The Nut Island Effect: Article Analysis

The central theme of the article highlights the importance of having a linkage between management and the workforce. It explains how even productive, dedicated and hardworking teams can succumb to failure when there is discrepancy between management and the team. These shortcomings, which may result on account of management’s indifference or lack of interest in the team’s activities or cause, can result in the team losing faith in them and taking crucial decisions and actions themselves for which they aren't necessarily skilled. This has grim consequences on them such as lack of motivation, poor results and various other inconsistencies.

I completely agree with the teachings of this reading as I had experienced similar situations in my own career and it was easy for me to empathize with it. The learnings I derived from it have not been particularly unknown to me and have proved to remind me of a lesson I learned in the past wherein a group, of which I was part of, was working on a project and lost trust and interest in their supervisor owing to her lack of involvement. Hence, it served to reinforce my understanding of this issue. It taught me that having a good active connection with ones superiors/managers is vital to ensure smooth functionality of operations, promote synergy & effective flow of information, exchange ideas, keep people motivated and resolve conflicts in a timely manner. 

At work, I believe that it is absolutely critical to inherit this mentality of engagement and so I would make it a point to mention it to any colleague of mine who works in a functional team or who may be the leader themselves for that matter. I consider it to be the responsibility of the subordinates as much as it is that of the manager as to ensure proper integration of this ideology because a team also needs to respond effectively to their respective tasks and the advice of their supervisors, without which a disconnect in the system would be inevitable. In this case we notice that the fault was solely that of the upper-management, but often in real life situations, it is also the other way around and equal contribution and cooperation of both parties is required. I take away 2 principles for integration from the case – One, as a manager, to always remain hands on and physically present to support my team making sure that I am well aware of everything that is happening with an air of sincere interest and commitment to my colleagues and to their project.  Secondly, as a member of the team, to retain faith in my superior and respect them for their position by following their instructions closely and whole-heartedly. 

With regard to current business trends, I believe that this article is very relevant in an age where autonomy has become an essential element of a young professional’s persona. Today, the lines of hierarchy in modern organizations have blurred to an extent that even subordinate newcomers consider their own judgment and abilities to be more developed than those of their seniors, albeit their numerous years of experience. This article relates to various concepts discussed in class that can be used to derive managerial insights:

·         The presence of linkage between management and the team of workers at Nut Island wasn’t evident. This fundamental flaw stemmed from the lack of engagement on management’s part and marked the beginning of turbulent times at the plant that was met with much dismay.

·         Human beings are a social species. They desire recognition for their work just as they need criticism for their shortcomings. This is possible by means of active interaction between management and the high performing team that was absent at Nut Island. Thus, despite their best efforts to perform, stay motivated and keep the plant alive, they eventually succumbed to a classic case of negligence by upper level management.

·         The strategic & political lens can be applied to this case. Strategically managing relationships appropriately and having the right inputs can produce the right results. Mismanagement of people is a strategic failure for a manager. MDC’s rash decision to focus on other areas while neglecting an efficient project depicts how management can crumble under political pressure.