The Office Equipment Company

The Office Equipment Company

Introduction

This case study illustrates a problem of human resources management, namely choosing the most suitable manager in a given situation. Exploiting the real situation of 1992, the text depicts the issue OEC has faced. The Office Equipment Company (OEC), a worldwide manufacturer of small office equipment (copying machines, recording machines, mail scales, and paper shredders), in eight different countries, was put in difficulty when its manager in El Salvador announced without notice that he would resign within one month. Clearly, a new manager was needed in order to handle properly in the issues from El Salvador. Not appointing the most suitable manager would translate through a lot of undesired situations (decreas in profits .)

The situation of El Salvador was as follows: production facilities were currently being constructed, the assembly operation would employ 150 people, political turmoil, El Salvador is a source of cheap labor and the government required that 90 percent of the output to be exported.

In order to achieve a positive outcome, the recruitment process should be very efficient and it must take into account a variety of factors. In OEC’s case, the firm found five potential candidates, three of them being American while the other two belonging to a Latin heritage. All five of them remarked through great performance at their workplace and they all have experience within the OEC. One of the most factors to be regarded is their international experience, this being crucial in determining who should be hired in the position of manager of the operation in El Salvador. Due to the complexity of the appointment and the changes expected for the manager’s personal life, the situation of the family and its adaptability is another aspect to be kept in mind.

However, although the recruitment process is very important, the processes happening afterwards are also important: integrating the manager into their new position,...