1. Describe the problem/s Charles is/are facing.

Charles Rodriguez is the manager of Business Services Group, a company headed by

the Department of National Economic Development which specializes in assisting the
business to relocate and immediately operate in the city. Charles had been performing
his best together with his team. As the manager, Charles ensures that each specialist
performs his/her best. Since he was promoted, his team is working with excellence and
with great competence. There may be a few flaws among his team but tolerable.

However, Charles’ boss, Audrey Brillantes, head of Economic Development, felt that the
team has room for improvement. She explained to Charles her insight about her
expectation of performance improvement. Aubrey initiated a major program entitled
Service Quality Management Program and she wanted to start with Business Services
Group. Charles agreed to her plan. So, the following day, Charles discussed Aubrey’s
plan with his team. He pushed his team “to go beyond” their capacities, and so, he
increased the quota of each specialist by 20% and whoever cannot meet this term will
be reprimanded.

This resulted in mumbling and afterward, Charles’ was treated coldly by his staff. The
situation became more difficult since his staff would not talk to him but only
communicate thru the passing of handwritten notes.

After a review of his staff’s performance, Charles noticed that one of his staff, Suzy,
didn’t meet her quota, so as promised, she was reprimanded. As a result, Suzy filed a
grievance report in Personnel Department against Charles. Some of his staff had
requested for transfer.

Also, after the implementation of the new quota by Charles, he noticed that the
performances of services to certain businesses have now slightly slipped.

To summarize, these are problems faced by Charles Rodriguez after the

implementation of two new policies.
 1. Charles lost his staff’s trust after implementation. They may be thinking that they
are not appreciated enough or management is not satisfied with their output.
2. He cannot gather insights from his staff that are enough to decide for their
welfare. His staff do not communicate properly with him but only pass
handwritten notes.
3. The quality of their services is affected by their internal problems.

2. If you are one of the specialists, how will you respond or react to the new quota set
by Charles?

At first, I may also react like the other specialist. However, after assessing the situation,
maybe it is time to step out of my comfort zone. I have the same experience when I was
employed before in a private firm. During those days, I was employed as head of the crew
and we were working under the leadership of the general manager in one of the restaurants
in General Santos. For several months, we were meeting our quota and going above
average. The management then decided to increase the quota. We were reactive at the
beginning however after passing few days, our team adjusted and work in play along with
the benchmark.

It is the very nature of a person to react negatively when additional pressure is awarded on
him/her. But when pressure is applied appropriately, it will have a positive outcome. In my
situation, the outcome is positive because the management pressed appropriately. They
assessed our output and analyzed the number of involved employees that’s why we met
the increased quota.

However, this scenario is not always true if applied poorly. The management should utilize
properly the information whenever a change is implemented. If management implements
unrealistic goals and objectives, the program will never succeed. In my experience, we had
also set goals and objectives that were not planned well. As expected the goals and
objectives were never met.
3. If you are Charles, what will you do to respond to the problem?

During this crisis, a leader should be wise and intelligent. He should not make decisions out
of emotion. Charles was too happy when he knew that he will return to Business Service
Group because he was too familiar with the staff. So, when a problem arose, it was
unmistakably influencing his decision.

If I were Charles, I would do the most common technique in resolving conflict, the root-
cause analysis. Those problems stated in question 1 were only the result of a deeper
problem and resolving the such problem would eventually settle the foregoing problems.

The problem started with the implementation of an increased quota and a Service Quality
Management Program. Thus, the root-cause analysis should start from that time. Charles
should assess the cause and effect of implementing the decision.

Audrey Brilliantes explained that there is room for improvement but it does not particularly
mean that it refers to quota. Let this be clear that an increase in quota is not entirely wrong.
But the improvement of service quality may also mean client relationships, quick
responses, or feedback. In addition, Charles was too hasty when he implements a 20%
increase in quota and whenever, not met, a reprimand letter to the failed staff.

So, if I were Charles, I would review my newly implemented policy. After proper
assessment, a revision of the policy should be done. Afterward, I will call again a meeting
with my staff and discuss the matter. It is important to receive feedback from them and to
understand also their point of view. After the meeting, it should be closed with a
confirmation from them wherein signifying their conformance with the newly implemented
policies. In this way, staff have fully understood their position and must be willing to submit.
In addition, instead of reprimanding the staff whenever failed to meet the expectation, why
not change it to rewarding them whenever performing above expectations? Staffs are more
motivated to perform by the reward system because they are appreciated.
4. What characteristics of a leader must Charles possess to solve the problem?

There are many characteristics of a leader but it is in this situation. Charles must be:

A. Patient. He loses his staff’s trust and maybe talks behind his back. He should be
extra careful of his words and should be calm in dealing with them. He has to
remember that his staffs were excellent before and because of poorly
implemented policy they reacted that way. He should wait for the right time to
correct the wrong and before such time, he should be patient.

B. Courageous. Charles should never show his staff that he’s becoming confused or
weak. They rely on him. He should be ready to listen and stand by his word. And
when there are policies that they are incapable yet to perform, he should be firm
to speak should show his staff that he is the leader.

C. Wise. Charles should remember that those at stake are not just his staff but the
business in general. In later days, their performance is slightly slipping down.
Charles should be wise in his decisions and he should immediately find solutions
to the company’s problem.