Organizational Behavior – Eden Mccallum

1. If you were a partner at Eden McCallum what would you do – grow or cut? If I were a partner at Eden McCallum I would cut. Eden McCallum was started during a great time where they had a smooth market entry and a keen business strategy. While their business strategy is still working to their advantage, poor market conditions continue to exist and many of the firm’s clients are starting to feel the economic pressure. The firm has already “faced increasing demands to cut fees. [ (Gardener & Eccles, 2009) ] This fact, coupled with the consultant’s fear of lack of security, indicates that Eden McCallum should consider making organizational changes that would support the concerns of both parties. According to the firm’s corporate vision on value, clients come first and consultants come second. [ (Gardener & Eccles, 2009) ] Eden McCallum should make sure that they stay in line with their corporate vision when making considerations to cut. They should focus on cutting as many areas that do not directly affect the client and the consultant.

I would recommend that they cut the part-time employees and the new staff members to start since it takes one to two years to learn the business. Another value of their corporate vision is to focus on the long term, and the short term will take care of itself. [ (Gardener & Eccles, 2009) ] Focusing on the long term for Eden McCallum would include keeping the Amsterdam office knowing that it “is on the cusp of breaking even” and knowing that if they did not they would be losing credibility within the market. (Gardener & Eccles, 2009) ] However, I believe that long term goals could hurt short term profits which will, in turn, hurt long term profits. According to the growth figures provided, Eden McCallum should look at reducing overhead; and limiting the number of partners to reduce salaries paid. 2. At the outset of the case, Advisory Board Member, Robert Harris, said, “One rarely regrets cutting too early or too deep. ” Do you agree with Harris? Why or why not? One rarely regrets cutting too early or too deep” is interpreted as the “better safe than sorry” approach. I agree with Harris under the circumstances presented to us in this case that it would be better to play it safe with the financials of the company becoming fragile. The goal of the firm should be to minimize loss. In an uncertain marketplace where factors such as the possibility of a double-dip recession, the partners should consider making cuts sooner than later and in more depth to minimize the sting.

To make cutbacks sooner may be resisted by some partners, however, Harris’ point is that the company wouldn’t regret it because it did what was best for the company at that time. 3. Was the organizational structure at Eden McCallum appropriate? Do economic conditions factor into your answer? The organizational structure of Eden McCallum is appropriate for the size and type of organization it represented.

Eden McCallum is a functional organization with its environmental change viewed as stable and its complexity as simple. Should environmental change be necessary, the simplicity of its structure will allow for a smoother implementation of the change. Its structure includes professional bureaucracy as clients have specialized needs and consultants offered specialized solutions due to the knowledge-based nature of their work.

Eden McCallum has a cellular organizational form in that it the company itself is serves as a coordinator of the relationships between the clients and the business professionals known as consultants. Economic conditions are a factor because it could cause an organization to restructure itself as the supply and demand of the industry changes. Bibliography Gardener, H. K. , & Eccles, R. G. (2009). Eden McCallum: A Network-Based Consulting Firm (A). Boston: Harvard Business School Publishing.