Mini-Case Study: The Back to School Crunch at Global Green Books Publishing
Question
Task: How can Global Green Books Publishing effectively manage risks such as unpredictable orders, inadequate training, and manpower shortages during the back-to-school season?
Answer
A. Global Green Books Publishing Risk Breakdown Structure
How probable are each of your identified risks?B. What kind of impacts does each of your identified risks have? Can you categorize these as low impact, medium impact, or high impact?
Unpredictable Orders:
Impact: Medium
Description: Global Green Books faces difficulties in resource planning and allocation due to the erratic arrival of orders from the institution, making it challenging to meet delivery dates. Due to the uncertainty, it may take longer to complete client orders, which might result in unhappy consumers who didn't get their eBooks on schedule (Gurtu & Johny, 2021).
Inadequate Training of New Hires:
Impact: High
Description: A fraction of the newly employed part-time staff at Global Green Books Publishing are unable to operate the printing and binding machinery due to insufficient training. As a result, there is a higher chance of mistakes and quality problems during the production process. Rework requirements, customer complaints about poor products, and additional costs needed to fix flaws can all come from this. The danger of reduced productivity is further increased by a shortage of competent workers, which also has a negative impact on the company's standing and financial stability (Ostrom & Wilhelmsen, 2019).
Manpower Shortages:
Impact: High
Description: Employees periodically ask for time off from work owing to commitments outside of work, which leaves Global Green Books Publishing short on workers. The company's ability to finish projects on schedule is greatly hampered by the consequent staffing scarcity. The danger of missing delivery deadlines, perhaps upsetting consumers, and damaging the company's brand increases due to this shortage of human resources. The issues encountered by the company may become even more difficult as a consequence of the increasing strain on the remaining workers, which may also have a negative impact on morale and productivity (Adeleke, Bahaudin, Kamaruddeen, Bamgbade, & Ali, 932).
Quality Issues:
Impact: Medium
Description: The presence of subpar printed goods may have significant repercussions for Global Green Books Publishing. Customers may get unsatisfied and lose confidence and loyalty if they obtain inferior supplies. Reprints and repairs are required, which raises costs and reduces operational effectiveness. Additionally, this quality failure might harm the company's reputation, which would affect its ability to compete and any future business possibilities. However, the effects of subpar quality may be reduced by putting in place remedial measures including improved quality control methods, employee training, and process changes, which will nurture customer happiness and protect the company's reputation (Akhmetshin, Vasilev, Vlasova, Kazakov, Kotova, & Ilyasov, 2019).
Delays in Deliveries:
Impact: High
Description: Customer satisfaction depends on timely delivery, and any delays might have a negative effect on Global Green Books Publishing. The local university, teachers, and students are affected by late deliveries since they depend on quick access to eBooks for their academic purposes. Such delays are annoying and frustrating, and they may cause customers to lose faith in the firm's dependability and dedication. Additionally, late delivery might hurt the company's brand since consumers disseminate their displeasure through word-of-mouth. It is crucial for Global Green Books to prioritise effective logistics, enhance delivery procedures, and guarantee dependable and prompt service in order to lessen these adverse consequences (Baryannis, Dani, & Antoniou, 2019).
Customer Dissatisfaction:
Impact: High
Description: Customers may become very dissatisfied if delivery are delayed, there are issues with the quality of the product, and purchase patterns are unexpected. Customers who are not happy may decide to use different suppliers, which might result in a significant loss of income and jeopardise the company's image and long-standing connections. Global Green Books Publishing should put a high priority on on-time and dependable deliveries, put strong quality control measures in place, and work to build a reputation for consistency and customer satisfaction in order to keep its current clientele and draw in new ones (Ali, Danish, & Asrar?ul?Haq, 2020).
Communication Gaps with Stakeholders:
Impact: Medium
Description: Lack of contact with important parties, like the neighbourhood university, professors, and staff, makes it difficult to grasp expectations and raises the possibility of misunderstandings. The impact of additional dangers within the organisation is further amplified by this communication deficit. It is crucial to close these communication gaps, encourage honest communication, and actively involve stakeholders if we want to reduce these problems. Global Green Books Publishing is able to minimise the negative effects of poor communication on project outcomes and stakeholder satisfaction by cultivating positive connections, fostering alignment, and effectively addressing issues (Pérez-Cornejo, de Quevedo-Puente, & Delgado-García, 2019).
|
Risk |
Impact |
Description |
|
Unpredictable Orders |
Medium |
Planning and resource allocation are challenging due to the unexpected nature of directives from the institution. might lead to delays and a bad experience. |
|
Inadequate Training of New Hires |
High |
Lack of training for certain new part-time workers on printing and binding tools increases the likelihood of errors, poor quality, rework, customer complaints, and increased expenditures. |
|
Manpower Shortages |
High |
Employee absences lead to shortages, which hinder productivity, delay projects, and increase the chance of missing deadlines. |
|
Quality Issues |
Medium |
Customer discontent, reprints, additional expenditures, and even reputational harm result from printed items of poor quality. |
|
Delays in Deliveries |
High |
Customer satisfaction is impacted by late delivery, which could disrupt instructional programmes and damage a company's brand. |
|
Customer Dissatisfaction |
High |
Delays, poor quality, and unpredictable behaviour all contribute to general consumer unhappiness and possible business loss. |
|
Communication Gaps with Stakeholders |
Medium |
Ineffective communication impedes comprehension, heightens misinterpretations, and worsens the effects of other dangers. |
C. How probable are each of your identified risks? You can think about something simple like categorizing these as not very likely, likely, and highly likely to occur.
Unpredictable Orders:
Probability: Likely
Description: The arrival of orders from the college is described as uncertain based on the information supplied. Although it may not always happen, the nature of the printing and publishing industry and the aforementioned difficulties clearly suggest that surprising orders are likely to be a problem on a regular basis. Global Green Books Publishing is quite concerned about the possibility of encountering unpredictability in the order patterns due to factors like the changeable needs of instructors, urgent orders, and shifting demands (Gurtu & Johny, 2021).
Inadequate Training of New Hires:
Probability: Likely
Description: The case study demonstrates that one major issue facing Global Green Books Publishing is the insufficient instruction given to certain new part-time employees on how to operate the printing and binding machinery. It is quite possible that the business will have trouble giving thorough training to all personnel given that these employees were deliberately hired to manage the increased workload. Time restrictions and the requirement for flexibility, which may reduce the resources available for intensive training programmes, make this task even more difficult (Ostrom & Wilhelmsen, 2019).
Manpower Shortages:
Probability: Likely
Description: According to the case study, Global Green Books Publishing frequently has a staffing shortfall since employees have to cancel due to other obligations. Part-time jobs sometimes have scheduling issues with students, which makes this problem more common. As a result, it is possible that the business would have a staffing deficit, making it difficult to efficiently handle the workload's expectations (Adeleke, Bahaudin, Kamaruddeen, Bamgbade, & Ali, 932).
Quality Issues:
Probability: Not very likely
Description: Although the case study mentions quality difficulties as a potential problem, it does not specifically specify how frequently or how likely it is that such issues may arise. But it may be presumed that Global Green Books Publishing prioritises quality assurance and that there are probably safeguards in place to lessen the likelihood of quality problems. This presumption allows us to classify the likelihood of quality concerns as not very likely. However, continual oversight and quality control procedures must be in place to guarantee that any possible problems are quickly found and resolved (Akhmetshin, Vasilev, Vlasova, Kazakov, Kotova, & Ilyasov, 2019).
Delays in Deliveries:
Probability: Likely
Description: The case study demonstrates that deliveries frequently arrive after the scheduled dates and hours. This suggests that it may be difficult to satisfy delivery dates. Given the additional difficulties the business faces, including erratic orders and a lack of personnel, it is very likely that delivery delays will occur frequently, impacting customer satisfaction and possibly interfering with the academic activities of the nearby university, professors, and students (Baryannis, Dani, & Antoniou, 2019).
Customer Dissatisfaction:
Probability: Likely
Description: Customer happiness is seriously jeopardised by delivery delays, poor quality, and unpredictable order patterns. Customer discontent is likely to happen given that these hazards are highlighted in the case study, particularly if they are not well controlled. Failure to address these issues might have an adverse effect on the brand, client base, and general performance of the organisation. In order to reduce the likelihood and effects of customer discontent, proactive risk management and mitigation measures are important (Ali, Danish, & Asrar?ul?Haq, 2020).
Communication Gaps with Stakeholders:
Probability: Not very likely
Description: Even though the case study admits that there are communication gaps among stakeholders, it doesn't go into depth about their size or frequency. However, it is fair to classify the likelihood of communication gaps as not very likely if Samantha's proactive risk analysis and attempts to improve stakeholder communication are effective. The business may lessen the possibility of miscommunication, enhance cooperation, and cultivate deeper connections with its stakeholders by aggressively addressing stakeholder issues and enhancing communication channels (Pérez-Cornejo, de Quevedo-Puente, & Delgado-García, 2019).
|
Risk |
Probability |
Description |
|
Unpredictable Orders |
Likely |
Orders from the college are said to arrive in an unusual manner, raising the possibility of recurrent occurrences. |
|
Inadequate Training of New Hires |
Likely |
Given the time limits and requirement for flexibility, it is likely to be difficult to educate some new part-time staff. |
|
Manpower Shortages |
Likely |
Because of the nature of the employment being part-time and scheduling issues with students, cases of workers calling in sick may happen regularly. |
|
Quality Issues |
Not very likely |
The frequency or possibility of quality concerns, while concerning, are not indicated explicitly, presuming that safeguards are in place to lessen them. |
|
Delays in Deliveries |
Likely |
According to the case study, deliveries that are made later than required dates or times are a common problem. |
|
Customer Dissatisfaction |
Likely |
Customer discontent is more likely when delays, quality problems, and unpredictability are present. |
|
Communication Gaps with Stakeholders |
Not very likely |
Assuming that better procedures will reduce their occurrence, the size or frequency of communication gaps is not defined. |
E. Global Green Books Publishing - Three identified risks and potential actions
|
Risk |
Actions |
Contingency Plan |
|
Unpredictable Orders |
|
|
|
Inadequate Training of New Hires |
|
|
|
Manpower Shortages |
|
|
Reference
Adeleke, A. Q., Bahaudin, A. Y., Kamaruddeen, A. M., Bamgbade, J. A., & Ali, M. W. (932). An empirical analysis of organizational external factors on construction risk management. Int J Suppl Chain Manag, 8(1), 2019.
Akhmetshin, E. M., Vasilev, V. L., Vlasova, N. I., Kazakov, A. V., Kotova, X. Y., & Ilyasov, R. H. (2019). Improving management functions at an enterprise: levels of the internal control system. Calitatea, 20(171), 39-43.
Ali, H. Y., Danish, R. Q., & Asrar?ul?Haq, M. (2020). How corporate social responsibility boosts firm financial performance: The mediating role of corporate image and customer satisfaction. Corporate Social Responsibility and Environmental Management, 27(1), 166-177.
Baryannis, G., Dani, S., & Antoniou, G. (2019). Predicting supply chain risks using machine learning: The trade-off between performance and interpretability. Future Generation Computer Systems, 101, 993-1004.
Gurtu, A., & Johny, J. (2021). Supply chain risk management: Literature review. Risks, 9(1), 16.
Ostrom, L. T., & Wilhelmsen, C. A. (2019). Risk assessment: tools, techniques, and their applications. John Wiley & Sons.
Pérez-Cornejo, C., de Quevedo-Puente, E., & Delgado-García, J. B. (2019). How to manage corporate reputation? The effect of enterprise risk management systems and audit committees on corporate reputation. European Management Journal, 37(4), 505-515. Global Green Books Publishing
