What is the DSPD philosophy?

• What is the DSPD philosophy? Explain how the operations of the different teams reflect the DSPD philosophy.

The DSPD philosophy is Callaway’s belief of making demonstrably superior and pleasingly different products to golfing. This idea was established by Callaway’s previous business experiences and it served as the primary guiding principle for this company, the company that grew out of Hickory Stick USA. Their teamwork is built around five different areas: research and development, information systems, manufacturing, sales, and general/administrative services. The research and development team is responsible for designing, building prototypes, and testing the company’s premium golf equipment. The DSPD theory is evident here because they are thorough when conjuring new ideas of designs for their prototypes, as they make sure that this department of people is trained in a wide range of industries. Next, the information systems team supplies the company’s information needs around the clock using different computer applications.

The manufacturing team achieves levels of efficiency, innovation, and safety that are at the top of the golf industry, using the latest manufacturing and assembly techniques. The sales team ps the word, providing gold retailers with the latest advances in golf equipment and the highest quality service. The general/administrative team helps to build and grow the company by supporting the activities of the other teams; they consist of accountants, legal experts, artists, human resource generalists, receptionists, writers, and others. These are the many components that add up to be Callaway’s secret to their DSPD philosophy that has worked so well for them over the years.

• What team member characteristics does Callaway Golf consider to be important?

Callaway Golf ensures that their teams are top-notch by seeking certain skills in each of their members. Although they value diversity, they look for integrity, honesty, daring, enthusiasm, accountability, and hard work in each of their employees. This helps them achieve their “healthy balance between career and play”, recognizing that this results in “happier people who are more productive in every aspect of their lives”. This reflects Callaway’s belief in similarities and differences among their employees to forge five very effective teams.

• Consider the question at the very end of the case: “Will Callaway be able to maintain this balance in the future? Or will diversity be sacrificed for commonality, or commonality for diversity? ” What is the most reasonable answer to this question? Why?

The most rational answer to this question is merely yes, they will be able to maintain this balance. It has been 28 years since Ely Callaway entrusted his name into this company that still remains standing tall and strong today. They have managed to keep up with ever changing golfing standards, and it is simply illogical that their practices will somehow fail them in the future. Their employees are ensured to be trained in a colourful range of fields, and their five teams work collectively implementing their well thought out DSPD philosophy, and this is pretty much all they need. These key characteristics are also what got them their strong and wealthy client base, making them a very profitable organization. Despite all this success, they still certify that their workers are always satisfied, and this is also the most vital part to running a company. With satisfied workers, they will always be able to get work done efficiently, and they will be able to tackle and new problems that may come before them in the future. The same way they are able to adapt and entail up until today, they would definitely be able to keep it up in the forthcoming years.

• Identify a competitor of Callaway Golf. How does Callaway Golf’s DSPD philosophy compare with the fundamental management philosophy of the competitor? What managerial insights do you gain from making this comparison? One major competitor of Callaway Golf is the Karsten Manufacturing Corporation.

They are the manufactures of the world renowned PING golfing equipment. According to their “about us” section on the official PING website, they are a family owned company founded in 1959 in the garage of Karsten Solheim. His frustration with his putter inspired him to create a new one that made a “pinging” sound when striking a golf ball. These are the roots to a foundation that has become quite successful today. They feel that this success is owed to their philosophy of crediting their numerous innovations with perimeter weighting, custom fitting, and the use of investment casting in the manufacturing of golf clubs. Solheim insists on adhering to strict engineering principles and tight manufacturing tolerances to raise the level of product performance and quality throughout the golf industry. With Solheim’s death in 2000, his youngest son took over the managerial position and continues to practice these methods. Their products can be found in more than 70 countries today. In comparison to Callaway Golf, Steinway almost seems to measure up. They too focus on innovation and bringing the most modern products to the market. It is clever that both companies are family owned, because that way there would not be drastic changes in management when the CEO changes, as prevented by Karsten. Callaway demonstrates strategic leadership whereas Karsten seems to display more of a corporate governance approach. Callaway has an almost democratic leadership style where they take the opinions of their employees into mind before making drastic decisions. They rely on their input and trust it, because they are picky with employee selection in the first place.

• Use the Callaway Golf competitor that you identified for the previous question. How does Callaway Golf’s emphasis on teamwork compare with the competitor’s approach to organizing and utilizing the talents of its employees? What insights about teamwork does this comparison provide?

PING claims to employ workers in a variety of capacities, including golf club production, customer service, administrative, engineering, and managerial positions. They also claim to be an equal opportunity employer with a competitive compensation and benefits package. In comparison to Callaway, it seems that Callaway not only keeps design in mind, but they also focus on the efficiency of their employees. Although both companies are probably only out to hire the best for their positions, Callaway seems to portray a more worker-sensitive program. Their main approach to productivity is by keeping their workers happy so that they can be more efficient in all aspects of their life. Callaway is also more successful than PING according to sales, and this can easily be linked to Callaway’s DSPD philosophy. This shows that having a democratic leadership style in a company will allow more respect from employees and they will be happier and work harder. Motivated staff members are the key to success, and between the two companies, Callaway seems to be the beholder.