Idaho State University Major Challenge Faced by Cole Chevrolet Summary

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Business Finance

Idaho State University

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I am currently doing a group project with my team and we had to pick a company to present which we already presented. I will send the entire power point so you can understand more about the company. I will also attach the exact instructions of this assignment for further understanding.The written summary of your group consulting project should include: I AM ONLY RESPONSIBLE FOR  3 PAGES. so focus on part 2 only which is below. 

Instructions

(1) introducing the organization and your research methods, (2) defining one major OB challenge that this organization faces and the underlying causes (focus on 3-4 OB topics), and (3) proposing your OB solutions (focus on 3-4 OB topics) to address the major challenge identified, and providing justifications accordingly.


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Cole Auto Dealerships JAYCE ENGLAND, SADIE GARDNER, JAXSON BURGEMEISTER, HAVEN JONES, DEMONTE HORTON Cole Chevrolet      Cole Chevrolet has been serving the Pocatello area and Southeastern Idaho for over 25 years. The business first opened its doors to its customers on August 1, 1995 and have been serving the area as the only Chevrolet dealership in the area. Cole was started by the Cole family here in Pocatello. They have since moved to Georgia and have other dealerships where they live, and they operate them. Their son is Ryan Cole, and he has moved back to Pocatello to run this branch of the Cole family dealerships. Art Beery currently serves as the General Manager. He was a personal friend of the Coles as he worked for General Motors his whole career, retiring from being the VP over Marketing for General Motors. He was asked personally by the Coles to come and help run this branch. Auto Sales Numbers in the United States During 2020  Chevrolet which was the principal business for the dealership had a bad year during the year 2020.  Overall, in the United States Chevrolet experienced a decrease in growth and sales by 11.12% which was the biggest change since 2011. (carsalesbase.com)  In March 2020 just like a lot of other companies General Motors experienced a shutdown of their plant which produced vehicles. This was due to the pandemic. When they opened, they joined a force of other vehicle producers and other companies to produce medical supplies and ventilators to help the population with much needed medical supplies. This slowed down vehicle productions. (topspeed.com) Major Challenge Faced by Cole Chevrolet  The challenge we felt would have been an issue for Cole Auto Dealerships was the possibility of decreased sales through the pandemic. This theory coming from the number of sales from the year 2020 across the United States. Chevrolet as a brand across the nation experienced one of the biggest downfalls in the market in almost 10 years.  We also felt finding new ways to reach customers who are affected by Covid -19 and those who do not feel comfortable going into the dealership would be a challenge.  Another challenge they could face would be how to deal with the shutdown and slow down of the production of vehicles and parts for service made directly by General Motors Chevrolet. Underlying Causes of the Major Challenge  Decision making and communication- We felt that some of the underlying causes of the data we found as far as the market was because decisions needed to be made in haste. Those decisions probably were not communicated very well as it worked its way down the chain of command.  Attitudes, emotions and stress- We also felt the attitudes and emotions felt by employees were something that may have caused this as well. The stress of working in a pandemic may have led some employees to not feel comfortable working at all.  Power, Conflict, and Negotiations- With the vehicle manufacturing plant being shut down the company probably faced some conflicts with not being able to get certain vehicles or parts in. This may have even led to some negotiations when it came to sales and the team at Cole. Decision Making and Communication  The company has a departmentalization style of leadership. The General Manager is the highest individual in the company and then it trees down through the different dealership managers. This then is split into different departments that each have their respective management.  There is a clear chain of command when it comes to the decisions made within the company which causes a lot of separation within the company. This can impede on the creativity of the lower-level workers who may have ideas to better the dealership.  There is an availability bias in the decision making that is because of all the unknowns with the pandemic. Decision Making and Communication continued.  When Cole acquired Pocatello Nissan Kia the communication was so bad that there were tensions amongst the different departments. This was due to decisions that had been made by the previous management who thought it was healthy to have differences between departments so much so that they would fight with each other.  Communication and ethical dilemmas became a big issue as Cole acquired the dealership as there were decisions being made with sales that were benefitting management as well as sales team members and not being disclosed to customers under the old management. Attitudes, Emotions and Stress  Job satisfaction is low in a sense that there is not a lot of opportunities to move up the chain to management.  Low job satisfaction leads to low job involvement over time. This leads to employees looking for other opportunities elsewhere.  After 25 years of being Cole Chevrolet now they have another dealership to “compete” with. This causes stress for the sales team as Nissan Kia tends to make more affordable vehicles than Chevrolet.  Sales department pay as well as bonuses paid out to the sales team is largely based off commission of sales. Due to this there is a wide range of positive affect and negative affect depending on how well you are doing that month. Attitude, Emotions, and Stress The Affective Circumplex Power, Conflict, and Negotiations  Impression management is something that is a struggle and has been throughout the pandemic due to new vehicles being late to ship because of the vehicle manufacturing plant catching up from the shut down.  Cole has had to do a lot of collaborating and different negotiations with customers to make sure they stay happy due to the conflict of the shut down.  Conflicts between the different departments at the newly acquired Nissan Kia dealership. This is something that was due to the result of the different management style of the previous owner. Proposals for Change  Change the organizational structure from a mechanistic model of departmentalization to more of an organic model. This will allow departments to still be separate, but you would be able to think freely.  Instead of manager roles create boundary spanning within the organic model as to create a good working environment amongst all departments. Creating liaison roles to be able to talk and work with other members of other departments.  Along with the organic model Cole should implement weekly meetings with the entire staff for people to address concerns within the company as well as to be included or at least be made aware of the decisions being made for the dealership. Proposals for Change Continued  To help with the stress and anxiety felt by the staff, it would help if they worked as a team and they did not have a Nissan Kia Sales team and a Chevrolet sales team. Instead have the salesmen work at both locations interchangeably periodically.  Raise base pay for salesmen if they do not make any sales that month. This would help ease the stress which in turn helps with employee engagement with the company.  Make customers aware upfront of the delays as well as have backup plans available to ensure the customers are taken care of. Such as making sure the dealership has rental vehicles available for those who need them. 2020 Year In Review  The pandemic first hit Pocatello in March of 2020. With this new obstacle it presented some complications for the sales market. This made it hard for people to sell and even buy things as a lot of stores closed.  Cole Chevrolet decided they were going to use these trying times to benefit employees and the community as best they could.  In doing this they made arrangements with different restaurants in town to bring lunch and dinner into the dealership. This not only made it “safer” for employees to not have to leave the dealership, but it also pumped money into the community for restaurants that were struggling through the pandemic. 2020 Year In Review continued  Aggressive marketing decisions were implemented as well during this time. Many companies were cancelling their TV advertisement time. The GM made the decision to buy up all the time to fill advertisement time for Cole Chevrolet.  From March until October Cole Chevrolet experienced record number of sales even with people not able to work. This led to the expansion of the Cole brand of auto delaerships.  In October of 2020 the sale of the Pocatello Nissan Kia dealership down the road from Cole Chevrolet was acquired and turned into Cole Nissan Kia.  This was a smart business move because according to the GM it was a good market it outreached to a new customer base and it did not compete with Chevrolet. 20/20 Hindsight  When asked if he would change anything as far as the decisions that were made during the past year the answer was, “ only time will tell if I made a mistake.” As of current the GM feels that all of their decisions made during this time were for the benefit of the dealership. During a time where people and businesses struggled Cole chose to take this opportunity to take care of their employees and the community as best they could while still making a profit. As well as marketing themselves better then ever before. This overall was beneficial to the company and as far as I can tell led to their success.  “I choose to deal in reality not in speculation” -Art Beery GM of Cole Chevrolet Resources  Demandt, B. (2020, March 23). Chevrolet U.S sales figures. Retrieved April 12, 2021, from https://carsalesbase.com/us-chevrolet/  Florea, C. (2020, March 31). Here's how covid-19 is affecting general motors and its vehicles @ top speed. Retrieved April 12, 2021, from https://www.topspeed.com/cars/car-news/here-s-how-covid-19-isaffecting-general-motors-and-its-vehicles-ar188124.html  Cole chevrolet-geo, Inc.: Better Business BUREAU® PROFILE. (n.d.). Retrieved April 13, 2021, from https://www.bbb.org/us/id/pocatello/profile/new-car-dealers/colechevrolet-geo-inc-1296-1000015806
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Part 2: Defining one major OB challenge that this organization faces and the underlying
causes
MAJOR CHALLENGE FACED BY COLE CHEVROLET
The greatest challenge Cole Chevrolet auto dealerships face is the problem of decreased
sales during the pandemic. This theory is coming from the number of sales from the year 2020
across the United States. During the start of the covid19 pandemic, the government has stalled
various measures such as lockdowns and the ban of physical gatherings. As a brand across the
nation, Chevrolet experienced one of the biggest downfalls in the market in almost 10 years.
Holderith (2020) documents that Chevrolet Camaro sales are almost collapsing. This is one of
the main product lines Cole Auto deals with. Camaro sales dropped by 46% from 12,433 to
6,676 units in the U.S 2020 alone as a great product. This impact has a direct shock on the sales
at Cole Auto. This a trend in the auto industry. The pandemic has wreaked havoc on BCB deals,
causing a massive decline in sales. Again, finding new ways to reach customers affected by
Covid19 and those who do not feel comfortable going into the dealership would be a challenge.
In life, cars have been practical ways to freedom of movement. With dealerships almost close
down...

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