Wolfgang Keller at Konigsbrau-Krayina
Wolfgang Keller at Konigsbrau-Krayina”
Introduction
Wolfgang Keller, managing director of Konigsbrau-Krayina, the Ukrainian subsidiary of the German beer company Konigsbrau, faces a complicated managerial dilemma. His subordinate, Bohdan Khmelnytsky, is a talented and experienced commercial director who is not meeting his goals appropriately. Keller is an action-oriented manager who likes to use a hands-on approach when dealing with problems. He has the potential to be a great leader as evidence by his drive and people skills. But his lack of experience running a multinational company gives him difficulty in dealing with one of his directors with a different management style. Khmelnytsky’s introvert and highly formal personality had major problems to adjust to the desired organizational culture and getting in touch with customers. Keller must decide the best course of action to take with this difficult employee in an environment in which the industry is rapidly changing and growing and the war for talent is strong. He must also consider what comprises an effective performance review and how his own leadership style impacts Khmelnytsky 's poor performance.
1. What is your assessment of Khmelnytsky’s performance?
Khmelnytsky’s is rather an administrative, operation-oriented person than a customer-oriented one. His focus is not on sales, he would prefer working in back office and dealing with operational issues where analytical brainstorming is required. He is lacking on motivation, which becomes evident when looking at his behavior. He delegates a lot without proper follow-ups. Also, he is focused solely on his area and does not see the whole picture of the company. Apart from this, he also has a difficult personality, keeping distance to other people. Khmelnytsky also seems to have a higher opinion of himself than of others. Therefore, other people see him as a difficult person to work with. They call him “MR Problem”. He is not open to his direct
Introduction
Wolfgang Keller, managing director of Konigsbrau-Krayina, the Ukrainian subsidiary of the German beer company Konigsbrau, faces a complicated managerial dilemma. His subordinate, Bohdan Khmelnytsky, is a talented and experienced commercial director who is not meeting his goals appropriately. Keller is an action-oriented manager who likes to use a hands-on approach when dealing with problems. He has the potential to be a great leader as evidence by his drive and people skills. But his lack of experience running a multinational company gives him difficulty in dealing with one of his directors with a different management style. Khmelnytsky’s introvert and highly formal personality had major problems to adjust to the desired organizational culture and getting in touch with customers. Keller must decide the best course of action to take with this difficult employee in an environment in which the industry is rapidly changing and growing and the war for talent is strong. He must also consider what comprises an effective performance review and how his own leadership style impacts Khmelnytsky 's poor performance.
1. What is your assessment of Khmelnytsky’s performance?
Khmelnytsky’s is rather an administrative, operation-oriented person than a customer-oriented one. His focus is not on sales, he would prefer working in back office and dealing with operational issues where analytical brainstorming is required. He is lacking on motivation, which becomes evident when looking at his behavior. He delegates a lot without proper follow-ups. Also, he is focused solely on his area and does not see the whole picture of the company. Apart from this, he also has a difficult personality, keeping distance to other people. Khmelnytsky also seems to have a higher opinion of himself than of others. Therefore, other people see him as a difficult person to work with. They call him “MR Problem”. He is not open to his direct