Decision Making and Problem Solving

Learning Outcome 1: Describe decision making process for complex issues pertaining to business environment both internally and externally.

Learning Outcome 2: Demonstrate decision tools and employ appropriate analytical business models to break down complex issues.

Learning Outcome 3: Analyze ethical issues and dilemmas that businesses often face and employ ethical standards in all manners and circumstances.

Case Study:

Saud works for a XYZ company as an administrative officer. He has been working there for more than fifteen years. He is considered one of the most experienced employees of the company. Saud is a graduate and has not upgraded himself in his tenure. His performance is satisfactory in the routine work but has shown no interest and active participation in changing the existing environment.

Hussain Alghassani is a Chairman of Company. He is a kindhearted person and always has a soft corner for his employees. He has not fired a single employee from the company on the basis of poor performance. He gives a good raise in salaries to those employees who perform well and keep upgrading themselves. Saud is a middle-aged person having three school going children. He is a bread earner of his family and the survival totally depends on his salary. Due to his below average performance his salary has not been raised since the last few years. Hussain knows very well about Saud and his family.

Tarique has recently joined as a Director, HR and Administration Department. He has got a vast experience in HR departments of different well reputed universities. The meeting of the board of directors is held regarding annual increment in the employees' salaries. Evaluating each employee's performance is one of the meeting agenda. The meeting is chaired by chairman, Hussain. When the discussion comes to Saud, the board gives suggestions not to raise his salary due to his poor performance throughout the year. Tarique is against the board and its suggestions. He says that not raising any employee's salary for many years is unethical and cannot be justified. He supports Saud by saying that he has given more than fifty percent of his professional life and he deserves promotion as well as increment. Tarique suggests the chairman, Hussain to fire Saud or promote him. Tarique strongly believes that not raising salaries is a demotivating factor and has a negative effect on employee's behavior and performance. Tarique suggests Hussain to love or leave him.

Read the above case study and answer the following questions:

Identify the main problem and subproblems of the case?

Write all the information present in the case that would be helpful for decision. What other information should you gather, that would be helpful to know before making decision? Identify alternative choices for decision.

Weighing the alternatives
When weighing the various alternatives, how well each alternative fulfils the variables to consider can be expressed as scores. A different rating scale will be used to assess each alternative:

Note: Positive numbers (+2 or +1) indicate that the alternative is able to fulfil the variables, whereas negative numbers (-2 or -1) denote the opposite.

Draw a decision tree based on the case study for decision making,

As chairman of the XYZ company, How will you manage this ethical dilemma? what will be your decision regarding Saud?[Mark 2]

Write the conclusion and overall assessment.