Allentown Materials Corporation: The Electronic Products Division

A) Main organizational causes of EDP’s performance problems

1) Analyze the main changes occurred in EDP’s environment and explain how they impacted EDP’s strategic priorities.

Allentown Materials Corp is a company with more tan a century with a steady growth and high reputation in the market by the end of the 80’s. A great deal of its success is based on a strong technological capability in the invention and manufacture of glass products supported by a strong Technical Staffs Division (R&D). It was competing through product differentiation and growing profitably (average of 10% per year) without substantial competitive pressures through premium prices of …show more content…

- Manufacturing was unsatisfied with Product Development which they felt had not always given them products that would run well on their production lines.

ii- Marketing

- There were many new people since the area had been recently split to Sales area.
- The área is overwhelmed by the responsibility of building strategies for forecasting and development of new products without any cooperation from the other business units or senior management.
- They were required to fulfill high standards for profitability on new products that was impossible to meet in the components business.
- Marketing was resentful about lack of cooperation and continual sniping from manufacturing.

iii- Sales

- Sales performance was evaluated on the basis of sales volume, they worked hard to beat their budgeted sales targets.
- The sales force was not paid on a commission basis.
- The relationship between Sales and Marketing was based on mistrust, gamesmanship, politicking, and maneuvering.
- There were some problems between Sales and Manufacturing with respect to demands of quick delivery to meet major customers’ needs. Hopewell Plant was qualified as giving poor quality of service.

CORRECTIVE ACTIONS:

3) Explain what specific organizational design changes Don Rogers should make in order to minimize EDP’s problems and improve performance.

Taking into account the problems that Allentown Materials Corporation was