Problem Solution: Intersect Investments    

Problem Solution: Intersect Investments

Intersect Investments (II) is a financial services company that has been struggling to succeed and maintain their current client base since September 11, 2001.  To succeed and compete in the industry, IIs CEO believes that they need to shift their priority to a more customer-based vision.  IIs new approach for customer intimacy, improving employee morale and increasing sales, should be beneficial for long-term relationships and add value to the reputation of the investment industry.  IIs leadership will need to align the company’s customer intimacy vision with the employee’s values and beliefs thus making the employees believe that they are important to the company and its vision. To do so, II faces a multitude of challenges and opportunities.  These challenges include culture, groups and teams, change, leadership style, and structure.  An organization must be able to progress using a change management process to meet the changing needs of the various customers of the company.  For an organization, change management means defining and implementing procedures and steps to deal with changes in the business environment and to profit from changing opportunities.  The change process is a necessary aspect of business survival for an organization similar to that of the human population.  

IIs issues start with increasing employee turnover rate, the distrust between the management and employees, managers not embracing the new company vision of customer intimacy, and end with providing the professional consultations they need to make their customers happy.  Frank Jeffers directed Janet Angelo to implement the customer intimacy model developed by Annie Sorrento within a 12-month period.  The II managers have been resistant and slow to embrace a change management initiative for the company consequently the financial performance is suffering and the company is losing customers.  To be successful in the investment-industry, investment companies need to offer services that are competitive along with offering professional, skilled advice. Intersect Investment, a financial services company, has been struggling in the industry because of internal and external forces for change (Kinicki & Kreitner, 2003).

Situation Analysis

Issue and Opportunity Identification

Currently, the sales department and part of the management team does not believe the new vision will work.  The management team has had success in the past with product-based sales and is distorting her employee loyalty by not stressing the new philosophy.  This has resulted in employee frustration and high turnover rate, which is decreasing customer satisfaction.  Frank’s plan to move his philosophy along is to "provide a broad set of products and services to consumer and small business customers using a model of customer intimacy that will build long-term relationships based on trust and value to the customer" (University of Phoenix, 2006).  

With change come resistance, Kinicki & Kreitner, (2004) suggest that "resistance to change is an emotional/behavioral response to real or imagined threats to an established work routine" (2004, p. 685).  At Intersect Investment there has been substantial resistance to the change initiative to the point that the Frank has replaced his Executive Vice (EVP) of sales and marketing.  The replacement was made because the previous EVP did not support Frank's new philosophy.  Frank is presently asking the new EVP to consider letting other "key resistors" (University of Phoenix, 2006) go, including members of management, which do not support the new vision. One of the key resistors includes the Vice President of Sales, Lyn Chen and a few of her subordinates.  Lyn Chen and her subordinates are in disagreement with the new model because the present model has been successful in the past.  Bottom line is that customer oriented companies are willing to spend money to build customer loyalty for the long term.  

Another inherent problem is the misalignment of the vision within the leadership. "Every successful change requires a clear, well-articulated vision of the desired future state. This vision provides a sense of direction and establishes the critical success factors against which the real changes are evaluated" (McShane, & Von Glinow, 2004, p. 514). Frank Jeffers has offered a clear, concise vision of potential increases in numerous marketable areas. Yet some of the leadership will not align out of fear of the "comfort zone" being lost and negative feelings of job security.

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Trust is another issue for Intersect from the customers toward the personnel in sales and marketing. While there was a certain amount of customer intimacy between the staff and the customers, the leadership has allowed the trust to vacate by non-responsive staff members of the sales team on vital issues. "A psychological state comprising the intention to accept vulnerability based upon positive expectations of the intent or behavior of another person" (McShane, & Von Glinow, 2005, p. 128). From the customer standpoint, the sales team lost the trust through being unavailable when the customer requires professional counsel.

Stakeholder Perspectives/Ethical Dilemmas

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