F84T 34 - Managing People and Organisations

Assessment Front Sheet
Assessment Title Case Study : Joy of Chocolate
Qualification Module Code and title
HND in Business F84T 34
Managing people and Organisations
Student ID Assessor’s Name
02000296
Cohort Deadline Submitted on
Batch 4 and 5 16/8/2019 16/8/2019
No. Learning Outcome Task no
1 Analyse the main aspects of the managerial function in organisations 1-5
Learner Declaration
I certify that the work submitted for this Assessment is my own and research sources are
fully acknowledge.
Student Signature:....................................... Date:....................
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Assessment Brief
Module Code and Title F84T 34
Managing people and Organisations
Qualification HND in Business
Deadline 16/8/2019
Assessor’s Name
Assessment Title Case Study : Joy of Chocolate
The following assessments are based on the case study of Joy of Chocolate. It deals with
the background and development of J.O.C. and the people involved with the company. It
then relates the further development towards a merger/takeover of CG chocolates.
Answers to questions can use either of these businesses before the merger.
You must provide evidence from the case study in your answers.
Scenario / Context
You should read the case study below and follow the task instructions at the end.
J.O.C. (Joy of Chocolate) was created in 1999 by Suzy Campbell and is based in Stirling.
She funded her new business with her redundancy package from Safeway Stores where
she had been General Manager. Suzy’s motivation was to fulfil her ambition of having her
own business and achieve her dream of creating gourmet chocolates. In the five years
prior to her redundancy Suzy had spent her holidays achieving professional qualifications
in chocolate making and before starting the business she had spent six months gaining
valuable work experience with various chocolate firms in Europe. In the early days Suzy
considered survival a major achievement but as time passed her ambitions for the
business grew.
Suzy’s career in retailing had given her valuable managerial experience. She was skilled in
forward planning and had sales expertise developed through the years working with food
suppliers. Suzy believed that existing chocolate suppliers focused on importing a finished
product rather than developing their own goods.
Suzy quickly realised that there was a niche in the market supplying a wider range of
gourmet chocolates to business customers. To penetrate this market Suzy had firstly,
targeted luxury restaurants and hotels with gourmet chocolates for their guests and
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secondly she approached organisations offering to supply them with corporate gifts.
Suzy knew that the way forward was close attention to detail and offering a unique
product to potential customers. She intended to complement this by offering products
with local connections. This would help the business to operate effectively and efficiently.
Her aim was to create the gourmet chocolates that would be enhanced with local
produce such as heather honey, whisky and locally grown fruit. She wanted the business
to become known for excellence and innovative products.
With assistance from the bank, Suzy invested in the latest equipment for the business’s
specialist chocolate making factory. J.O.C. gained a reputation for excellence and Suzy
developed good relationships with several exclusive restaurants and hotels. She ensured
that customers received orders on time and developed a reputation for dependability.
J.O.C. also worked closely with some restaurants to create specialist chocolates for their
specific requirements. This meant that J.O.C. had achieved the dual objectives of securing
sales and developing new products was being met.
Suzy fostered good relationships with her main suppliers of chocolate and cocoa from
the Dominican Republic and Ivory Coast. There were two main farmers supplying the
raw material allowing J.O.C. to have alternative sources to enhance taste. Suzy
decided to limit the number of suppliers so that she could develop a very close
relationship as she did not want to run the business with price as the key factor. Suzy
believed in ethical responsibility and supported the Ethical Trading Initiative. The aim
was to create self-help in the communities supplying the cocoa and this fitted in with
her aim of creating a positive culture in all aspects of the business. Back at the factory
all staff were supported in developing their skills, and training for the production staff
ensured a high level of expertise throughout the business.
Growth of the business
Two key appointments from the outset were Leon Houmond and Hafiz Shah. Leon was
appointed as Head of Chocolate Development, Concept Chocolatier; and Hafiz as
Chocolate Production, Factory Manager. Leon had previously trained in Switzerland,
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working alongside Suzy when she was undertaking her qualifications. She knew Leon
was a diligent, creative individual and would prove to be an important part of the
team. Suzy and Leon met every Monday afternoon to discuss potential developments.
This allowed Suzy to be involved in creating chocolates but also time away from the
business to visit customers ensuring that their individual needs were being met and to
meet with suppliers to discuss future needs for production.
The aim of appointing Hafiz was to ensure Suzy did not have to manage chocolate
production in the factory. Hafiz had previously worked for a specialist food firm. He
knew the importance of adhering to hygiene regulations and how team working can
be an aid to success. Hafiz and Suzy met on Monday morning to discuss the weekly
production programme, following which, Hafiz met with the team leaders to discuss
and assign tasks and discuss any potential problems. He believed in trusting his team
and did not routinely check progress as everyone knows what is needed’. Hafiz
ensured all employees undertook a job development review every four months in
addition to being advised on a monthly basis how they were performing. In this
approach Hafiz felt he was empowering the team. Part of this was ensuring job
rotation to allow employees to build their knowledge and as their skills developed the
employees were able to make contributions as team members. This allowed teams to
maintain standards and encourage a positive culture of staff development resulting in
job enrichment, benefiting the company as staff became motivated through work not
just money.
The management team enhanced this positive culture by emphasising the individual
as part of the team and rewarding employees to ensure all orders were completed
and delivered on time. As part of the quality culture, all staff knew the importance of
strict adherence to Health and Safety, Food Production regulations and keeping waste
as low as possible. Staff were aware that success was not just dependent on sales, the
key was active team working and development. The management team emphasised
that quality and the continued success of the firm depended on everyone contributing
as an individual part of the team to achieve targets. To emphasise the importance of
everyone working to the same goals, Leon and Hafiz agreed to involve staff in new
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