Case Study: Jack nelson Problem
As a new member of the board of directors for a local bank, Jack Nelson was being introduced to
all the employees in the home office. When he was introduced to Ruth Johnson, he was curious
about her work and asked her what the machine she was using did. Johnson replied that she
really did not know what the machine was called or what it did. She explained that she had only
been working there for 2 months. However, she did know precisely how to operate the machine.
According to her supervisor, she was an excellent employee. At one of the branch offices, the
supervisor in charge spoke to Nelson confidentially, telling him that “something was wrong,” but
she didn’t know what. For one thing, she explained, employee turnover was too high, and no
sooner had one employee been put on the job than another one resigned. With customers to see
and loans to be made, she continued, she had little time to work with the new employees as they
came and went. All branch supervisors hired their own employees without communication with
the home office or other branches. When an opening developed, the supervisor tried to find a
suitable employee to replace the worker who had quit. After touring the 22 branches and finding
similar problems in many of them, Nelson wondered what the home office should do or what
action he should take.
The banking firm generally was regarded as being a well-run institution that had grown from 27
to 191 employees during the past 8 years. The more he thought about the matter, the more
puzzled Nelson became. He couldn’t quite put his finger on the problem, and he didn’t know
whether to report his findings to the president.
Questions
1. What do you think is causing some of the problems in the bank’s home office and branches?
2. Do you think setting up an HR unit in the main office would help?
3. What specific functions should an HR unit carry out? What HR functions would then be
carried out by supervisors and other line managers? What role should the Internet play in the new
HR organization?
Answers
Answer No 1
To start off, the right person is not being hired for the right job. Ruth Johnson, an employee, has
no idea what the machine requested or what it did. It is clear that she is not the right person for
the job, despite the fact that she knows how to operate it. The second issue is that she is not
properly oriented to her job. Third, a local bank, Jack Nelson, is training its employees. As a
result, they are either unaware of their job or do not have the opportunity to improve their job
performance.
One of the branch supervisors admits that she didn't have much time to work with the new
employees as they came and went. & It suggests that supervisors are not fostering creative
collaboration and a positive working relationship with their employees. Supervisors never tell
their employees how to do their jobs, and they never design training programs to improve their
performance. As a result, the organization's turnout rate is extremely high. Furthermore,
managers hire workers when a vacancy arises without consulting the main office. It demonstrates
that the business lacks a strategic plan for managing its people resources.
Answer No 2:
The firm will benefit in numerous ways from setting up an HR unit. It will initially develop the
organization's personnel policies and practices. Then, it will question the branch managers about
the qualifications of the workers needed to fill the open position. The best candidate for the job is
then chosen after conducting an initial screening interview and developing sources of competent
candidates. Then they discuss with the managers, provide the staff the necessary training, and
decide on pay. Low turnout and high performance workers will be the outcome.
Answer No 3:
The HR section will carry out job analyses, plan labor requirements, seek job candidates, choose
job candidates, orient new hires and design training programs, manage wages and salaries, keep
track of performance, foster employee commitment, and put HR policies and procedures into
operation. The qualifications of the employees will be described by the supervisors, and they will
provide the training that the HR department has planned specifically for them. The employees'
abilities will be developed, and they will establish and maintain positive working relationships
with one another and with other staff members. High performance work systems will be
introduced via the internet. Employees will be able to profit from web-assisted HR tasks,
promote specialized learning and training, update personal information, and manage their own
benefited package.
