The Aerotech Incorporation client needs assistance in choosing a seminar or training program for time management.
This would be done to improve the productivity of the engineering team in the laser systems division. Patrick has no doubt that the division has been underperforming and going past their budgets in comparison to other divisions in the company. This is why he proposed the seminar for the team. He also proposed that Todd Lyman, the manager of the laser systems division, should also be engaged in managerial coaching. This managerial coaching would enable him to deal with the managerial issues that are present at the team. This report will outline the effective data collection methods that will aid in collecting data about the underlying problems at Aerotech Inc.
Organization Description
Aerotech Inc. is a reputable multimillion dollar organization that was reputable for the contribution it made towards United States space and defense systems early in the 1980s. The company was a major supplier for the government, however, this changed with time as a result of compromises on quality from the company’s end. This made them lose their preference by the government that significantly affected their financial performance. In response to this, the company ended up laying off significant employees to cut costs. They also diversified into other business segments that had higher demand including laser systems and satellite systems.
Amidst these changes, the company was still experiencing some problems relating to their levels of productivity and delays in launching new products to the highly competitive market. This was mainly experienced from the laser systems led by their new manager Todd Lyman.
The presenting problems
The presenting problems include the fact that the company has limited budgets which are even being exceeded by the laser systems division. Additionally, the delays being experienced in launching their new products makes the organization lose out on significant market share. Another problem is time management as the engineers seem to be prioritizing their time for other non-value adding activities other than product development. Another problem being faced is the poor management by Todd within the department.
In my opinion
In my opinion, the most likely problem is the poor management by Todd Lyman. The engineers seemed to be quite efficient under the leadership and management of Ed Herman. The engineers were more efficient and they stuck within their budgets which points out that they have potential in doing what is required. I also think that the engineers are a bit disgruntled that they are not working together with some of their old colleagues within the same department. This might easily be rectified by Todd as they seem to like their new manager. He just needs to inspire his team to focus on how to be more efficient.
Methodology
To obtain a better understanding of these underlying problems, it is crucial to obtain data mainly from the employees within the laser systems department about these issues. This will guide in establishing the situation on the ground from their point of view. The methods used in collecting data include observation, interviews, and focus groups. Observation would involve looking at how the engineers carry out their work within their day. Interviews would be crucial as one would get to see the non-verbal language of the engineers on some of the questions asked. It will help in emphasizing on areas that need to be addressed from their point of view.
The interviews can also be conducted in the form of focus groups to get to know more about the group dynamics. This will also shed some light on the influential members of the team who can be interviewed individually to provide more insight on the problems.
Types of data
The kind of data that was collected includes: the time taken to complete a particular task, the number of products launched without delay, the amount of work carried out in comparison to prior periods, and their level of satisfaction within the department. It was realized that there is low morale within the division that is contributing to the low productivity levels at the organization. This was mainly as a result of the lay-offs that led to the fear of who will be the next to be cut off. Additionally, the reshuffling of engineers contributed to this as employees were already used to working with their old colleagues. It also came to light that Todd is not as strict with the team, leaving room for the engineers to slacken at work.
Recommendations
It is evident that Todd is influential at the department as he is liked by the engineers. This means that through management coaching programs he will see the need of improving how he leads his team. In this way, he can inspire his team to work harder with the motive that higher productivity levels will lead to more revenue for the company. Aerotech Inc. before taking the engineers for a time management training program should let them air out their opinions as to the delays in production. In this way, they will be motivated as they will feel part of the organization.
