Tree Top Forest Products
Section 1
Introduction
Tree top is a Sawmill that has been performing well in both local and international market. There are many reasons that have made this possible. The business is based in Washington in the United States. For the success of any business, the management should play a vital role in ensuring that the activities of the business are running in the right direction. This co ordination of the business activities facilitates the achievement of the organizational objectives. Recently, tree top company has faced difficulties in its operations leading to its decline in its performance in both local and international market. This is mainly because of the policies that have been adopted by the management of the company.
Research objective.
This research paper aims at evaluating the management problems that have faced this company leading to the decline in its performance. This research paper will also give recommendations on the appropriate actions that can be adopted to correct this situation.
Literature review.
Tree top company has six departments that facilitate the production of its products. For such a business to succeed there must be proper co ordination of various departments. There should be individuals who have the responsibility of supervising the employees in each department (McShane, 2010). It should be noted that the employees of any business play a very important role in ensuring that the objectives of the business are achieved. This can through motivation and supervision.
Problem identification and their solution.
Supervision of the employees.
Lack of proper supervision at the tree top company has contributed to the decline in the performance of the company. It is evident that some departments have no supervisors and therefore there is no supervision of the workers. Lack of supervision of some departments is very dangerous to the business since failure of one department can lead to stoppage of the operations of the whole business. With no supervision, it means that there I no co ordination of the department. Some processes are slow in one department and these results in other departments having to wait until the slow department completes its processes. It should be noted that the work performed by one department is completed by and other department. If a department has to wait for the other to complete its operations, then it means that there is wastage of time in the organization and hence money (McShane, 2010).
Employee motivation
The other problem that is affecting the performance of the organization is the low motivation levels of the company’s employees. The method of compensating the employees is not attractive. It seems that workers work in shifts. Therefore, in a day, it is not possible to account for the work performed by a certain worker. The workers are also paid per hour and not according to their performance. This means that availing yourself for work is what is paid instead of the work that you perform as a worker. Therefore, there is no motivation to increase efforts towards the achievement of the business goals since there is no reward for this. The low morale of the workers is playing a great role in the poor performance of the business.
Work flow in the departments.
Lack of supervision of the employees in some department leads problems arising in those departments. First, there is nobody in the department to know and therefore solve the problems that arise in this department. Therefore, it means that the problems of this department pile up and lead to adverse effects. The employees alone are not able to solve these problems since furthermore there is no motivation for that. Too much problems can lead to stoppage of the activities of such a department. It may take time to solve such problems. Since the production process is broken, and then it means that the whole business suffers because of this since no products are produced in such cases.
Idle employees.
Lack of supervision also leads to lazy employees. Some employees only work when they are closely supervised. In addition, each department requires an individual who is able to guide other employees. Therefore, lack of supervision makes some workers relax in their jobs. Even if there is proper supervision in other department, failure to supervise one department leads to wastage of time in the whole business since the other departments will have to wait the other department with lazy employees to complete their work.
It is due to lack of supervision that has lead to failure to solve the problems in the organization. The business is not able to account for some hours paid for. This is because it is possible for some workers to idle around even during overtime. By idling around, the employees still receives their additional income. This shows how the business resources are being wasted with no achievement in the planned objectives.
Extra working hours in the organization
Since the normal working hours of the business are not properly utilized, there is no need of setting extra working hours. Long working hours of the employees is likely to reduce the productivity of the business. This is because the employees will be tired every day and therefore their productivity is likely to drop significantly. Additional hours in a week mean that the workers have no time to rest.
Wastage of business resources.
Spending more time in the work place without rest does not increase the productivity in the business but instead, it demoralizes the employees. In addition, the resources of the business used to compensate the workers for the extra hours worked add to the costs of production of the business. These increase in the costs of production means that the prices of the products sold by the business increases. As a business that sells its products in the international market, the products of the tree to sawmill are likely to be less competitive in the market.
There is no basis of motivating the employees in the tree top sawmill. There are no measures put in place to measure the performance of the employees hence giving those rewards such as financial benefits and promotions. This means that employees in this business are not motivated to work in this organization. In addition, the fact that workers work in shifts means that they are paid in hourly basis shows that they are highly underpaid. They have no future in the business since they do not even have the chances of being promoted. As a result, these workers are not too much committed in ensuring the success of the business.
Channels of distribution
The other management problem that is affecting the performance of the tree top saw mill is that the business has ignored the diversification of risks. This is because the business does not have its own distribution channels. The use of intermediaries in the supply chain has many disadvantages. The prices of the business products are likely to rise further as compared to the prices of the competitors. As a result, the demand for the business’s products decreases leading to a decline in the sales of the business. Therefore, the profits of the business therefore reduce to a great extent. This can be dangerous to the survival of the business in the competitive market.
Section 3.
Recommendations.
Generally, it can be observed that relaxed management of the Treetop business is playing a big role in the decline in the performance of this company. First, the management should come up with better supervision of all departments. Each department should have a supervisor. The costs of hiring competent supervisors are less than the costs incurred due to the poor performance of the organization.
supervision
With good supervision, there will be proper flow of activities in the business. This is because; these supervisors are able to identify all the problems arising in the department. Solving these problems in time helps to avoid delays (Hall, 2003). In addition, supervision will ensure that the workers utilize their time in performing their duties. This will ensure that the backlog of work that is currently experienced in the business comes to an end. This will avoid the use of extra time to complete the backlog of work. This will save the resources of the business that are currently used to pay for the extra time. In addition, the productivity of the workers is likely to increase since they have enough time to rest. They will be able to rest during the weekend and also by working fewer hours per day, they have enough time to rest. This improves their productivity.
Employee motivation.
A proper motivation system should be put in place in the tree top business to facilitate the increase in the productivity of the business. The workers should be employed on permanent basis and not in shifts. In addition, they should be paid attractive salaries. This will help meet their personal needs and these acts as a motivation since they find that they are cared by the business. They pay this by doing good job for the business. The employees should also be given chances where they are able to improve their career objectives. There should be chance of being promoted in the business. This will encourage the employees to increase their efforts towards the activities of the business with the hope of being promoted in return.
The motivation of improving the performance of the business should be well planned. If such plans are not carefully put in place like the one currently in the treetop saw mill, it can lead to employees who are demoralized (Hall, 2003). A good motivation system should be able to measure the performance of every worker. The system in place currently is not effective since the business is not able to identify the hours worked by its employees. As a result, the employees who work hard are compensated like the workers who remain idle in the work place. As a result, the hard working employees are demoralized.
Activity diversification
Tree top company should also ensure that it has diversified its activities to reduce costs and hence improve its competitiveness in the international market. The business should have its own supply chain. A good supply chain is likely to create more development opportunities to its employees. This motivates such employees. In addition, the business is likely to reduce its total production costs by having its own supply employees through economies of scale (Harvey, 2001).
Having the employees of the business as the suppliers of the final products is very advantageous. First, the prices of the final products are likely to be lower in the market. This is because the costs incurred by the middlemen are eliminated leading. This therefore makes it possible to charge lower prices of the business products. The lower prices in the world market can lead to the increase in the demand of the business products. This can lead in turn to increases sales and therefore the business remains very competitive in the market as a result.
The other advantage in having a supply chain controlled by the employees of the business is that it becomes possible for the employees that are important for the satisfaction of the customers. In the above case, the sales of the business have gone down since the packaging of the business products leads to unattractive products in the eyes of the customers. If the business had a good supply chain where it has its own employees, this information could have been collected earlier and the necessary corrections put in place to ensure that the customers are satisfied.
Customer satisfaction.
When the customers are not satisfied, the demand for the business products reduces leading to the stock of goods in the stores (Hall, 2003). This increases the risks of the goods being destroyed. In addition, the stock ties the cash of the business making operations of the activities of the business difficult. This shows the importance of having a proper supply channel that is able to collect information about the customer requirements.
Relations in the work place.
The relations at the work place are very important for the success of the business. According to Herzberg motivational theory (two factor theory), the relationship between the workers and the supervisors is very important for the success of the business (Harvey, 2001). The tree top business should ensure that it has supervisors who are able to relate well with the workers. These supervisors are therefore able to know the needs of the workers and therefore they can help them achieve these needs. When the employees meet these needs, they are motivated and therefore are able to concentrate with their work at the workplace. The employees should be in a position to receive benefits by working in the business. With the current system whereby the employees work in shifts, the employees and the supervisors have no close contact and therefore there is no chance of meeting the needs of these employees.
According to the theory, a good working environment should be available to facilitate smooth running of the activities of the business. In addition, there are no responsibilities assigned to various employees. Therefore, the working conditions are not favorable for the employees. They do not feel recognized by the business and this is why there is no motivation for work. Even without supervisors, delegation of duties could help solve the problems that are currently witnessed in the business. This lack of motivation in the working environment is contributing to the poor performance of the business.
Conclusion
In conclusion, the management should play its role in facilitating the success of the Tree Top Company. The management should change its management system and consider the issues pointed out in this research so as to improve its performance and hence its competitiveness in the current competitive market. The management should take care of the needs of the employees and the customers. Meeting these needs is very crucial for the success of every business.
References
McShane et al. 2010, Organizational behavior on the Pacific Rim, 3rd edn, pp. 495-496
Hall, M. E. (2003, May). Work dissatisfaction: Common causes, uncommon solutions.
RetrievedNovember19, 2004from: n
http://www.meckbar.org/newsevents/news_detail.cfm?cont_id=6295
Harvey, D. & Brown, D.R. (2001). An experiential approach to organization development
(6th ed.). New Jersey: Prentice Hall.
Herzberg’s motivation-hygiene theory (two factor theory) (n. d.). Retrieved on December 26,
2004 from http://www.netmba.com/mgmt/ob/motivation/herzberg/
