The Vigilance Case Study

BUS 5113 - Organizational Theory and Behavior

University of the People

opposition about certain ideas or processes. Conflicts should be managed and resolved as it

can lead to low staff morale, decrease employee productivity, project failure, increase

absenteeism and staff turnover. In order to maintain a positive work environment,

organizations must ensure that employees demonstrate respect for each other, communicate

freely, show tolerance and accept differences among one another. Constructively resolving

workplace issues can turn into organizational growth, creativity, and enhanced performance

(n.d., 2021). This paper analyses the vigilance project case study and provides response to the

five questions.

Why is this case about team conflict? What conflicts do you see developing?

PharMed International is a leading pharmaceutical company which was established through

the merger of ValMed and PharmCo. A project team was formed to oversee the process of

implementing a new database tracking system – Vigilance. The case is based on team conflict

due to communication gaps affecting the way the team functions. Psychological distance was

noted between the project manager and the team members which influenced performances

negatively. Lack of information, cancellation of meetings and not accepting inputs provided

by the team members are some other issues practised by Didier Amrani, the project manager.

Dominick (2008) asserts that the scrapping of Perspective project started by the ValMed team

and not transferring the accumulated knowledge and know-how are also major issues

highlighted in the case study. Cultural differences between the French and Americans, and

autocratic leadership style meant different beliefs, different ways of decision-making and

their perceptions of power.

How is distance affecting team dynamics and performance?

The project team was not productive due to physical distance and time-zone issues. Having

lapsed working times had an impact of the team efficiency to move ahead. Team problems
also worsened with physical distance between the Americans and Frenchs. There was lack of

communication so there is no team dynamics resulting in having to amend projects designs

which created negative feeling and hindered the team productivity. Interpersonal relationship

conflict arose when the communication lead presented a communication plan to the core

team. The French project manager did not value team contribution as he kept ignoring his

American counterparts and created hostility by the Americans. This caused difficulties with

collaboration among the team as they could not find common grounds.

What do you think about the decision to appoint sub-team sponsors? What problem can

it solve? Which problems might it not solve?

Sub-team sponsors will act as mediator for the culturally diverse organization and will assist

in resolution of organizational dispute. Since they belong to senior management team, team

members would benefit from their experience and input from the diverse team members

could be given due consideration. Understanding different views while collaborating will

bring about positivity in the project. New skills and practices will also be transferred to the

team members and this will enable good understanding for each other. Emphasis on goal

achievement should be top priority hence teams need to put their differences aside and work

together. The negative side is that the teams work in isolation while one team has

successfully completed their task the other teams are hindered from moving ahead. A

dynamic process of information sharing would have brought about efficiency in the project,

but the project leader did not value the inputs from the Americans which meant a bottleneck

of information thus slowing down the teams.

What does this case say about the kinds of skills that must be considered when staffing

important projects?

Organizations should select right people when forming a project team as there are various

mechanisms that need to be considered for the successful completion of a given project.
Project leader or head should understand the importance of intercultural working

relationships if a team of diversity ethnic backgrounds form the core team. They should be

conscious about the impact of cultural differences on the team dynamics and the smooth

delivery of a project. Leaders should be excellent communicators as the full responsibility of

the project lies on their shoulders so they need to manage and motivate people. A

collaborative approach is an essential element of a leader to maintain efficiency and meet

scheduled timeframes (n.d., 2021). Being proactive to identify team gaps will enable the

leader to solve potential problems shifty and this will build the team’s trust towards the

leader. Contributions and suggestions made by team members should be taken on board and

leader must show appreciation towards such efforts by each member.

What conflict negotiation skills are most appropriate for this case?

Conflict negotiation skills should focus on finding an agreement that will solve the concerns

of the interested parties. As articulated by Amaresan (2021) some of the core skills and

characteristics required to effectively manage workplace conflicts are:

 Active Listening – in this case Didier should learn to actively listen and give

consideration to the teams’ opinions.

 Emotional Intelligence – The Americans had valuable information for their work on

the Perspective project so Didier should not have disregard the contributions related to

Perspective but rather collaborated in regards to related data between the projects.

 Impartiality: Lance and Francine should have addressed everyone who was at fault

rather than sending an email.

Conclusion

Conflicts occur due to poor communication, different values, individual’s personalities,

competition and leadership styles. These causes contributed to the numerous conflicts that

had an impact on the success and efficiency of the vigilance project.

Amaresan, S. (2021). 27 Conflict Resolution Skills to Use with Your Team and Your

Customers. Retrieved October 5, 2021, from

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Dominick, P. G. (2008). The Vigilance Project - Case Overview. Society form Human

Resource Management. Retrieved October 2, 2021, from

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ct_Student_Workbook_Final.pdf

n.d. (2021). The Importance of Collaboration in the Workplace. Retrieved October 4, 2021,

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n.d. (2021). What is workplace conflict? Retrieved October 2, 2021, from

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