Question

In: Operations Management

Ali recently became a manager at a local furniture store that employs three managers and 55...

Ali recently became a manager at a local furniture store that employs three managers and 55 non- managerial employees. As larger furniture stores such as IKEA and Home Center are coming to the area, the owner is concerned about losing customers to competition based on the price of products.

The management team met and discussed their strategic response to this problem. The team agreed that if profit levels did not rise in the next few months, some employees would need be terminated. It was decided that the furniture store would compete using customized designs and better customer service. Ali’s responsibility was to train all non-managerial employees in good customer relation skills, and was given a budget of AED65,000 for this.

After contacting several training providers, Ali has narrowed down his options to the following three training programs:

Expert Trainers Inc.

Al Jumeirah Consultants

Al Areej Training Services

Training Program: How to Build Long-Lasting Customer Relations? Three-Day workshop for AED35,000

Method: Lecture, Group Discussion, and Activities

Maximum Trainees: 50 per session

Training Program: Customer Service Skills One-Day Seminar for AED8,000

Method: Lecture and Question-Answer Session Maximum Trainees: 70 per session

Training Program: Customer Satisfaction Training for Sales Staff Three-Day workshop for AED25,000

Method: Customized Simulations with Feedback

Maximum Trainees: 25 per session

Each of the three options has its own advantages and disadvantages. Ali has been comparing these three options and is unsure if he should pick one of these or go with a different approach altogether. At this stage he is not even sure if training the employees would even help.

Case Questions

1. Differentiate between training and development. Which of these functions is more important for the organization in the current case?

Expert Solution

Difference between training and development:

Training: It is a short term process through which non-managerial employees learn a specific set of skills to help them accomplish their job better. It is related to the development of a particular skill set and is job oriented.

Development: It is a long term educational process that focuses on the overall growth of the employees to make them better professionals. It is related to the development of conceptual and general business knowledge and is career-oriented.

In the current case, training of employees is more important for the organization. As the organization is anticipating entry of big brand competition and has decided to compete on customization and better customer service, it is important for the organization to train its non-management employees in customer servicing and prepare them to deliver a better experience for the customers. Training to all the employees will ensure standardized and uniform service delivery across the organization and help present customer service as a USP for the business.

keosha answered 7 months ago

Ali recently became a manager at a local furniture store that employs three managers and 55...

Ali recently became a manager at a local furniture store that employs three managers and 55 non- managerial employees. As larger furniture stores such as IKEA and Home Center are coming to the area, the owner is concerned about losing customers to competition based on the price of products. The management team met and discussed their strategic response to this problem. The team agreed that if profit levels did not rise in the next few months, some employees would need...

Ali recently became a manager at a local furniture store that employs three managers and 55...

Ali recently became a manager at a local furniture store that employs three managers and 55 non- managerial employees. As larger furniture stores such as IKEA and Home Center are coming to the area, the owner is concerned about losing customers to competition based on the price of products. The management team met and discussed their strategic response to this problem. The team agreed that if profit levels did not rise in the next few months, some employees would need...

Ali recently became a manager at a local furniture store that employs three managers and 55...

Ali recently became a manager at a local furniture store that employs three managers and 55 non- managerial employees. As larger furniture stores such as IKEA and Home Center are coming to the area, the owner is concerned about losing customers to competition based on the price of products. The management team met and discussed their strategic response to this problem. The team agreed that if profit levels did not rise in the next few months, some employees would need...

You are the manager of a local sporting goods store and recently purchased a shipment of...

You are the manager of a local sporting goods store and recently purchased a shipment of 60 sets of skis and ski bindings at a total cost of $25,000 (your wholesale supplier would not let you purchase the skis and bindings separately, nor would it let you purchase fewer than 60 sets). The community in which your store is located consists of many different types of skiers, ranging from advanced to beginners. From experience, you know that different skiers value...

You are the manager of a local sporting goods store and recently purchased a shipment of...

You are the manager of a local sporting goods store and recently purchased a shipment of 60 sets of skis and ski bindings at a total cost of $25,000 (your wholesale supplier would not let you purchase the skis and bindings separately, nor would it let you purchase fewer than 60 sets). The community in which your store is located consists of many different types of skiers, ranging from advanced to beginners. From experience, you know that different skiers value...

Sally works as a manager in the gardening section of her local Bunnings Store. Recently, Sally...

Sally works as a manager in the gardening section of her local Bunnings Store. Recently, Sally was approached by a customer asking questions about the store’s range of built in kitchens. Although she knew nothing about the products, Sally recommended the deluxe kitchen package which came with free installation. After completing the sale, Sally handed the customer her Bunnings business card (which identified her as a manager), explained that the customer should get his new kitchen professionally installed and to...

As the Marketing Manager of a furniture store in Dubai, you need to study possible value...

As the Marketing Manager of a furniture store in Dubai, you need to study possible value propositions on which a company might position its products. a. Explain (in general, theoretically, and without examples) the possible value propositions. b. Identify (without explaining) the different winning value propositions that you might select to position your furniture. And provide a clear example of each one. (1000 words)

A local furniture store is advertising a deal in which you buy a $3,700 dining room...

A local furniture store is advertising a deal in which you buy a $3,700 dining room set and do not need to pay for two years (no interest cost is incurred). How much money would you have to deposit now in a savings account earning 4 percent APR, compounded monthly, to pay the $3,700 bill in two years? (Do not round intermediate calculations and round your final answer to 2 decimal places.) Present Value = ? How much would you...

A local furniture store is advertising a deal in which you buy a $4,700 living room...

A local furniture store is advertising a deal in which you buy a $4,700 living room set with three years before you need to make any payments (no interest cost is incurred). How much money would you have to deposit now in a savings account earning 6 percent APR, compounded monthly, to pay the $4,700 bill in three years? How much would you have to deposit in the savings account each month to be able to pay the bill?

If I worked as the manager of the Shoe Department at the local Sears store, how...

If I worked as the manager of the Shoe Department at the local Sears store, how should my financial success be measured, in your opinion?

Question

Ali recently became a manager at a local furniture store that employs three managers and 55...

Solutions

Expert Solution

Related Solutions

Ali recently became a manager at a local furniture store that employs three managers and 55...

Ali recently became a manager at a local furniture store that employs three managers and 55...

Ali recently became a manager at a local furniture store that employs three managers and 55...

You are the manager of a local sporting goods store and recently purchased a shipment of...

You are the manager of a local sporting goods store and recently purchased a shipment of...

Sally works as a manager in the gardening section of her local Bunnings Store. Recently, Sally...

As the Marketing Manager of a furniture store in Dubai, you need to study possible value...

A local furniture store is advertising a deal in which you buy a $3,700 dining room...

A local furniture store is advertising a deal in which you buy a $4,700 living room...

If I worked as the manager of the Shoe Department at the local Sears store, how...