Organizational Behavior: Leading People - Case Study Analysis Report

This document presents a comprehensive analysis of organizational behavior through four case studies. The first case examines information sharing and leadership weaknesses at Harmony Inc. during a potential takeover by Dynamic Foods. The second case delves into gender stereotypes in the workplace, highlighting a Nike VP's experience and emphasizing the importance of diverse teams. The third case explores change leadership in a cross-cultural context, focusing on the challenges faced by Harris Farm Markets and the strategies employed to adapt to legislative changes. The final case provides an analysis of the movie "The Founder" from a leadership perspective. Each case study offers insights into leadership styles, organizational dynamics, and the impact of various factors on business success, providing valuable learning for understanding and navigating complex organizational challenges.

Running head: ORGANIZATIONAL BEHAVIOR
Leading People (Case Study Analysis)
Name of the student
Name of the university
Author Note:

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Table of Contents
Case Study 1...............................................................................................................................3
Information Sharing (or not sharing) at Harmony Inc...........................................................3
Case Study 2...............................................................................................................................5
Sage premium Video case study............................................................................................5
Case Study 3...............................................................................................................................6
Change Leadership in cross cultural context.........................................................................6
Case Study 4...............................................................................................................................8
The Founder Movie Analysis.................................................................................................8
References................................................................................................................................10

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Case Study 1
Information Sharing (or not sharing) at Harmony Inc
The company harmony Inc which was opened approximately around 30 years ago by
a group of four different partners is one of the leading industries involved in the producing
and distributing of naturally processed foods in the market. The company has have a strong
reputation in the market because of its naturally processed products as it poses much greater
health benefits than the preserved and other kin of processed foods. Recently there have been
serious talks regarding takeover of Harmony among the management of the company and the
management of Dynamic Foods, which on the other hand is a company that has been trying
to set foot in the natural food processing industry. The takeover of Harmony foods can be the
best option as they will be able to control the company as well as set hands on the necessary
technology to control the processing foods industry.
The main purpose of the analysis of the case study is to get an idea of the leadership
strength of the company which according to the case study has been quite weak because of
the divisions in the idea of the takeover process. While a portion of the owners think that the
takeover process will ensure sustainability for the company, the other owners have the belief
that the takeover process will leaf a large layoff for the employees which will certainly
hamper the job security that the employees currently enjoys. According to Blanchard (2018)
the absence of a unity among the leaders of the Harmony foods is the main issue with the
leadership process of the organization. Such an issue can cause enough damage to the smooth
operations of the business unit.
The management of Harmony Foods has been trying to increase the growth of sales to
make the company more health conscious and add profits to the business in an organized
manner. However, the owners of the company have been planning retirement in the next few

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years which makes the top level management post vacant as because there are no such
capable leaders to lead the organization after the retirement of the owners. This makes the
takeover proposal a boon for the company. However, the company is also not as excited on
the deal as because the takeover policy of Dynamic Foods is based on a total restructuring.
This restructuring policy of the company makes it a huge problem for the organization to
proceed with the deal. Thus the company is basically left with two different options on
whether to proceed with the deal or to not participate with the deal.
Though there have been two major options for the management of Harmony Foods
Inc., it will be best for the company to negotiate on the takeover proposal and ensure the
absence of any form of restructuring (Waldman and O'Reilly 2018). The absence of
restructuring can help the new organization to strengthen its market position and also keep
the old technical workforce intact. The absence of a strong and able leadership has been quite
problematic for the organization and thus the layoff plan needs to be cancelled in order to
ensure the future sustainability of the company. The absence of the critical technical skills
needed to process foods in a natural system also makes it important for the management of
Dynamic foods to cancel the layoff and ensure success and sustainability.
The case study has been one of the major areas of the study of leadership and the
process of leadership. The absence of a strong and able leadership has been the key highlight
of the following study. The weakness highlighted in the leadership style of the business has
been the major negativity of the business organization. The failure to stick to a solid decision
on the takeover process thus pushes the industry to a brink of uncertainty.

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Case Study 2
Sage premium Video case study
The provided case study is based on the study of Gender Stereotypes and the
identification of the issues in the presence of people having such a mentality in the
workplace. The presence of such a biased nature of the people working in various industries
is one of the most problematic things that needs to be dealt with by the management in order
to present a strong and un-biased leadership and also ensure the success of the business in a
proper and structured manner. The video shown here has shown Maria Eitel who is the Vice
President of Nike who relates one of the incidents faced by her in the workplace which has
been a clear case of Gender Stereotyping. The problem which has been identified in the video
provides a clear incidence of the problems in the workplace and the failure of the
management to handle such kind of cases (Waldman and O'Reilly 2018). The absence of the
organizational elements in the business leads to different types of gender biasedness. The
shocking fact is that the management of the organizations are quite aware of the fact that
biasedness thus takes place at different levels of the business. It is often seen that the
management is prone to hire men for leading positions while on the other hand a women with
most of times possessing similar skills and qualification are often seen to be hired for low
positions that is disrespectful for the women community as a whole.
According to Blanchard (2018) the presence of such a leadership is harmful for the
organization as the biasedness in the leadership style of the managers and supervisors can be
of serious threat to the organization. The presence of leaders with a mentality of promoting
gender stereotyping are really harmful to the organization as such kinds of derogatory
remarks can lead to serious problems. The continuation of the gender diversity process needs

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to be either stopped and the managers with a liberal and comprehensive modern thinking
must be promoted in the organization. According to Maria Eitel, the management of the
business needs to be responsible enough so that the persons with a non-biased mentality are
promoted to the post of the managers and the supervisors. She also stresses on the formation
of gender diverse teams which according to her is the best solution to the mitigation of the
gender stereotyping policy. The teams that have a considerable gender diversity can address
the issues related to the gender inequality and the issues that occur in the business
workplaces. The case where Maria Eitel was subject to a derogatory comment from one of
her fellow employees can be avoided in a strong manner.
It is important for the management of the organizations to respect the gender diversity
as because the presence of gender diversity can help empower the women which will support
the quest for women success (Boyd et al. 2017). The presence of such an environment can
help make a women financially independent and can also assure the boost in the performance
of the employees. The presence of such an atmosphere will also present a golden scope for
the talented workforce to display their skills and can also help to attract women to the
business system. The increase in the participation of women in the workforce thus helps to
present a good name for the organization in the business market (Waldman and O'Reilly
2018). The video has thus provided a great form of leadership display which has shown the
need for the inclusion of leaders with a free and liberal mentality. A strong leadership thus
refers to the support of a unbiased mentality and working towards a diverse and strong work
culture.

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Case Study 3
Change Leadership in cross cultural context
The case study has involved an interview based on the observation of Ms Catherine
Harris, wife of David Harris (CEO of Harris Farm Markets). The interview presented here
has shown Ms Harris’s viewpoint and also the observations of the author during the study of
the case. The changes in the Australian legislation laws and processes in the year 2000 forced
David Harris to bring in his wife to the business in order to address the needs of Harris Farm
Markets and implement a change management process to deal with the current range of
business challenges (Boyd et al. 2017). The major challenge that had to be faced by Catherine
was the changes in the legislation process of Australian firms as a result of the
implementation of the goods and service taxes. The management of the business needs to
implement the organization in a successful manner. The absence of the digital business
strategies and the absence of the digital accounting system has been the major drawbacks of
the organization. The absence of the taxation policies and the absence of the operational
procedures in the business will lead to major problems within the organization. There are also
no safety features and procedures mentioned within the business organization which is one of
the major setbacks. The management of the business must address the following in this
manner to ensure success.
A number of different options have been tried in by Catherine in order to analyse the
drawbacks of the system and also find the required solutions. The major task of Catherine in
such a case will be to change the style of the business process and implement new and better
changes that can help the Harris farm markets for the better. Catherine who was an expert in
change management processes had a number of different options available to her to ensure
the success of the business in the most scientific and systematic manner (Boyd et al. 2017).
One of the major change that could have been implemented was the inclusion of the style of

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presentation and bring in the appropriate changes. As the Harris Farm market carried out
operations in Italian style, the presence of a large scale gap in between the decision making
process and the execution of the task existed. The existence of such a strong gap was strongly
unacceptable as because in such a case the total management including the employees looked
upon Harris as the final decision maker (Conger 2015). This concept of decision making
power resting on one single hand was really problematic for the organization. The presence
of a consultation process could do wonders as the feedback of the employees on decisions
vital for the organization had the capability to change the business process for the very good.
Apart from this a proper process of training the employees under special legislative
structures and most importantly GST structure was also a necessity. The presence of a proper
and efficient training and idea of the GST process could help the organization to easily dal
with the legal hurdles and ensure their sustainability in a strong and efficient manner. As per
the presented situation a training regime equipped with the needs of the hour could be the
best source of business success (Waldman and O'Reilly 2018). The presence of the training
process will provide all the detailed idea of the organization and help the management of the
business to deal with the critical legislative challenges and ensure future success and
sustainability. The involvement of the Australian and the Italian culture and the blend of the
two within the organization is also a major necessity for the organization to survive the crisis
and move forward towards a better success.
Case Study 4
The Founder Movie Analysis
The case study provided here has been one of the best in terms of leadership
perspectives. The video here is based on the story of McDonald’s entrepreneurship process
where it is seen that a person named Roy Kroc is an ambitious salesman who has been in

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search of a golden business opportunity. The presence of sharp and accurate strategies along
with the presence of a sharp business acumen helped him to establish the largest food chain
of the globe (McDonald’s Restaurant). The major element that has been highlighted in this
particular study has been the importance of persistence and adaptability. Persistence
according to the move has been shown to be posing great power as because the presence of
persistence among a person can help him to refuse of thinking in a large manner. The
presence of persistence among a person can drive him to large heights from where success
will be easier to attain. Apart from the persistent nature of the person, the capability to adapt
to any typical situation presents an intriguing picture for the organization (Conger 2015). The
slow process followed by Griffith’s Drive Inn was totally opposite to that of McDonalds as
the management of McDonalds has been important for the organization. The fast food
business concept was totally changed by McDonalds as the absence of inaccuracy, non-
innovation and adaptability was important to the success of the business within the
organization (Waldman and O'Reilly 2018). One scene in the movie has shown that Roy Kroc
waited for a delivery for around 20 minutes but the restaurant failed to deliver it citing that
they were too busy that very day. This clearly showed the absence of proper management in
the fast food chains.
The innovative features of the organization and the presence of the sustainable
features is important for the success of the business organization. The management of the
business organization needs to choose from marketing and sustainability to address the
different issues of fast food chains. It is important for the company to use new and innovative
techniques to address the issues in a structured manner. It is important for the management to
ensure that they present an environmental friendly atmosphere to the organization to access
the best of the business (Hogan 2017). The adaption of the restaurant chain to different

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cultures helps the management to ensure success of the organizations in an established
manner.
The movie has been one of the best examples that highlighted the leadership style on
how well a leader must perform and the features of a leader that separates him from the
others in the business. The story of the person as a salesman to transform to a successful
entrepreneur presents a motivating example for the other leaders. The path to success for the
leaders have been highlighted in a successful manner in the following movie. The capability
of the organizational entrepreneur and the idea of innovation is the main difference that has
made McDonalds the leading food chains of the globe.

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References
Blanchard, K., 2018. Leading at a higher level: Blanchard on leadership and creating high
performing organizations. FT Press.
Boyd, B., Henning, N., Reyna, E., Wang, D., Welch, M. and Hoffman, A.J., 2017. Hybrid
organizations: New business models for environmental leadership. Routledge.
Conger, J., 2015. Charismatic leadership. Wiley encyclopedia of management, pp.1-2.
Einarsen, S., Aasland, M.S. and Skogstad, A., 2016. The nature and outcomes of destructive
leadership behavior in organizations. Risky Business: Psychological, Physical and Financial
Costs of High Risk Behavior in Organizations, 323.
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leadership behavior in organizations. Risky Business: Psychological, Physical and Financial
Costs of High Risk Behavior in Organizations, 323.
Grint, K., Jones, O.S., Holt, C. and Storey, J., 2016. What is leadership. The Routledge
companion to leadership, p.3.
Hogan, R., 2017. Personality and the fate of organizations. Psychology Press.
Hogan, R., 2017. Personality and the fate of organizations. Psychology Press.
Jian, G. and Fairhurst, G.T., 2017. Leadership in organizations. The international
encyclopedia of organizational communication, pp.1-20.
Kossek, E.E. and Buzzanell, P.M., 2018. Women's career equality and leadership in
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Management, 57(4), pp.813-822.
Northouse, P.G., 2018. Leadership: Theory and practice. Sage publications.

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Northouse, P.G., 2018. Leadership: Theory and practice. Sage publications.
Renz, D.O. and Herman, R.D. eds., 2016. The Jossey-Bass handbook of nonprofit leadership
and management. John Wiley & Sons.
Uhl-Bien, M. and Arena, M., 2017. Complexity leadership: Enabling people and
organizations for adaptability. Organizational Dynamics.
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Waldman, D.A. and O'Reilly, C., 2018. Leadership for Organizations. SAGE Publications.