Nitish @ Solutions CASE ANALYSIS

Problem Statement
In what ways can Nitish avoid dysfunctional conflict with Meera and advance in his career?

External Analysis
P
E
S
T
C
L

The Indian political system changed in the 1990s. By 1999, the private and public sectors were
booming. Economic liberalization was entering an effective phase. And so emerging excellent
consulting opportunities was also competition.
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Technological changes, new economy, entry of Multinationals and return of the US born/working
Indians created a demand for High Performance knowledge workers.
Culturally, India was at cross roads. The high power distance Indian culture that valued conformism
v/s low power distance, innovation led non-conformist MNC culture. (This is not explicit in the case,
but is a logical statement well known to all to enable understand the problem and solve it better.
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Internal Analysis
Strength

Weakness

1) Nitish was highly qualified.

1) Feedback procedure was not properly defined.
2) The company decided to realign itself as an IT 2) Organizational Structure i.e. there was lack of
consultancy firm and Nitish had the relevant
hierarchy as the CEO of the company was in touch
domain expertise.
with the top management only and seeing the
3) Solutions Unlimited had an employee in Nitish
current scenario of the company Mr Kapoor was
who was multitasking as he did several
also asked to resign and hence the number of key
projects at the same time and excelled in it.
people in the company would reduce to 3 from 4
4) Had maintained a good rapport with the
which is certainly not a good preposition for the
members of any group he worked in.
company.
5) Solutions Unlimited is a MNC.
3) Lack of proper conflict-resolution channel: There
6) They had orientation programs across the
was no proper conflict resolution channel which
border for grooming of newly recruited
takes care of the problems related to employees. At
employees.
present Meena and Alagu were handling this
department in a very haphazard way.

Opportunities

Threats

1) In a start up company the scope of growth and 1) There was a constant in the top management
visibility is high.
position and many were left vacant.
2) Consulting Business
2) Mr Khurana had decided to resign which might
3) Multiple Projects under the belt.
affect the performance of the employees who were

working under his guidance which in turn could

affect the overall performance of the company.
3) Nitish had bitter relations with Meena and Alagu
which might affect his performance.

Listing Factors
Factors affecting Organizational structure

Factors effecting people and their productivity

Lack of Concrete organizational structure

Key Positions Vacant
Lack of information transparency
Processes were not explicitly defined
Grapevine Culture

Legitimate power and Coalition power

Defensiveness
Lack of Awareness
Disconfirmation

Analysis of Listing Factors

Factors affecting Organizational structure:
Lacks concrete organizational structure: Solutions Unlimited has been a software solutions
provider since its inception. But now, it was trying to realign as a management consultant.
The organizational structure should also be realigned according to the strategy of the
organization. Hence, a lack of concrete organizational structure is observed.
Key Positions Vacant: The key position of DF and ADHR were vacant. The expertise and the
lack of employees who could have handled the human resource efficiently were evident.
Processes were not explicitly defined: The relocation and other processes were not defined
explicitly anywhere. The processes were not communicated properly. The standardized
processes were fully functional as there was a difference of opinion from juniors and seniors
of the same team.
Lack of information transparency: The communication about the important information was
improper. The communication between various departments of the organization was not
transparent. Also, the informational about the visa and the reimbursements was not
communicated properly.
Grapevine Culture: Grapevine culture seemed visible at solutions unlimited. There were lots
of rumors when Nitish was working with MD, Manish Chawla.
Factors effecting people and their productivity:
Lack of awareness: Venkat was unaware of the organizational policies and had committed on
the reimbursements. This could have been avoided if there was employees had an awareness
of the policies.
Legitimate power and Coalition power: Meena used her legitimate and coalition power on
Nitish in issues where Nitish required Meenas assistance.

Defensiveness: Nitish understood the need to protect himself when he had a feeling that he
was been attacked by Meena, Venkat and Mr. Alagu.
Disconfirmation: Disconfirmation occurs when an individual feels his or her self- worth is being
questioned. Meena, the HR, felt the same when she was questioned about the Nitishs offer
letter.

Constraints
Following are the constraints which limited the scope of the Solutions Unlimited and also for
Nitish.
1) Opportunities for new recruits: The tasks were not properly defined for the new recruits.
For e.g. Nitish was not given a particular task instead was instructed by Meena to pick any if
the projects and start working on them.
2) Role and Responsibilities were not defined clearly: Meena who was working under the
directors Operations was also taking the role of an HR. The role and responsibilities for Nitish
were also not well defined.
3) Organizational Structure: The organizational structure was not defined clearly and didnt
advertise vacant higher management positions like Director Finance and Director HR as a
matter of policy which led to ambiguity in quick and effective decision making. Also the new
joiners like Nitish did not have any senior management who could motivate him and help him
out in crisis which could be a demotivating factor for him.
4) Recruitment Procedure: There was no proper recruitment procedure. Meena took up the
role for HR but she was completely unaware of the abilities and core competencies of Nitish
and as a consequence she offered him a salary of only 2 lakhs p.a. which was very less than
what Nitish deserved.
5) Organization: Solutions Unlimited decided to realign itself as a Management Consultant to
be able to position itself as an IT consultancy firm. Whenever a company undergoes such
transformation there is always a constraint of resources (here in the form of employees who
have expertise in business processes in the software industry). Nitish was taken in the
organization for his competency in IT and as a banking consulting firm but the company had
the constraints on the projects of his competencies.
6) No formal HR department: There was no formal HR department in place and as a result
company didnt follow any of the formal HR practices. Venkat, assistant operations officer
was not aware of the HR practices and in case of Venkat and Nitish talking about the
severance and travel expenses, there was a lack of formal written communication via email.

Options
Decision Criteria and Alternative Solution
Alternatives available:

VOICE: Make an effort to reconcile with Meena by

VOICE
LOYALTY
EXIT

approaching her and having one-to-one talk.

LOYALTY: Stay in the company and hope Meenas
attitude changes while working on his own behavior.
EXIT: Leave the company and look for another
job opportunity

.Decision Criteria: In the order of priority

Work & Learning: The main reason for Nitish joining Solutions Unlimited was the kind
of work he was looking for and hence the learning involved. With Solutions Unlimited
he found a perfect strategic fit between his IT background and MBA in finance. So he
needs to consider about how his decision impacts his work & learning.

Impact on career: The frequent job hopping will give the prospective employers an
image of Nitish that he is not loyal to his company and is confused about what he wants
from his career. He should consider about how his decision would impact his image as
an employee to his prospective employers.

Financial Implications: His financial health will suffer, if he leaves this company. He had
undergone relocation for this particular job and it might be difficult to get a job in the
same city.

EVALUATION OF ATLERNATIVES:
VOICE: If Nitish stretches a little bit and makes effort to reconnect with Meena, then the
work environment would definitely improve for everyone. Nitish would proceed to Nagpur to
finalize the details of the project he was involved in. With distance too, there is a chance the
relationship between him & Meena would improve. This choice will not disturb his financial
position and prevent any inconvenience regarding relocation.

LOYALTY: If Nitish were to stay in the company and tolerate Meenas behavior towards him,
while hoping for a change of behavior on her part, there is a little chance of peace at
workplace. Though this option might hurt his already bruised ego and confidence, he can still
work on his own shortcomings and try to improve on his interpersonal skills. This choice will
not disturb his financial position and prevent any inconvenience regarding relocation.
EXIT: This will have an adverse effect on his professional growth as it would be difficult to find
a suitable job immediately and he would be forgoing all the learning experiences and rewards
of hard work he put in Solutions Unlimited. If he gets a better workplace, he may find his job
satisfaction back. There will a poor effect on his financial health, since he had undergone
relocation for this particular job and it might be difficult to get a job in the same city.
Alternatives

Work & Learning

Impact on career

Financial Implications

VOICE

LOYALTY

EXIT

Maybe

Recommendation
As we can clearly see, Nitish should continue working at solutions unlimited while trying to
foster a healthier relationship with Meena and avoid any further conflicts. At the same time
he should try to work on his interpersonal skills and improve the way he handles situations.
Further, at Organizational Level followings preventive measures should be taken:

An organizational structure with well-defined roles & responsibilities must be set up.
All senior positions should be filled, as the company is transforming.
Training sessions on interpersonal skills, corporate behavior and company policies.
A clear well defined conflict resolution method should be developed.

Regular team activities should be conducted for better group dynamics.

Outline
Step 1

He should go to the allotted city to finish his part and let Immediately
things cool down for now

Step 2
Step 3

He should confront Meena while thanking her for offering After returning
him the job he should try to explain his part and emphasize
on how hed like to work well with her and not fight with her
He should speak to Manish about the suggestions he A month later
believes the organisation could benefit from

FROM ORGANISATIONAL PERSPECTIVE

Step 1
Step 2

Step 3

Step 4

Plan all the events (festivals) and their celebrations in the office for the
entire year to increase the feeling of belongingness and infuse a work
culture in the organisation
Plan and formalize a 4 day camping trip (in the month where there are no
celebrations) as a part of the system of the organisation to take the entire
staff (hierarchy ignored) as the means of enhancing group cohesion by
building team spirit and reducing intra-team conflict.
This activity should be repeated every three years and should be added as
a part of the organisational culture.
Plan and carry out a workshop for the entire staff on people skills on
things like giving negative feedback.
Introduce it as a part of organisational procedure carried out every 6
months
Hire people that possess conflict management skills along with the
required technical skills.