THE AUTOCRATIC MANAGER: The plant manager of a paper mill has contacted your consulting firm to help diagnose why production has dropped in the last 18 months. Moreover, he wants a proposal from your firm on what can be done to turn things around. The partial organization chart indicates that there are seven levels of management and the mill employs 410 people. This mill is a key one in a company that has many mills located throughout the country. The manufacturing process goes through several stages before turning out finished products. The mill employs a relatively large number of engineers, and most managers have an engineering background. The mill is unionized. The plant manager has four years to go to retirement and wants to leave the firm with a reputation as a "manager who achieves effective results." He is a dynamic individual and has tended to use either an autocratic or a benevolent autocratic approach in managing. He took over the mill six years ago when production was low and a permissive management climate existed. He immediately shifted to a more autocratic management system, and for four years, production was high. He is convinced that the reason for the current problem is that people at the foreman and supervisory level are not doing their jobs effectively. He thinks the solution is to develop detailed job descriptions for these positions and initiate a supervisor management development program that will teach the supervisors to get more work out of the unionized employees. You suggest that interviews be conducted at different levels before making a diagnosis and developing a recommended plan of action. Below are the results of interviews discussing the question, "What problems are preventing this mill from reaching its potential effectiveness?"

1. Why do you think the autocratic approach worked effectively for four years in this situation?

2. Diagnose the problems and/or issues facing this mill.

3. Develop a PowerPoint presentation of set of recommendations that you or your consultingteam will present to the mill manager. Include suggestions regarding his leadership styles