Analysis
Culture
The overall, desired culture of Flatrock is bottom-line oriented and places emphasis on cost reduction and improved production levels. To ensure this emphasis is maintained, bonuses are tied to employee’s ability to produce more while lowering costs. Consequently, Flatrock’s misconception that Tower’s margins are 30%, when in actuality they are 16%, can be attributed to this bottom-line oriented culture as it promotes cost containing behaviours. Increasing transparency into Tower’s operating model and costs will resolve this misconception and will satisfy the bottom-line oriented aspect of their culture.
The culture of category management is logic-based, with the decision-making process being driven by data. Their logic-based culture aligns with the desired bottom-line oriented culture as it allows them to rationalize their decisions in terms of overall
…show more content…
Combined with their logic-based culture, it allows Allison Biers, director of category management, to understand the value Tower brings to Flatrock once she is presented the data behind why Tower faired worse than third-party lodges. The integration of this data-driven aspect within field logistics will allow field logistics to align themselves with the desired culture of Flatrock. Furthermore, the integration will allow for a more effective dialogue between Tower and field logistics.
However, such integration is difficult due to the disconnect between the two categories caused by their heterogeneous goals. In addition to the cultural divide, the disconnect is also responsible for delays in making operational decisions. The disconnect is further compounded by the current structure as it prevents smooth communication between categories, resulting in further differentiation. Therefore, Flatrock needs to encourage more open conversation between the categories to improve their intergroup coordination as a means to more