Mr. Stavropolous' search for a diversity of ideas led him to pursue Collective-Participative decision making to improve Dow Chemical. He ensured that his management leaders were involved in the decision making process. This allowed him to gather a vast array of ideas, perceptions, knowledge and information concerning vital decisions. In addition, Dow Chemical management leaders gained a sense of ownership in their organization and a feeling of excitement about their work because they were included in these vital decisions. This decision making style enabled Mr. Stavropolous to make more informed decisions that led to improved customer satisfaction, better quality, more productivity, and less waste.
In order to make decisions, the Dow Chemical leaders utilized Rational Decision Making and analytic logic as the basis for their courses of action. They defined the problems of the corporation and identified their objectives. They developed alternatives and evaluated each alternative based on their objectives utilizing the diversity of the group's utility. After evaluating each alternative, they selected the course of action that provided the best possible alternative to achieving their objectives.
The first step in their decision making process was to define the problem by examining the corporation's products and businesses. In order to conduct their examination they reviewed the strengths of Dow and determined where they could be world leaders, both today and in the future. During this process, they critically examined each product and business in order to eliminate their weak links. As a result, they divested over 10 billion dollars of business assets over four years. These cuts allowed Dow Chemical to streamline the corporation down to 14 businesses where each was a world leader in its class.
The next step led them to identify objectives to restructure the company. They determined that it would require three objectives to transform the company. The first objective aimed to reengineer their businesses by becoming more competitive in everything they do. The second objective focused on escaping the pattern of cyclical earnings by achieving more consistent earnings throughout the fiscal year. The final objective concentrated on getting their balance sheet in order so that they could invest in the long term.
In order to achieve these three objectives, Dow Chemical's leaders utilized strategic themes to diagnose causes, develop and compare alternatives, and implement the best solutions. Their first theme set standards for each of Dow's businesses. This theme was developed to show that the corporation stands for high ethics and values so customers would desire to do business with Dow Chemical. It would reflect that the corporation is developing new products and solutions to assist its customers in succeeding and improving their quality of life while leaving the environment a healthy place. The second theme aimed to increase productivity at Dow Chemical. This theme led to the corporation cutting 2.7 billion dollars in costs. A majority of these funds were invested in new ventures. The third theme sought to change the corporation's culture so that it supported their strategy. This change focused on making more demands on performance and creating more accountability in the system. Previously, Dow Chemical depended heavily on teamwork and no one seemed to be in charge. In order to establish responsibility, the corporation eliminated layers of management so that they could reward personnel for success and identify those to blame for failures. The final strategic theme focused on the growth of Dow Chemical. The corporation's leaders determined that in order to grow their company, they must get better first. They determined to get better they must reengineer Dow Chemical, cut costs and invest for the future. A large portion of these funds was spent on technology to ensure all of their employees were on-line. They purchased over 38,000 personal computers, established their own Intranet, developed a training program on-line, communicated across the globe on-line, and conducted meetings on-line.
Dow Chemical became one of the world's top chemical company's because Mr. Stavropolous utilized Collective-Participative decision making to gather multi-level information from his leaders. This diversity of ideas enabled him to make informed decisions while instilling a sense of ownership in his subordinates. In their decision making process, the leaders of Dow Chemical utilized Rational Decision Making and analytic logic. They examined the corporation's current products and businesses to define their problems. They identified clear, attainable objectives to restructure and streamline the corporation. They developed alternatives and evaluated each course of action based on their objectives, and then implemented the best alternatives while evaluating their execution for improvement where necessary. Mr. Stavropolous' decision making style and corporate structure led to more informed decisions and a stable work environment where subordinates felt like they were truly part of the solution. These factors resulted in better quality, increased productivity, and improved customer satisfaction for the Dow Chemical Corporation.
