A Consultant's Dream or Nightmare? - Essay Sample

Introduction

Several factors must be considered to improve the condition of Whispering Pines. To explain the thoughts on the boarding home, the 7s-McKinsey model will be essential to assess how the business can be positioned to meet its goals (Fleisher & Bensoussan, 2007). With the 7s model, there will be improved performance in the home, the proper alignment of departments and other processes involved, and the best methods to implement the proposed strategies will be determined.

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Systems

The element "systems" defines the daily activities that occur in the firm and the duties the staff engages in to ensure that the job gets done (Ravanfar, 2015). From the findings from Whispering Pines, although the members have their defined responsibilities, no clear structure indicates the roles and responsibilities of all the employees. For instance, Gail, the manager is tasked with the duties of collecting rent, planning for all the meals, purchasing groceries, managed the payroll. At the end of the month, the manager also reconciled the checkbook, and if she has any inquiries to make, she calls Marge who is away. The manager's schedule is tight since she works from 7.00Am-3.00 every Monday to Friday. For the management of the boarding home to be effective, a well-trained treasurer must be hired and should be available for work at all times to manage the cash flow. The manager also needs to assign the support staff various duties instead of working on everything on her own. For instance, there should be an employee to take care of the groceries while others cook and take care of the residents. Gail's duty should be overseeing the daily activities and ensuring that everything is in place and that the residents are well-taken care of.

Structure

The element "structure" defines the structure of the organization and who should report to who (Fleisher & Bensoussan, 2007). From the findings at Whispering Pines, the boarding home is poorly structured, and several improvements need to be made. For instance, the retirement home does not have the required number of board members since anyone willing to get a position should be a member of the Society of Friends. From the research, Hayden is denied sufficient information by the treasurer regarding the state of finances. First, Whispering Pines needs to get the twelve board members who will be responsible for the company. The subordinate staff including the treasurer and the assistants at the retirement home should report to the manager who after that reports to the board.

Staff

From the investigation, the nursing home is in trouble since the employees do not perform their duties as they are supposed to (Singh, 2013). For instance, the treasurer lacks reliable financial information, and the board performs based on perceptions. In some cases, Gail, the manager, completes some checks and balances and hands over the totals to the treasurer. When the treasurer is not available, Gail calls the former who was at the time away. The board should list all the employees and define their duties, roles, and responsibilities to ensure credibility. The manager should not in any way work on the checks and balances, and the treasurer should submit a well-organized report on the flow of finances every month.

Style

The management of Whispering Pines is not sufficient since the style of leadership is questionable. There are no clearly-defined roles for all leaders, and therefore some parties end up doing all the work, a situation that reduces productivity. For instance, from the investigation, the medicine belonging to the residents and there is no precise indication of which drug belongs to what patient. A better and effective leadership style should be adopted to improve the situation at hand (Singh, 2013).

Skills

The element "skills" describes the competencies of the employees working for this organization (Fleisher & Bensoussan, 2007). From the investigation, it is clear that the employees lack the required skills. For example, Hayden explained that he was elected to fill the position and not because he was qualified. Hayden and the rest of the board members have no knowledge in the field of business, which is one of the primary causes for the failure of the management of the institution. Other board members with expertise in business management should be elected to replace those in office. It is also essential to get a competent treasure who will submit all the financial documents within a specified time as required by the board.

Shared Values

These are values that are included in the work ethics of any organization (Singh, 2013). Organizational culture is crucial, and it is essential that the employees of Whispering Pines be educated on the various work ethics.

Strategy

Strategy refers to the unique activities that the retirement home should encourage to meet the competitive advantage. For instance, there should be a better strategy to take care of the patients under medication. A nurse should be employed to monitor the patients and provide them with medication at the appropriate time.

According to Block (2000), flawless consultation refers to a deliberation that is free from errors where discoveries are made, and the feedback gathered from the process is used to implement better ways of improvement. In the case study, as the consultant, Lee has the responsibility of persuading the management of the retirement home to accomplish various tasks (Block, 2000). With a third party, the issues affecting the retirement home were identified and thus the problem can be solved.

References

Block, P. (2000). Flawless consulting: A guide to getting your expertise used (2nd ed.). San Francisco, CA: Pfeiffer.

Fleisher, C. S., & Bensoussan, B. E. (2007). Strategic and competitive analysis: Effective application of new and classic methods. Upper Saddle River, NJ: Pearson Education Inc.

Ravanfar, M. M. (2015). Analyzing Organizational Structure based on 7s model of McKinsey. Global Journal of Management and Business Research.

Singh, A. (2013). A study of role of McKinsey's 7S framework in achieving organizational excellence. Organization Development Journal, 31(3), 39.