Two Men and a Truck
I. Questions
1. How would you describe the conflict that took place between Melanie and the six disgruntled franchisees? Functional? Dysfunctional?
I would say that the conflict is dysfunctional, because it is a destructive form of conflict. The six disgruntled franchisees banded together to take advantage of the loophole in the franchise agreement. They also threatened to use the name and logo of the company without paying the royalty fee. These clearly show that they intentionally caused the conflict with Melanie and TMT International.
What do you think was the cause of the conflict?
The root cause of the conflict is that Mary Ellen was very lenient with the franchisees. Melanie gave them a firm hand in regard to paying their royalty fee and even increased the rate from 4 to 6 percent, which is even below the industry average rate. The franchisees rebelled because the franchise agreements were being strictly enforced as opposed to what they were used to with Mary Ellen.
How was it ultimately resolved (what approach)?
The court upheld the TMT agreement. Two of the franchisees apologized and asked to return to the system while the other four were terminated. The approached used to handle the conflict was Integrative Bargaining, which operates under the assumption that one or more settlements can create a win-win solution .
What was the BATNA?
Accommodating, since the franchisees had no choice but to give in since the court ruled in their favor. For the two franchisees that continued with their system, they got to keep their business and TMT was able to receive the intended royalties.
2. Describe and illustrate the evolution of organizational structure in Two Men and a Truck?
TMT started out with a simple organizational structure. With only two movers then, Mary Ellen manages everything from scheduling the moves, paying the taxes, etc... When the business grew, Mary Ellen hired her daughter, Melanie, to step in as President to run the
1. How would you describe the conflict that took place between Melanie and the six disgruntled franchisees? Functional? Dysfunctional?
I would say that the conflict is dysfunctional, because it is a destructive form of conflict. The six disgruntled franchisees banded together to take advantage of the loophole in the franchise agreement. They also threatened to use the name and logo of the company without paying the royalty fee. These clearly show that they intentionally caused the conflict with Melanie and TMT International.
What do you think was the cause of the conflict?
The root cause of the conflict is that Mary Ellen was very lenient with the franchisees. Melanie gave them a firm hand in regard to paying their royalty fee and even increased the rate from 4 to 6 percent, which is even below the industry average rate. The franchisees rebelled because the franchise agreements were being strictly enforced as opposed to what they were used to with Mary Ellen.
How was it ultimately resolved (what approach)?
The court upheld the TMT agreement. Two of the franchisees apologized and asked to return to the system while the other four were terminated. The approached used to handle the conflict was Integrative Bargaining, which operates under the assumption that one or more settlements can create a win-win solution .
What was the BATNA?
Accommodating, since the franchisees had no choice but to give in since the court ruled in their favor. For the two franchisees that continued with their system, they got to keep their business and TMT was able to receive the intended royalties.
2. Describe and illustrate the evolution of organizational structure in Two Men and a Truck?
TMT started out with a simple organizational structure. With only two movers then, Mary Ellen manages everything from scheduling the moves, paying the taxes, etc... When the business grew, Mary Ellen hired her daughter, Melanie, to step in as President to run the
References: www.sba.pdx.edu/faculty/randhiw/302/Chap16.doc www.wikipedia.com www.au.af.mil/au/awc/awcgate/ndu/strat-ldr-dm/pt4ch16.html http://www.investopedia.com/ask/answers/06/ipoadvantagedisadvantage.asp