Kaka Case

Bill Dowling frustrated with his job at a large auto firm, quit and formed his own business. Set up in Dowling's garage, that was the birth of Dowling Flexible Metals (DFM) in 1960. The pioneer workforce consists of Wally Denton (shop foreman) who left the auto firm with Bill, Eve Sullivan (office manager) and a few part-time and full time machinists. Beginning profits were irregular, gradually the company grew in reputation for their quality products and punctuality.

Bill recognized the vulnerability of the firm's survival, and began to diversify. Rather than being too dependent on the fluctuating auto industry, contracts were diversified to vending machines, large appliances and metal windows.

As DMS began to diverse, the need for expansion in the company's land size, equipments and manpower was necessary (Rogers, Helmers & Koch, 2010).

Moreover, increasing market competition created a need for more versatile equipment and a larger workforce, DMS have expanded to three times its original size by 1980. The firm employs approximately 30 full-time machinist, 4 engineers and a secretary subordinate to Eve.

Due to this rapid growth that hardly resembles the garage operation, problems arise making the firm less efficient.

For the purpose of the paper, the consulting project would look in depth of the growing pains by interviewing key personals in the firm, the structure of the organization and daily operations with relevant recommendations and theories for change through scholarly research and journals.

The rapid growth without careful planning in the organization structure, day-to-day operations and technology could create adverse impacts that are not beneficial to the firm (Bacon, 2001).

The nature of DMS is manufacturing services that involve machinist and machines. For many manufacturers, the heart lies in the machines (technology) and the people who operate (machinist) to utilize inputs and produce outputs. In details, it refers to the work processes (day-to-day operations), techniques (degree of ingenuity in the workforce), machines and actions (management leadership) to transform organizational inputs into outputs (Daft, 2009).

Before any steps are taken, understanding in depth DMS's technical complexity of the manufacturing process is vital. It can help identify areas of current inefficiency and taking corrective measures for improvement.