea for the organization to branch out into equipment maintenance and, furthermore, to break into the lucrative area of software development. They hire some talented staff and open additional premises.

Ten years later, and business is continuing to thrive. Year on year, all three premises on the Island are showing steady profits. Yusef and Mohammed decide its time to go global and so they open shops in East Africa, Cyprus and Singapore, all of which are successful. Each country is separate and has its own operational functions.

1 Explain three types of organizational structures. What type of organisational structure would Mohammed and Yusef use to expand globally according to the case - justify your answer.

7 marks (LO1,2)

2 Discuss the steps of a typical control system and provide examples from the case.

7 marks (LO1,2)

3 Analyse three methods of control the two friends could utilize in order to control and monitor work and ensure positive outcomes across this business.

7 marks (LO1,2)

4 Discuss the different approaches to organisational communication and suggest some of these approaches to Mohammed and Yusef that would be beneficial to their business.

6 marks (LO1,2)