Andrew Ryan at VC Brakes Case Analysis

Extract

[...] Moreover, as Ryan is well aware from his own experience with the ES team (as well as from Medved's teachings and Ryan's own readings on quality management and the philosophy of participative management), quality initiatives and quality programs work best under conditions of participative management, not authoritative management. Because it largely operated in isolation from the rest of VC Brakes, and because Ryan had the full support and approval of his boss and mentor Medved, his effort with the CCB product innovation was very successful. [...]

[...] Ryan's enthusiasm was tempered, however, by the fact that he would be working under Medved's rival, VP of Operations James Baynard, who had been named (over Medved) to serve as the head of the corporate TQM advisory group. Baynard's management style was the antithesis of Medved's and Ryan suspected the authoritarian, Theory-X style of management and closed-mindedness towards change would filter down through all the team members drawn from operations (including Ryan's counterpart site instructor from operations, John Kante). Some of Ryan's fears proved unfounded. For example, Ryan discovered he was able to work with John Kante. [...]

[...] Ryan told Baynard he would like to resign from the TQM duties so he could focus on his ES team duties and sent his wife an email indicating that he would probably be fired. Baynard advised Ryan that resigning from the TQM program would be a bad move for his career and suggested he take the holidays to reconsider. Ryan as Team Leader The TQM effort must be carried out within the broader framework of overall organizational culture change. Such change will not occur quickly and it will meet resistance throughout the process (Kotter and Schlesinger, 2008). As an individual team leader or team trainer, Ryan will be helpless to impose culture change. [...]

[...] The TQM training teams are part of the broader VC Brakes organization. They are also attempting to operate within the overall VC Brakes culture which is unabashedly authoritarian and anti-participative management. Ryan notes that line workers are really very accepting of the TQM program and eager to implement it while supervisors and managers function largely as impediments. This is predictable and it stems from the organizational culture. The TQM efforts will not be successful until the supervisors and managers are on board. [...]

[...] Andrew Ryan at VC Brakes Case Analysis 1. What is the case about? Write at least one paragraph for each item. When you make inferences, give a rationale for them by citing the evidence in the case Describe the type of organization, size, industry, location 2. Describe the individual leader, functional role, leadership characteristics Describe the situation Research and provide a brief summary of Total Quality Management as a change initiative. Andrew Ryan is the Senior Manager of Engineering Services at VC Brakes, a manufacturer of automotive brake parts in Middletown, Ohio. [...]