Karen Leary Case

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Prepare Case: Karen Leary (A) (course pack) a.

How  has y

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Leary taken charge of  the Elmville branch off ice? ice? Leary terminated eight f inancial inancial consultants  w hom had been  w ith ith the company  for o ver six years Cost Merrill Lynch $30,000 to train an ne w  employee, six to eight months to be productive  Aggressive appr oach to motivate the f inancial inancial consultants: t wo hours on the f loor observing FC on the phone  w ith ith clients, monitor market indicators and current events on Quotron screens Coaching and counseling in cubicles instead of  calling people to the off ice ice ith more Developed training program for the y oung brokers to train  w ith experienced FCs  w ho  w ere ere complacent  w ith ith their careers. Hired a chief  compliance off icer icer to evaluate the trades and monitored the brokers irst year Business increased by 30% in her f irst Micromanaged her FCs

b.  What is y our evaluation of  Chung·s performance? y

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Chung is very private and territorial o ver his space and accounts. He pref ers ers to  work independently and not a team player. He dislikes close supervision and  works for himself  instead of  the company. Respect is important to him and does not react  w ell ell taking tasks that that he perceive perceivess as beneath him. Chung  works ing the company·s guideline. He  would g o out of  on his ow n accord, not follow ing his  w ay ay to please his clients. Chung is ambiti on, aggressive and eg otistical. His demand for an off ice ice  w hen hen he is still ne w  to the company show s that he thinks he has earned it by bringing  in one $6 milli on account. He is not taking Leary·s business advice, perhaps he is not subjective to a  woman superior.

If  y ou  w ere ere Leary, how  wo ow  would y ou respond to Chung·s request for a private off ice? ice?  What f act actors  would y ou consider? What specif ic ic actions  would y ou take to impro ve Chung·s performance, as  w ell ell as y our  working relationship  w ith ith him? I  would set up conditi ons for the request, f irst irst to bring in a substantial amount of  business and establish longevity  w ith ith the company. He has to pro ve his value t o Merrill Lynch before getting his private off ice. ice.

d. If  y ou  w ere ere Leary·s regional director (her immediate supervisor), how  wo ow  would y ou evaluate her performance? I  would suggest to Leary that she should give her team s ome space and room to develop themselves. It is important to give e.  What are the particular challenges and dilemmas in managing subordinates  w ho have diff erent erent cultural backgrounds and  working styles f rom y ours? y

Language can cause communicati on problem. Tones f rom diff erent erent cultures can be interpreted diff erently. erently.

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Eye contact and body language diff er f rom culture to culture. Some perceived having eye contact  w ith the superiors as a sign of  disrespectf ul or can be interpreted as not engaged in the conversation.  W omen can be considered as inf erior in some cultures. Taking orders f rom f emale boss could be disagreeable to some men f rom diff erent cultures.