Omega House Case Study

Omega House Case Study

Executive Summary

Omega House is a hospice established to offer a chance to enjoy the last days for the terminally ill. The case study presents the financial and structural integrity of the organization after the 1990 takeover by Social Action Consortium (SAC) from its unstable leadership, which had decided to abandon it. The company’s managerial structure had been weakened by abandonment, although it continued providing several social services. The social action consortium brought together seventeen stakeholders from various groups to oversee the delivery of services. The Omega House specialized in services such as education-oriented projects, health services for people with HIV, and even “political advocacy for issues that affected the poor and disenfranchised,” which made it a choice for most people living their last days and suffering from critical illnesses.

The many stakeholders at Omega House ensure that the organization runs smoothly and that contributions are distributed through salaries. The payment of the salaries depends on the success in the activities that a manager is tasked to oversee. Any flaws in the fluidity of the company and resource allocation are easily identifiable in the event a manager’s function has failed. The management is expected to e in a position to come up with strategies that help in avoiding miscommunication or undertaking of duties that lead to a disproportional distribution of resources. Ellen, for example, has witnessed several challenges as the program manager at the Omega House. The failure of some employees, such as George, has affected Ellen’s ability to perform basic activities for the organization.

Ellen’s response to George’s performance shows that the salary paid to an employee was equivalent to the duties assigned. According to Ellen, George’s salary depended on a grant that was given to Omega House. Thus she expected him to be committed to the functions associated with Omega House, unlike his partial commitment that was raising eyebrows. Ellen expects George to be engaged in activities that increase the fundraising and show his significance as an asset associated with the social action consortium. At her position, Ellen does not have much to do in terms of ensuring the success of the company’s activities, given the weaknesses of the company’s infrastructure. Generally, the title of the case study is seen in the relationship between Ellen and George, and one would be right to ask, “Insubordination or unclear loyalties?”

Issues

The Omega House has been dealing with serious managerial and structural issues since the change in management. SAC appears to have inherited the challenges faced by the previous management and is attempting to come into terms with the challenges it has to address. The first issue is brought out by Ellen, who is among the major figures in the case stud. Ellen notes that George might be having divided loyalty and that his commitment to Omega House is questionable. George is new to the organization and has been employed to help Ellen in fundraising for the organization. The salary paid to George depends on the grants that Omega House receives, and thus anyone would expect George to be fully committed to helping in the fundraising activities. The issue comes in because George appears to limit his loyalty to SAC at the expense of the Omega House despite being tasked with helping Omega House in delivering its duties.

The case study presents a situation that shows the ease of noticing other people’s commitment without considering the individual’s roles. The Omega House is a great organization, and its activities place it in a position where its program manager has to dedicate her time and resources to see it delivering as expected. Ellen notes that her life has changed since shifting from nursing to heading the Omega House activities. While at nursing, Ellen would be tired but did not lack sleep since her work was satisfying. Her new roles in the organization have, however, placed her at a position where her happiness no longer comes first. Ellen has to remain committed, hence her recognition of George’s divided loyalty. The claim by Ellen that George is not committed in his new role can be substantiated by the fact that Ellen spends most of her time assessing the functionality of the Omega House. Moreover, Ellen comes out as an inexperienced manager, and her conflict with other employees has to be addressed for a smooth flow of activities.

Ellen’s previous role as a nurse appears to have not been enough in training to be a manager. Also, Ellen has not been trained for her new role, and she faces challenges dealing with other employees. When George is employed to oversee the fundraising of the Omega House, Ellen appears to be opposed to all George’s efforts. For example, Ellen is always looking for an opportunity to confront George and make him become even more committed. For instance, Ellen tries to confront George for the lack of change in the fundraising department, although the organization was receiving more funding. Also, Ellen confronts George for making copies, forcing George to compensate the organization for the copies used. Generally, Ellen makes it hard for George to undertake his duties and accuses George of not being committed to making the organization successful. Although other issues come later from the lack of managerial skills, the discrepancy that comes out between Ellen and George becomes the dominant issue throughout the case study.

The discrepancies between Ellen and George bring out other issues from the organization. Employees are not committed to seeing the success of the organization. George, for example, appears to disrespect the chain of command and prefers to work by himself. For example, group employees define George as a person who is difficult to communicate with and accuse him of failing to attend meetings. George mentions that he cannot “get the job done if [he is] to work in committees all the time here and at SAC.” Generally, Omega House is having several issues to address from within before succeeding in conducting its activities.

Recommendations

The change that is needed at Omega House should start at the top, with Ellen as the program manager. After promotion to the managerial position, a crucial step was missed: training. Ellen should be trained on her roles and the required skills so that she does not inconvenience her juniors during their work. The management should correct its failure in assuming that Ellen should have learned leadership skills from her previous roles. Besides, a manager is employed to help an organization to solve problems and not to bring problems into the organization (Mackey, McAllister & Alexander, 2019). The problems that come out due to Ellen’s character might be difficult to deal with because she is in a top position, and her decisions are respected by her juniors. Moreover, Ellen’s character should change with the new roles assumed.

The assumption of the roles of a manager should be accompanied by a change in character to fit into the leadership position. Ellen used to work as a nurse and did not have more obligations and did not interact with as many people as she is doing at the managerial position. The impacts of personal relationships from her previous roles appear to be impacting her performance as a manager. Generally, managers are expected to be professional throughout, and personal relationships come in to create unprofessionalism. However, the conduct from other employees, such as George, could have played a role in leading Ellen to act unprofessionally; the managerial bit should be witnessed. Generally, Ellen should realize that she is no longer a subordinate staff but a supervisor. Also, Ellen should show authority in her decision making to earn respect from other employees while undertaking her duties.

In sum, Omega House is dealing with management issues, and Ellen appears to be in the middle of the crisis. The failure of some employees, such as George, has affected Ellen’s ability to perform basic activities for the organization. George and Ellen’s discrepancies dominate the case study and bring out the lack of managerial skills to be Ellen. The change that is needed in the organization has to come from Ellen because she is in a position to impact the conduct of the employees below her in the chain of command.

References

Mackey, J. D., McAllister, C. P., & Alexander, K. C. (2019). Insubordination: Validation of a         Measure and an Examination of Insubordinate Responses to Unethical Supervisory Treatment.          Journal of Business Ethics, 1-21.

List of Subtitles

Executive Summary

Issues

1. Lack of training for Ellen.

For example, Ellen does not how to deal with George’s insubordination.

1. Insubordination

George does not respect Ellen and prefers working alone instead of engaging in committees as proposed by Ellen, the manager.

Recommendations

1. Ellen should be trained on her roles and the required skills so that she does not inconvenience her juniors during their work. The management should correct its failure in assuming that Ellen should have learned leadership skills from her previous roles.
2. Ellen should show authority in her decision making to earn respect from other employees while undertaking her duties.

Summary

George and Ellen’s discrepancies dominate the case study and bring out the lack of managerial skills to be Ellen. The change that is needed in the organization has to come from Ellen because she is in a position to impact the conduct of the employees below her in the chain of command.

References

The article by Mackey, McAllister & Alexander, (2019) assesses Validation of a Measure and an Examination of Insubordinate Responses to Unethical Supervisory Treatment and is crucial in the paper as it presents some actions that can be taken to address insubordination. Although insubordination has presented a positive avenue for knowing that Ellen did not have proper managerial skills, it has affected the operations of the organization. The article has been used for its information on the various recommendations required.