Management case study 10-12

FOOD FOR THOUGHT FOR MANAGEMENT PROFESSIOANALS

Does this happen now too in marketing????????


Or has the scenario changed?????


This is a story that did rounds about 35 years. A story, though not true, is a representative of the conditions prevailing those days in Pharma ethical marketing..... 

It was summer, and the temperatures in that part of Andhra Pradesh (Undivided) should to raise beyond 45*C. 

On one such day, a Medical Representative (MR)working along with his First Line Manager (FLM) were making doctor and chemist calls. 

After the first call, the MR felt Dehydrated and told the FLM that, he felt very weak and could work no longer, and said "let us stop the work and go back." 

FLM did not agree, gave the MR an electrolyte and said continue. They did the second call. The MR started feeling cramps in his body and he repeated the same request.

The FLM again turned down the request and engaged an auto-rickshaw, and started proceeding for the third call. In the third call, the FLM helped the MR with product detailing, the call was completed somehow, and when they sat in the auto-rickshaw, the MR collapsed and fell unconscious. The auto-rickshaw man said, let us take him to the hospital. The FLM said, we can’t do it. We have to inform the Regional office first.

The auto man handed over the MR’s official bag to the FLM took the MR to the hospital.

Now the FLM contacts the regional office, and tells his Regional Manager (RM) the entire and requests him, “Sir, MR’s medical condition is not good, it is better to suspend work for the day, so that I can take care of him and drop him at his residence, and depending on his condition, grant him leave as per the medical advice.”

The RM agrees but says, “please fulfill these conditions and then you can take care of him.

Now what are the conditions????

1. Check his order book, post all the orders to Regional office.

2. Check, if he has completed the day’s sales target, if not you (FLM) work, complete the calls, complete the sales target. Post the report and then, you can attend to him.

3. You can sanction him leave as per the medical advice, but you should take the responsibility of making the calls for that period and meeting the sales target. You may do it, yourself, or assign one of the team members the task or divide it among your team. Please ensure that your wok or sales target does not suffer because of that.

4. If, he needs leave for more than week, suspend him temporarily, appoint someone in his place, we will decide, what to do about him, when he recovers.

Now if you are management professional from any field, you know that everyone has to deliver on his objectives and goals. An MR not meeting his target will affect the FLM performance. The FLM not performing affects RM performance. RM not performing, effects Zonal Manager and so on so forth.

In the light of this, if you were a FLM, what would you have differently???

In case, you were a Regional Manager, what would have you have differently????

Please feel free to provide your insight…..


What is your perspective about the decision taken by the First Line Manager and the Regional Manager from the following angles.

1. Professional Ethics

2. Humanism

3. Professional Duty

4. Optimisation Angle

Please analyze the situation and give your insights through comments.