TerraCog Case Analysis
TerraCog Global Positioning Systems Analysis An initial outlook into TerraCog’s operation shows a simple issue surrounding an Executive VP, Emma Richardson, working with her team to decide on the price of a new Global Positioning System. However, upon closer examination, the situation reveals substantial problems surrounding the decision-making process far beyond Emma Richardson.
Problems
From the very beginning, it is evident that there lacks a common goal among the management at TerraCog. Each division within the company has differing opinions regarding the completion of the Project Aerial and is working towards a different agenda and goal. Whereas the sales team wants to set the price of Aerial at $400 in an effort to compete with the largely successful Posthaste BirdsI product offering, the production team’s goal is to produce a high quality product, an objective that openly conflicts with the sales team’s goal of offering a competitively priced product. To continue, on the development side, the team is unenthusiastic about the idea of creating redesigned products altogether. The introduction of Project Aerial would mean the end for many creative projects the team is currently working on, and it would mean the start of a project that the team knows should be built from scratch, but due to time constraints, is, instead, just an inferior redesign.
Going a step further, it is not just team goals that do not align with each other; individual goals at TerraCog also seem to be clashing against organizational goals. Tony Barren, TerraCog’s Director of Production, has had a history of failing to meet objectives, and, this time around, he is unwilling to, “make that mistake again,” (p. 45). Reluctant to take any risks that could endanger his role at TerraCog, Barren produces unsatisfactory results, namely a TerraCog product that is $100 more expensive but still inferior than its competitor and prevents the management from engaging in any form of decision-making.
Problems
From the very beginning, it is evident that there lacks a common goal among the management at TerraCog. Each division within the company has differing opinions regarding the completion of the Project Aerial and is working towards a different agenda and goal. Whereas the sales team wants to set the price of Aerial at $400 in an effort to compete with the largely successful Posthaste BirdsI product offering, the production team’s goal is to produce a high quality product, an objective that openly conflicts with the sales team’s goal of offering a competitively priced product. To continue, on the development side, the team is unenthusiastic about the idea of creating redesigned products altogether. The introduction of Project Aerial would mean the end for many creative projects the team is currently working on, and it would mean the start of a project that the team knows should be built from scratch, but due to time constraints, is, instead, just an inferior redesign.
Going a step further, it is not just team goals that do not align with each other; individual goals at TerraCog also seem to be clashing against organizational goals. Tony Barren, TerraCog’s Director of Production, has had a history of failing to meet objectives, and, this time around, he is unwilling to, “make that mistake again,” (p. 45). Reluctant to take any risks that could endanger his role at TerraCog, Barren produces unsatisfactory results, namely a TerraCog product that is $100 more expensive but still inferior than its competitor and prevents the management from engaging in any form of decision-making.