The Nagpur Ice Company had been in operation for over fifty years manufacturing ice, serving convenience stores as well as industries. The company’s daily operations were in a state of flux, with long working hours during the busy season, the employee strength being anywhere between 75 to 125, comprising labour, sales and supervisory personnel.
Mr. Ajit was the manager of the plant for the past 30 years. He believed in working with the workers and spent very little time over statistics and figures. He used his expertise to run all aspects of operations, trusting few if any of the employees. He had recently fired Prakash on the spot for “laying out” on Independence Day even though he had worked for 33 days straight without a break and had been allowed a break by his supervisor.
A couple of months ago, Mr. Ajit died from a heart attack and his son Brij took over the company’s management. On arriving at the Nagpur Ice Company , he saw a sign that read , “ We have got one rule-do what you’re told. ” He tore it down and proceeded to have a word with the employees.
The situation was bordering on chaos, employees hardly had proper knowledge of what they were supposed to do. Many reported, “ Mr. Ajit always assigned the jobs first thing each morning ”. Absenteeism and tardiness were the main issues together with non-existence of policies , procedures ,rules and able supervisors.
The turnover rate averaged about 75% over the past 5 years. There was a considerable loss due to decreasing sales figures over the last two years. Many vendors dissatisfied with late deliveries and even forgotten deliveries discontinued their business with the Nagpur Ice Company and purchased ice-machines. The state of affairs worried Brij and he was desperately seeking ways to get things moving again.