CASE STUDY: APPSmart Inc.

MHR 523 WINTER 2017 TEAM CASE ASSIGNMENT CASE STUDY: APPSmart Inc.

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APPSmart Inc. is a software development company founded in 2011.  It has posted rapid growth in the past year following the introduction of various smart-phone accessories and applications.  Everything from decorative ‘dog ears’ to attachable camera lenses and dash-board holders, APPSmart has patented and manufacured over 50 new attachments for various makes and models of smart phones as well as the applications necessary (in some cases) to support the various accessories.
APPSmart has a total workforce of 150 people, most of whom belong to Generation Y. The organization’s head office in Montreal is staffed by 50 employees, while a new plant in the Vancouver suburbs employs 100 people in production and distribution. The company is financially sound and plans to double its workforce over the next two years through developing the American and world markets.
APPSmart is strongly influenced by the entrepreneurial management style of its two founders. Still active in the organization, they are responsible in particular for the HR function. To support the firm’s anticipated growth, they have decided to employ an HR consulting team to identify the HRM needs and lay out an action plan prior to them hiring a VP of HR to be in charge of HR at APPSmart’s two locations.
You are the HR consulting team that has been hired.

MHR 523 WINTER 2017 TEAM CASE ASSIGNMENT CASE STUDY: APPSmart Inc.

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At your first meetings with the executive committee, composed of the founders and four key managers from Montreal and Vancouver (the finance director, R&D director, operations director and CEO of the Vancouver plant), you realize that they are fairly apprehensive and uninformed about their proposed new HR function and its strategic dimension.
Findings
A few days after being hired by the company, you hold a number of meetings with managers and employees from both sites. Your initial findings are striking:
·    at first glance, the employees generally seem to be motivated and happy to work for AppSmart, particularly since the launch of several new accessories, which everyone is proud of and have gained widespread attention from customers on social media;
·    the company has no HR management policies;
·    its senior managers are assigned their duties and the management of major projects on an arbitrary basis;

MHR 523 WINTER 2017 TEAM CASE ASSIGNMENT CASE STUDY: APPSmart Inc.

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·    this is the first management experience for most of the company’s managers;
·    up to now, supply and demand have served as a guideline for compensation, which is inconsistent and inequitable. This practice is not unanimously approved of and is a source of discontent among employees and executives alike.
·    employees working in the production plant are paid the provincial minimum wage.  When the company experiences high demand for its products employees in areas usually work overtime for which they may or may not receive formal compensation.
·    given the nature of the industry, employees of APPSmart use a number of social media platforms (both personal and official APPSmart sites) to promote the products.  In this case the lines between personal and professional conduct are often blurred.  Management has been made aware of several incidents of online harassment and bullying among members of the staff, no actions were taken.

MHR 523 WINTER 2017 TEAM CASE ASSIGNMENT CASE STUDY: APPSmart Inc.

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·    Some production plant employees  have requested ear protection suggesting the plant is particularily noisy.  No formal Occupational Health and Safety evaluations or processes are currently in place at APPSmart.
The Issues
Many managers confided that they would like to see the company move forward and institute a new and equitable compensation policy. The executive committee also informed you that recruitment is the main HR issue. The scarcity of talent in cutting-edge technology and the low level of awareness of the employer brand, given that the company was established only a few years ago, add to the challenges faced by the new VP of HR.
You also note several issues that are specific to the Vancouver plant. Its CEO, whose responsibilities include HR management, is the brother of one of the founders. However, he lacks the relevant training and experience to fulfill this function. Many of the plant’s employees have spoken to you about his lack of organization and management skills. Nonetheless, the two founders would like to see him continue these duties and you want you to include recommendations in your proposal that will assist him in his professional development.

MHR 523 WINTER 2017 TEAM CASE ASSIGNMENT CASE STUDY: APPSmart Inc.

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After a brief analysis of the key HR indicators, your team realizes that there are some serious problems at the Vancouver plant:
·    turnover is far too high when compared to the industry average;
·    there are numerous disability cases;
·    many of the frontline workers at the Vancouver plant involved in production and distribution are relatively new immigrants to Canada, while the majority of the head office staff in Montreal are male, cacucasian native-born Canadians.
·    absenteeism is high.
As well, you heard employees at the plant’s distribution centre discussing a proposal to apply for union certification. Your team talked this over with the plant manager, who doesn’t seem to be worried or interested in the matter. In his view, the workers in question are mainly isolated cases, troublemakers that he plans to take care of. He believes that engagement levels among most of the plant’s employees are high.
When you return to Montreal, you hear arumour about the strategic R&D team.

MHR 523 WINTER 2017 TEAM CASE ASSIGNMENT CASE STUDY: APPSmart Inc.

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Apparently its members fail to comply with the guidelines respecting the protection of intellectual property and lack the sense of professional ethics their role requires. You also hear that some of them have met with competitors outside the workplace.
Lastly, despite the considerable respect the employees have for the founders, several more experienced executives shared their concern about the founders’ lack of medium- and long-term vision and planning. Moreover, the founders themselves are the first to admit that they’ve never really taken the time to think about the priorities and strategic directions that would ensure the company’s survival. They realize that this situation should be remedied as soon as possible and admit that they have focused exclusively on the company’s growth from the start.
Source: Adapted from www.portailrh.org/excalibur/en/case/2011_Epreuve1.pdf, Retrieved January 21, 2013.

MHR 523 WINTER 2017 TEAM CASE ASSIGNMENT CASE STUDY: APPSmart Inc.

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Team Assignment:
Your team will complete a comprehensive analysis of the case as above. The case provides you with a workplace scenario and your team is asked to assume the role of a consulting firm hired by the organization in the case to identify and provide solutions for problems contained in the case.  Your report will be graded on your ability to critically analyse the case using course concepts and theory. You will also be asked to make recommendations based on your thorough analysis.
Your case analysis (one per team) is due in Week 12. A soft copy should be submitted your case to the Assessment – Assignment folder on the course D2L site.  Your case analysis will be graded based on the marking rubric – please see Appendix D.
Your report (excluding any Appendices) should be approximately 20 pages, double-spaced. The following headings are meant to assist you in organizing your report and clarifying the specific expectations for each section. The team case analysis is worth 25 marks and will be graded out of 100 points, as follows:

MHR 523 WINTER 2017 TEAM CASE ASSIGNMENT CASE STUDY: APPSmart Inc.

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Cover Page
Include your section number, the names and student numbers of all group members in alphabetical order.
Introduction and the purpose of the report (5 points)

Your introduction should clarify the purpose of your report, how it is organized and the key issues your team will address in the report.  The introduction and remainder of the paper should be written to the Executive Committee.
Problem Identification (40 points)
This section should include the identification and explanation of specific problems, challenges or issues facing the company.  Your discussion should explain the problem/issue, describe why it is a concern for the organization, and identify the stakeholders affected.
Your report should identify at least five major problems with the current management of human resources at AppSmart. Defend your problem statements using both facts given in the case, and relevant course concepts from at least 5 different chapters of the textbook. In addition to information obtained from the textbook, you should also include references from at least 3 different, reputable sources to support the problem identification or recommendations in your report.

MHR 523 WINTER 2017 TEAM CASE ASSIGNMENT CASE STUDY: APPSmart Inc.

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General Recommendations (50 points)
Based on the problems identified in the previous section, and given the contextual information you have been given about AppSmart, this component of the report should describe a detailed set of recommendations that address each of the aforementioned issues.  Your suggestions should not only speak to what needs to be done to address each problem, but should also state how each proposed solution should be implemented.  Your recommendations should focus primarily on the HR elements of the case, however, Human Resource Management does not occur in a vacuum, therefore, you are also encouraged to discuss how your proposed suggestions may affect other business functions as well and how problems that are not directly HR issues may have an impact on the employees of AppSmart.
Conclusion (5 points)
This section should provide a brief summary of the main problems you have identified and how you have proposed to address them.
Marking Rubric is provided

MHR 523 WINTER 2017 TEAM CASE ASSIGNMENT CASE STUDY: APPSmart Inc.

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By admin in Essays on April 6, 2017