CASE STUDY
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Maple Leaf Shoes Ltd.
A Case Study in Recruitment
Robert Clark was a worried man.
He looked at the letter from Sam Polanyi, president of the Leather Workers' Union's local unit in
Maple Leaf Shoes again. Polanyi had warned him of "dire consequences” if the firm did not proceed
slowly on automation in its local plant. The union had urged its members to adopt a "work slow"
tactic beginning next month. Worried by the decline and demise of giant organizations such as
General Motors, Chrysler, and Nortel, Maple Leaf's workforce was strongly against any impending
automation that could further reduce the workforce number at a time when the unemployment rates in
various parts of Canada were at historical highs. In three months' time, the contract negotiations with
the same union had to be concluded. Automation and the newly proposed workweek would surely be
important bargaining items.
But what option did the firm have now? The competition from China, Korea, Indonesia, and
Malaysia was devastating. Just in the last six months, the firm had lost two major retail suppliers in
the United States, which had pointed out that Maple Leaf's shoes were too high-priced for its
customers. Meanwhile, there were industry rumours that a major Indian footwear firm is planning to
enter the North American market. When that materializes, Maple Leaf Shoes will likely face even
greater competition at home. India has had a long history of producing quality footwear and can also
take advantage of its cheap labour and emerging high-tech industries in producing high fashion,
cheap dress shoes, and high-endurance "cross-trainer" footwear.
The recent warning from the local Human Rights Commission (HRC) did not help matters either.
Apparently two female employees, who were denied promotion in the past, had complained to the
Commission. They had argued that the promotion criteria employed by the firm for supervisory
positions worked against women. When the HRC looked at the complaint, it did not consider their
cases to be strong enough to proceed further. However, it had warned the company about the
concentration of women in low-paid jobs and lack of clear job specifications for supervisory
positions. The Commission had urged immediate remedial actions, including an in-depth look at
supervisory competencies and job specifications. The firm was expected to come out with a remedial
plan in the next 12 months.
To top it all, neither Pat Lim nor Jane Reynolds was there in Wilmington to help him. John
McAllister, the firm's previous human resource manager, had resigned to take up a similar position
in Western Canada. Maple Leaf Shoes had not hired a new manager in his place. Until now, Pat Lim,
General Manager (Marketing) was overall in charge of the human resource function, although most
of the routine decisions were made by Jane Reynolds, who in the past had served as special assistant
to John McAllister. But recently Reynolds had been admitted to a local hospital for a surgical procedure.
Clark has now been informed that Reynolds will not be returning for some time.
Given all the pressures, Clark decided to immediately fill the human resource manager's position.
Clark retrieved the job ad the company had used when hiring John McAllister. He made some minor
"Case prepared by Professor Hari Das of Department of Management, Saint Mary's University, Halifax. All rights reserved by the author
Das 2002. Revised 2009.
changes to it and decided to place it in local newspapers as soon as possible. A copy of the final
advertisement that Clark prepared is shown in Exhibit 1.
It was after making arrangements for the newspaper ad that Clark remembered his childhood friend,
Joy Flemming, who ran a temporary-help agency in Toronto. Clark and Flemming were schoolmates
and had kept in touch with each other over the years. Flemming had built up a successful agency that
supplied clerical and office staff on a temporary basis. While Clark knew that Flemming's agency
primarily supplied clerical workers and some technical/supervisory personnel), he was convinced
that Flemming's years of experience in the local industry would have exposed her to successful
human resource professionals elsewhere. He decided to hire Joy to also conduct a search.
Joy was certain to ask him what kind of a person he was looking for. In Clark's mind, he needed a
tough individual—someone like John McAllister who could stand up to the unions and take charge.
Clark personally disliked handling employee-related matters; he would like to hire someone who
would consult him on major issues but who was capable of making decisions on his or her own.
There was no formal job description for the HR manager's position in Maple Leaf Shoes, although a
consultant was currently working on writing a detailed job description. However, Clark did not value
such a document. He was a great believer that these documents meant little except adding to the
paperwork. A good person was what he needed now—a well-rounded, tough, experienced person
like John who would run a tight ship.
Oh, how much he missed John, Clark reflected sadly.
EXHIBIT 1
Maple Leaf Shoes Limited
REQUIRES
A HUMAN RESOURCE MANAGER
Maple Leaf Shoes Limited, the maker of Fluffy Puppy, Cariboo, Madonna, and other brands of
high-quality footwear, which currently employs over 650 persons, requires a Human Resource Manager
for its head office in Wilmington, Ontario. We are a fast-growing company with plans to expand
operations to several provinces and countries in the near future. Currently, we export to the United
States and a number of European countries.
As the Human Resource Manager, you will be responsible for overseeing all human resource
functions for this large, expanding organization. You will be directly reporting to the President and
be part of the top management team.
We are looking for an aggressive, results-oriented individual who can meet the organization's
challenges and facilitate our growth plans in the 21st century. This is a senior position and the typical
recruit for this position will have at least 15 years' experience in a senior management capacity. The
salary and benefits will be commensurate with qualifications and experience.
We are an Equal Employment Opportunity Employer and welcome applications from qualified
women and minority candidates.
Apply in confidence to:
Office of the President
Maple Leaf Shoes Limited
(Continued)
260 PART 3 Attracting Human Resources
1, Crown Royal Lane, Maple Leaf Town
Wilmington, Ontario.
We help you put your best foot forward!
DISCUSSION QUESTIONS
1. What is your evaluation of the recruitment strategy used by Maple Leaf Shoes?
2. Evaluate the recruitment advertisement.
3. Design a new recruitment advertisement for the position of the human resource manager.
4. Design an application form to be used for hiring a human resource manager in the firm.
CASE STUDY
INCIDENT 5-1
Ontario Electronics Expansion
Ontario Electronics developed a revolutionary method of storing data electronically. The head of
research and development, Guy Swensen, estimated that Ontario Electronics could become a supplier
to every computer manufacturer in the world. The future success of the company seemed to hang on
securing the broadest possible patents to cover the still-secret process.
The human resource director, Carol Kane, recommended that Swensen become a project leader in
charge of developing and filing the necessary patent information. Swensen and Kane developed a list
of specialists who would be needed to rush the patent applications through the final stages of
development and the patent application process. Most of the needed skills were found among Ontario
Electronics' present employees. However, after a preliminary review of skills inventories and
staffing levels, a list of priority recruits was developed. It required the following:
• An experienced patent lawyer with a strong background in electronics technology.
• A patent lawyer who was familiar with the ins and outs of the patent process and the patent
office in Hull, Quebec.
• Twelve engineers. Three had to be senior engineers with experience in the latest computer technology
and design. Four had to be senior engineers with experience in pho etch reduction. Five
junior engineers were also requested in the belief that they could handle the routine computations for
the senior engineers.
• An office manager, ten keyboard operators, and four secretaries to transcribe the engineering
notebooks and prepare the patent applications.
Swensen wanted these 29 people recruited as promptly as possible.
DISCUSSION QUESTIONS
1. Assuming you are given the responsibility of recruiting these needed employees, what channels
would you use to find and attract each type of recruit sought?
2. What other actions should the human resource department take now that there is the possibility of
very rapid expansion?
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