Bad decisions made at the top corporate levels can have a crushing impact on the entire company. Decisions to implement more centralized control and to restrict the decision-making of local employees and managers can sometimes be extremely harmful. Let’s look at what happened to the U.S.supermarket chain Market Basket and its CEO Arthur T. Demoulas. The story of his leadership was published on management-issues.com.
Arthur was a nice guy. He treated the employees well and shared profits with them. The rest of the family which owned the company became greedy and decided to get rid of the generous CEO. However, the employees were not very happy about it and wanted Arthur back. Shipping companies refused to deliver goods to the stores. New, tough bosses threatened to sack everyone who took part in the revolt.
Employees wanted him back
The shelves in the stores were empty and revenues plummeted. Employees were reluctant to work in the post-Arthur, unfriendly environment. It is an awkward and eternal problem, because every CEO, as his company gets bigger and bigger, eventually gets distanced from reality and has to view employees as human capital which raises money. Only bosses who actually seek out the needs and wants of their employees can stay in touch with them. Arthur was one of these bosses. Arthur came back. He carried out his spunky financial plan and raised enough money to take control of the company again.
Better future ahead
With Arthur as a director again, the employees returned to their jobs and everyone and everything started working like magic. Thanks to one man and his attitude to the business, the company is coming back to life. Work is not finished, but the situation is getting better. Analysts wonder whether the company will ever be as strong as it was before Arthur was forced to leave, but Arthur is not going to let the company fail. His philosophy is social responsibility. He tries to approach his staff with respect and dignity. Everything is easier in this kind of environment, since people are the most important competitive advantage.
-jk-