Mini Case: Facing Termination
MINI-CASE: FACING TERMINATION?
The silence was beginning to become uncomfortable as you searched for words to answer the question from your chief executive officer (CEO). The boardroom had never looked so big, and it seemed her words were still echoing: “How could it get to this? You sat here telling us how this new software program would dramatically improve our marketing efficiencies and customers’ repurchase frequency. It has been over two months, and the bloody thing isn’t even working!”
As you searched for the right way to respond, the events leading up to this moment flashed through your mind. It was over two months ago when you sold the board on the benefits of a new salesforce automation tool. You had just been promoted to vice president of marketing, taking over from Tom Vecchio. Tom was an old-fashioned salesperson, with a huge personality and an incredible memory. He was employee number four when the company launched, back in 1982, and had been instrumental in its early growth via personal networking—phone calls, rounds of golf, and birthday calls. He had surrounded himself with very similar people.
You understood that culture, you had been one of the young guns a few years ago, and now you had replaced the master.
But things had changed in your industry, competition was much tougher, and markets were now global. “How could a firm the size of this one run sales and marketing without any IT support?” you wondered once promoted.
How ironic that you’d be the one to usher in the “new
IT-enabled world.” You had managed never to concern yourself with all that techie computer stuff. You were a pretty good user: e-mail, Web, some Excel. . . the usual.
But now your bonus depended on the performance of the whole function, not just the number of contracts you closed, and it seemed you had been getting all the heat about efficiencies that they could not put on Tom. . . they could scream all they wanted, he was untouchable.
But
The silence was beginning to become uncomfortable as you searched for words to answer the question from your chief executive officer (CEO). The boardroom had never looked so big, and it seemed her words were still echoing: “How could it get to this? You sat here telling us how this new software program would dramatically improve our marketing efficiencies and customers’ repurchase frequency. It has been over two months, and the bloody thing isn’t even working!”
As you searched for the right way to respond, the events leading up to this moment flashed through your mind. It was over two months ago when you sold the board on the benefits of a new salesforce automation tool. You had just been promoted to vice president of marketing, taking over from Tom Vecchio. Tom was an old-fashioned salesperson, with a huge personality and an incredible memory. He was employee number four when the company launched, back in 1982, and had been instrumental in its early growth via personal networking—phone calls, rounds of golf, and birthday calls. He had surrounded himself with very similar people.
You understood that culture, you had been one of the young guns a few years ago, and now you had replaced the master.
But things had changed in your industry, competition was much tougher, and markets were now global. “How could a firm the size of this one run sales and marketing without any IT support?” you wondered once promoted.
How ironic that you’d be the one to usher in the “new
IT-enabled world.” You had managed never to concern yourself with all that techie computer stuff. You were a pretty good user: e-mail, Web, some Excel. . . the usual.
But now your bonus depended on the performance of the whole function, not just the number of contracts you closed, and it seemed you had been getting all the heat about efficiencies that they could not put on Tom. . . they could scream all they wanted, he was untouchable.
But