Problem Solution - Harrison-Keyes Inc.

Running head: PROBLEM SOLUTION: HARRISON-KEYES INC.

Problem Solution: Harrison-Keyes Inc.

Renee Catch

Strategic Management

18 September 2006

Problem Solution: Harrison-Keyes Inc.

In a perfect world, the project manager would simply implement the project plan and the project would be completed (Gray-Larson, 2005). This perfect world was the interpretation of leaders at Harrison-Keyes when they envisioned their venture into the latest publishing craze, e-books. This paper includes a discussion of the latest set of issues facing Harrison-Keyes during their implementation of e-books. The issues will be evaluated and opportunities identified to provide multiple solutions. The problem statement will be stated, giving several solutions to the problem. The goals that Harrison-Keys envision will be with the statement of end-state goals. All possible alternatives will be described, analyzed and narrowed to eliminate alternatives that are too risky. The optimal solution will be chosen and implementation plan explained. Finally, examples of evaluating the results will be covered for Harrison-Keyes management team to analyze.

Harrison-Keyes made a splash instead of a wave into the e-books business. While Meg McGill has been replaced for the less-than exciting performance of the e-books strategy, new CEO William Guardo has made it known he is not on-board with e-books and needs to be convinced to keep Harrison-Keyes in the market as well. The sales for the first six months were forecasted to be $16 million but Harrison-Keyes realized on $3 million, causing the board of directors as well as the new CEO to head towards a quick exit strategy on e-books. Mr. Guardo has given his team 30 days to convince him to stay with e-books otherwise he is pulling the plug. The realities of the profits not realized and the gross investment made, the following are the prevalent issues that Harrison-Keyes should address.

Describe the Situation

Issue and Opportunity Identification

The division leaders at Harrison-Keyes failed to follow-up with the deadline problems plaguing Asia Digital; due to a natural disaster, Asia Digital is now out of business and Harrison-Keyes is out of a formatting source with no contingency plan. From the initial research done by Harrison-Keyes before selecting a formatting outsource, Harrison-Keyes can quickly identify an alternative company to outsource their formatting needs. This will enable the company to bring all their formats back into alignment with deadlines already missed and allow Harrison-Keyes to pursue the next step in their strategy of publishing new titles in both hard copy and e-book formats.

Another issue at Harrison-Keyes was the unsuccessful marketing strategy used to launch their e-book business. The strategy used was the same strategy as when the company launches a hard-copy book; however leaders at Harrison-Keyes were aware of the drastic change in direction the e-books strategy was from the conventional hard-copy books and should have realized the marketing strategy would need to be re-directed as well. All is not lost, and Harrison-Keyes has the opportunity to correct their oversight by benchmarking other companies that do business on the internet and identify best practices in the industry to follow and adapt those best practices to the e-books business.

A third issue at Harrison-Keyes is the turnover now facing the company. Already key staff members have resigned and accepted jobs with the company’s competitors, leaving Harrison-Keyes in the position of needed veteran staff members to assist in re-invigorating the e-books initiative. A company that has a history of success such as Harrison-Keyes will normally have a staff that is equally as dedicated. The leaders have the opportunity to communicate with their staff on the intended strategy for the next six months to increase the sales trend back to the predicted results and maintain that level of communication. Many employees will give their companies several opportunities to correct strategies before they leave as long as they feel they are a valued part of the team.

Finally, the division leaders at Harrison-Keyes have failed to execute the e-books strategy by not taking the necessary steps to correct the lagging indicators they already identified. Through conversations with new CEO William Guardo, the staff has attempted to place the responsibility for the lack of action on former CEO Meg McGill. The opportunity in this issue is basic, identify a solid strategic plan for correcting those lagging indicators and implement