What, in your opinion, is the mistake being committed by Ms Libra?

Question

Ms Libra is working as CEO in the Bagan Tea Company. Her company manufactures tea with ten brand names (e.g., Hari Patti, Lal Patti, Swad, Mehak, Khushboo, Morning Tea, etc.). Every brand has five flavours. Tea of every taste is packed in the packing of 10 grams, 20 grams, 30 grams, 40 grams, 50 grams, 60 grams, 70 grams, 80 grams, 90 grams, 100 grams, 150 grams, 200 grams, 250 grams, 300 grams, 350 grams, 400 grams, 450 grams, 500 grams, 600 grams, 700 grams, 800 grams, 900 grams, 1 kg, 2 kg, 3 kg, 4 kg and 5 kg. In this way the company sells tea of one brand in 135 (1×5×27) packets and all the brands put together are sold in 135 × 10 = 1,350 packets.

1. What, in your opinion, is the mistake being committed by Ms Libra?

2. With what technique of scientific management can she improve upon her mistake?

3. What benefit shall she get with the help of the technique suggested by you?

Answer 1

1. The paragraph given above, after a deep study, shows that Ms Libra has more than necessary brand names, flavours and packings of her products. There is no justification for selling tea in so many brand names, flavours and packings. This is the very mistake made by Ms Libra.

2. Ms Libra can rectify her error by adopting the simplification technique of scientific management. For example, this product differentiation can be reduced considerably; namely by keeping four brands in total and having in each brand only one flavour and in each flavour packings of 10 gms, 50 gms, 100 gms, 200 gms, 500 gms, one kg., two kgms and 5 kgms. Thus, the total number of packets can be reduced from 1,350 to 32 (4×1×8).

3. Doing so will yield the following benefits of simplification:

i. Economy in machines

ii. Economy in stock maintenance

iii. Economy in labour expenditure