MGMT 3000

THE WALLINGFORD BOWLING CENTER

A,
Wallingford Bowling Center is facing low profit performance after four years in
business. This reduced in profit is due to many factors. As we have seen ,
wallingford is not operating in full capacity for most days of the week but it is
still open for twenty four hours regardless of its operation. The net income is
2.38 percent of he total revenue generated and it shows that operation cost is
very high. Having the above mentioned problems and more, wallingford can not
have a good future unless there is immediate solution for The major challenge
the center faces which is maximizing the capacity and also sales.
As it is described in the chapter, the decision making process includes six
stages
1, Identifying and diagnosing the problem
* In wallingfords case the problem is low profit performance.
2,Generating Alternative Solutions
* Here in our case we can have as many alternative as we can just to mention
some of the alternative solutions
1, closing the business in the time when business is low.
2, Advertise the organization more .
3, Create effective relationship with employees and customers by empowerig the
employees and increasing value to existing and new customers.
4, motivate customers to come during slow time by offering incentives such as
reduced rate.
5, To use those extra rooms to generate income by renting or hosting social
events and many more.

3,Evaluating Alternative Solutions
* Now it is time to determine the adequacy of the alternatives that were
generated
1, To close the business in the time whene business is low :- which helps us
reduce the cost of operations , utilities, payroll, supplies and some more account
and increase the profit .
2, Advertise the organization more :- which motivates new and existing
customers to come to the center and ofcourse will increase profit.
3, Create effective relationship with employees and customers by empowerig the
employess and increasing value to existing and new customers.:- motivate
employees to work hard which satisfay and attract customers to the center.
4, motivate customers to come by offering incentives such as reduced rate during
slow time:- incentives always attracts people. So, giving incentive will help the
center get customers in the time whene it is normally slow.
5, To use those extra rooms to generate income by using as a social event and
many more:- by hosting some social events and parties and many more
activities we can use those extra rooms to generate incomes.
4, Making the Choice
* After considering the possible consequences of our options, we will make
decision on which alternative would be the best for the problem we face.
= As the profit is already down. It is very hard for the center to pay for any
operational cost or else. So, among all the alternative mentioned above, the first
alternative To close the business in the time when business is low :- which helps
us reduce the cost of operations , utilities, payroll, supplies and some more
account and increase the profit . looks much better alternative.

5, Implementing the Decision
* After we chose our alternative, the chosen alternative must be implemented
= The center is going to close in those time where the business is too low.

6, Evaluating Decision
* Here is the final stage of decision-making process which involves collecting
information on how well the decision is working.

B,
As a General Manager of the company, I beleive in group decision because it has
many advantages like:-
1, more information when several people make the decision
2, a great number of perspectives on the issues , or different approaches to solve
the problem
3, an opportunity for intellectual stimulation which can get people thinking and
unleash their creativity
4, people who participate in discussion is more likely to understand why the
decision was made
5, it leads to a higher level of commitment to the decision

So, group decision making could help us solve our problem by motivating
employees to share their idea in the decision process. In order to properly
manage group decision process, an appropriate leadership, the constructive use
of disagreement and conflict, and the enhancement of creativity should be
encouraged. In this group decision process, we should include all employees of
the organization but more attention should be given to the front line employees
who interact with customers frrequently because they know what the customers
need and dont need well.


While first analyzing the case on the Wallingford Bowling Center it appeared the
company had initiated high-quality solutions for optimizing profit. Some of these
solutions included creating a mens and womens bowling league to play
throughout the year, which makes up 60% of the profits. The bowling alley also
features a full service bar, restaurant, locker room and game room.
While reading the last two paragraphs, however, the owners and
managers of the company may not be implementing the best strategies for the
company as a whole. The first being, what is the goal and purpose of the
company? The obvious answer is they are a bowling alley, but more importantly,
they provide an avenue of entertainment for the community. Their goals and
purpose should be vocalized and well known to all employees, management, and
to the community. Goals and purpose drive success.
The next issue questions how the company is resolving the issues they
currently face. On a positive note, one of the members spent three months
investigating into the cost side of the bowling alley. The negative is his
observations noted the company being strict with keeping the things the way
they are. If there is a current issue that needs resolved and the company leaders
are not willing to change, than there is major fault at play. The characteristics of
managerial decisions (risk, lack of structure, uncertainty, and conflict) come to
mind. If the company is not willing to managing risk then they are not providing
long term opportunities for the company.
The 6 stages of decision making also come to mind. They are: 1) identifying and
diagnosing the problem 2) generating alternative solutions 3) evaluating
alternatives 4) making the choice 5) implementing the decision and 6) evaluating
the decision. Based on the conflicts The Wallingford Bowling Center is currently
dealing with, they are not using the stages of decision making properly. They
have identified the problem but are unwilling to provide alternate solutions.
The last issue questions whether the group is making effective group decisions.
What are their leadership principles and who is leading the company? Is
constructive conflict being utilized? And is creativity being fostered within the
workplace?
In an effort to improve the current situation of the bowling center, I would
recommend utilizing the two strategies above (the 6 stages of decision making as
well as the strategies involved in the characteristics of managerial decision
making). I would also recommend facilitating creative thinking among all
members within the business. This may include brainstorming and
collaborating, or asking the employees on the floor for suggestions or comments.
After all comments and suggestions are collected and there is an overall
agreement among the staff than a decision that needs to be made.



Question 1
The steps in the decision making process are; Identifying and
diagnosing problems, generating alternative solutions,
evaluating alternatives, making the choice, implementing the
decision, and evaluating the decision. In using and applying
these concepts to this case, with the first step we identify the
major problem with the bowling center which is that the profit
pool is too low at the end of the year and that capacity and sales
needs to be increased. Five alternative solutions are; more
advertising, offering incentives to customers during slow hours
to increase sales, use the extra space and rooms to generate
income by renting that space, closing the business during slow
times, put the business on the market to gauge potential profit
from sale.
In evaluating the alternatives we determine the adequacy of the
alternatives that have been generated. More advertising would
provide a larger customer base especially for the slow periods in
turn increasing profits, but it may not be an adequate solution
because of the companys position of operating expenses;
however it could increase profits by luring in more customers
especially during times when capacity is low. Offering
incentives to customers is an option that could provide more
customers that otherwise would not have visited the business.
Using the extra space of the bowling alley as a rental for special
events especially during slow hours could provide a potential
profit in space that would otherwise go unused. Closing the
business during slow hours would be a very viable option
because it would save on operating costs and in turn increase the
profits. Testing the market with this business could also be an
option, although the profit pool has not been desirable, the
business seems to be established which could be very attractive
to potential buyers. It would at least be worth a look to see what
kind of profit margin could be reached with a sell...