Case analysis framework and methodology

Management - Case Analysis

The central problem of the case appears to be a lack of structure. There are too many divisions within yahoo, and there appears to be no communication among employees, departments and department heads about how to meet goals and achieve results. Indeed, the very goals and results themselves appear to be unnamed. Yahoo's history indicates that there has never been any formalized structure within the company, or any statement regarding its vision, mission and goals. The concomitance of this lack with the lack of logical structure in terms of personnel and duties has resulted in a lack of sustainable growth.

There are three relevant factors: company structure and communication, organizational culture, and the quantification of vision, mission and goal statements.

The current structure of the company is much too informal. There is an unnecessary abundance of divisions, with no real communication between the divisions or personnel members. It appears that these divisions were created on a whim, or an as-needed basis, with personnel members performing their duties in a very haphazard manner. People appear to be more focused upon having fun during company time than achieving their goals. There is no focus on the specific tasks needed to achieve specific goals.

Another aspect of communication is between the company and customers. During Yahoo's spurt of initial growth, the company has not made any effort to maintain customer relationships. This problem currently manifests itself in a lack of business while other competitors are offering deals and customer care that is much superior to that of Yahoo. If the company is to survive, a greater effort will be needed in terms of both recruiting and retaining customers.

As such, Yahoo's organizational culture is extremely informal, creative, and "fun." This culture was cultivated during a time when no real "work" was expected from personnel, as the money seemed to be appearing like magic. Now that the money magic has stopped, the company will have to create ways in which to formalize the work ethic of its personnel members. Many are concerned that this would be to the detriment of the valued culture within the company. However, to formalize structure and work ethic does not mean that a company's culture has to suffer as a result. The current problem is that the culture is to the detriment of future business survival, and this necessitates change. With the correct management, such change can occur with the minimum disruption and stress.

Finally, a company without clearly delineated mission, vision and goals, will also not have a proper structure for achieving these, or a plan of note for its future survival. This is Yahoo's problem. Not having guidelines for their function in the online business environment, the company has alienated customers during its time of prosperity. It was unnecessary to cultivate business relationships or to recruit customers, and hence yahoo has no experience in these fields. These are however all problems that can be addressed.

If I were in charge of Yahoo, the first thing I would do is call a general conference with all employees. I will address the group with a general overview of the problems the company is facing, with the assertion that I believe it can be rectified. I will ask each employee to work together for the good of the company and its survival in the e-business world. The purpose of the conference will then be to involve every employee in restructuring the company in a more effective way.

To achieve this, I would divide the employees into smaller groups of 10 members or so each. The first issue to address is the vision, mission and goals. Each group will be asked to come up with suggestions. The second step will be to identify the various actions to reach the goals, and the third step will be to more effectively restructure the company. For the latter, the groups will be provided with a list of the divisions within the company. They will then discuss the effectiveness and need for every division, after which they will be allowed to cross out and add as each group sees fit. Finally, the need for communication will be addressed. Employees will be asked for suggestions to improve the communication channels within Yahoo's framework, and within the restructuring strategies suggested in each group.

At the end of the conference I will collect all the work completed by the groups, and choose the two or three that appear to be the best solutions to our problems. In order to cultivate a sense of fun rather than stress, I would also make a competition out of this. The three best choices will be posted on the company's message board, with boxes for votes. Each employee will then be invited to vote for the best suggestion. The group that offered the winning suggestion will then be rewarded with something like a gift or a holiday.