Case Assignment

Case Assignment #2 (150 Points)

Purpose:

There are two primary purposes for team assignments: 1) to provide an opportunity to work

collaboratively as a team (either in person or using on-line tools) and 2) to practice the

application of course concepts by analyzing real world management scenarios in order to

determine the appropriate solutions.

Your team will analyze the situation below by integrating and applying course concepts. Please

respond to the specific questions below.

Logistics:

 You may choose to meet in person or use the collaborative online tools available in Blackboard or elsewhere (Google Groups, etc) to discuss your analysis of the case.

 Use your Group Journal space on Blackboard to discuss the assignment with one another.

 Submit your final assignment using Safe Assign in the recitation Blackboard site by the due date on the syllabus. No late papers are accepted. Only one person from each

group is to submit.

 Number your answers, but do not include the questions in your submission. Have all group members’ names, and group number, on your submission.

 Papers should be approximately, but no more than, three pages double spaced, 12-point font, Time New Roman.

 Your recitation instructor will provide feedback to your group in your group space.

Lily’s Floral has gardeners and sale representatives who report to regional sales manager, and the regional

sales manager’s report to the Vice President of sales. Gardeners and sales representatives work together to

secure major accounts. The regional sales manager is then tasked with keeping track of sales and

accounts. The accounts are mostly determined geographically; however, sometimes these boundaries

overlap. When this occurs the Vice President steps in and takes over the larger accounts. Gardeners and

sales representatives assist and obtain smaller portions of accounts.

Lily’s Floral is the number one fertilizer provider in

the United States. They also specialize in garden

products, but fertilizers are their major source of

sales. Lily’s Floral sells fertilizer directly to

specialty stores and premium nursery’s. However,

the store is facing a big problem: in the past year,

their sales have declined at an alarming rate. Lily’s

Floral’s competitors have taken a quarter of their

market share, even though consumers and Garden

Weekly magazine rate Lily’s Floral as the finest in

the market.

Each gardener and sale representative is tasked with working together to ensure that fertilizer and garden

products are well-stocked. They strive to keep open lines of communication and continue to keep their

store accounts engaged in purchasing products from Lily’s Floral. However, the gardeners and sale

representatives do not have the authority to seek out new stores to carry their products. Regional sales

managers are responsible for the gardeners and sale representatives in their region. The key aspect of their

position is to provide oversight and encourage both the gardener and sales representatives to increase

sales to reach projected target growth.

The regional managers handle the sole responsibility of recruitment for staff under their assigned

localities. Feedback from customers and clients is filtered through regional managers and higher-ups. The

regional managers also handles most of the negotiating for shelf space: Lily’s Floral wants their garden

products displayed in the most visible locations, with Point of Sale (POS) fertilizer product advertising

that Lily’s Floral is #1. It varies by region, but only 38% of the stores utilize the name Lily’s Floral in

POS displays. Regional managers report sales and quota in their regions to the Vice President, but they do

not have to report any information about the desirableness of the shelf space or promotional display.

Answer the following questions. Remember to number your answers, but do not include the questions in

your submission.

1. Choose EITHER the team based Gardner and Sales Representative OR Regional Sales Manager job

and design a performance management and reward system that effectively addresses both intrinsic

and extrinsic motivation of employees in that job. Do not worry about what the current systems may

be. Explain the reasons behind your design choice and explicitly state how they will affect intrinsic

and extrinsic motivation. Information relevant to answering this question is in your textbook and

lecture material, but if you choose to supplement this information with outside resources be sure to

paraphrase and cite appropriately. (65 points)

2. Analyze your response to question #1 using goals and goal setting approaches. What elements did

you incorporate into your reward system? Explain being sure to demonstrate your understanding of

the goal setting process by utilizing examples from the case assignment. (35 points)

3. In addition to decreased sales numbers, Lily’s Floral has also experienced significant turnover in one

of its regions. This region has a less experienced Regional Sales manager who has been directly

involved in the interviewing process. Based on what you know about perceptual biases and social

perception, recommend an interview approach that would help interviewers make more sound

decisions about who to hire. Be sure to demonstrate your understanding of perceptual biases and

how to mitigate their effects. If you use outside sources, paraphrase and cite them appropriately. (50

points)