Operations Management - Hazel and Hazel Revisited
Case overview
This case is about Hazel, an employee that has worked for a Fortune 500 company for nearly 15 years. She suddenly finds herself unemployed and in need of a job.
After many months of searching for employment unsuccessfully, she began to mow the lawns of her neighbors for income while she continued to look for employment. When she failed to gain employment, she decided to go into business for herself maintaining neighborhood lawns.
In the beginning, the business was slow, but once the word got out about her lawn service business, she began to obtain many clients. Hazel believed that she could earn a living from her new business and eventually hired 2 part-time employees.
Case relevance to operations management
There are many aspects of this case that has relevance to operations management. The concept of being in business for herself came about when Hazel was forced to use current resources in order to survive after losing a position that she relied on for a very long time. While the overall concept of running a business was not Hazel’s initial convection, however it was derived from her need for income and for her neighborhood’s demand for lawn care services. Meeting the demand of the neighborhood meets Hazel’s needs and a company evolved from that. From a consumer’s standpoint, Hazel’s work was just as good as professional lawn care services and probably less costly. While for other consumers, the freedom of not having to be personally responsible for doing one’s own lawn was more valuable than having to pay for it. Hazel was able to beat out competition without having to put forth much effort or cash into advertising and building her business; instead business became a steady flow of production forcing Hazel to have to hire part-time workers to meet demand for her services.
Key issues of case
The key issues/problems of this case are:
1. Hazel lost her job after 15 years of working for the same
This case is about Hazel, an employee that has worked for a Fortune 500 company for nearly 15 years. She suddenly finds herself unemployed and in need of a job.
After many months of searching for employment unsuccessfully, she began to mow the lawns of her neighbors for income while she continued to look for employment. When she failed to gain employment, she decided to go into business for herself maintaining neighborhood lawns.
In the beginning, the business was slow, but once the word got out about her lawn service business, she began to obtain many clients. Hazel believed that she could earn a living from her new business and eventually hired 2 part-time employees.
Case relevance to operations management
There are many aspects of this case that has relevance to operations management. The concept of being in business for herself came about when Hazel was forced to use current resources in order to survive after losing a position that she relied on for a very long time. While the overall concept of running a business was not Hazel’s initial convection, however it was derived from her need for income and for her neighborhood’s demand for lawn care services. Meeting the demand of the neighborhood meets Hazel’s needs and a company evolved from that. From a consumer’s standpoint, Hazel’s work was just as good as professional lawn care services and probably less costly. While for other consumers, the freedom of not having to be personally responsible for doing one’s own lawn was more valuable than having to pay for it. Hazel was able to beat out competition without having to put forth much effort or cash into advertising and building her business; instead business became a steady flow of production forcing Hazel to have to hire part-time workers to meet demand for her services.
Key issues of case
The key issues/problems of this case are:
1. Hazel lost her job after 15 years of working for the same
References: 1. Hill, Ch., Jones, G. Strategic Management. Houghton Mifflin Company: New York, 2008