Hickling Associates Ltd.

MGT 2383.2 Group Case Study Hickling Associates Ltd. For almost seven years prior to June 1983, Tony Azzara had been employed by Pisces Exporters Ltd. The company, located in Vancouver, was a subsidiary of a U.S. food products conglomerate headquartered in Los Angeles. Pisces was one of the largest exporters for fresh and frozen seafood on Canada's west coast, and had generated revenues between $40 million and $60 million annually, depending on the quality of the fishing season and market demand. The company's major markets were primarily in Europe as well as several areas of Asia and Japan. Pisces also traded other food products, which, over the years, overtook seafood as the main revenue producer for the firm. At the age of 27, Tony Azzara began his career with Pisces as a salesperson, where he learned the complexities of exporting both fresh and frozen sea products to various countries. Within two and a half years he was promoted to the position of sales manager responsible for all seafood exports to Europe. This was an exciting job and a respected position. He was given a comfortable office and a very acceptable compensation package. There was an annual bonus based on group sales, which was as high as 100 percent of Tony's base salary in the best years. Even in the poorest years, the bonus was about 20 percent of base salary. He also received a generous car allowance. The work required Tony to develop contacts with other people in the seafood industry in Canada as well as with the major customers in Europe. He was able to take several trips to Europe to expand the market there and develop better relations with Pisces's existing customers. The job was also a constant challenge, because of the increasing international competition in seafood sales and the need to closely coordinate the sales group with the buyers in Pisces. Tony learned early in his career that product quality and delivery time were just as important as price in this market, and only by keeping in...