Dick Spencer Case

Dick Spencer Case Analysis

Jeremy G. McConnell

Texas A & M University – Commerce

September 5, 2011

Dick Spencer Case Analysis

Dick Spencer, a successful salesman within the Tri-American Corporation has decided to move his career to another level and take on the challenges of joining the management ranks. While Dick Spencer was a very effective salesman he soon found out that being a manager meant more than just walking around telling others what to do. In this case analysis four key issues will be addressed.

* Micromanagement

* Low Morale

* Work-life balance and issues stemming from family stress

* Resistance to Change

The four issues stated above were identified in this case analysis as being some of the key contributors to some of the troubles Dick Spencer has experienced while learning how to become an effective manager. With the use of research this paper will show that if these four areas were addressed differently Dick Spencer’s outcome and experience in the plant could have been much different.

Micromanagement

One of the fastest ways to ruin your reputation as a manager is to become a micro-manager. In a straight talk article Sal Marino stated:

“Micromanagers manage with rules, ratios, percentages, matrixes, formulas, guidelines, models, and straitjacket budgets. They are control freaks whose tools are pronouncements, policies, demands, and dictums. They manage by memorandum.(1998)”

The last thing an employee would like to see is their supervisor practicing any of the characteristics Sal Marino stated above. In business, like most things in life, there is a hierarchy, food chain, or chain of command that all of us must work or live in. It is just as important for a manager to understand and respect the chain as it is for subordinates too. Dick Spencer’s background in sales and most of his career has been self-managed. He was use to working in an environment where he saw issues and had to make the changes...