Engstrom Auto Mirror Plant and Work Analysis Case Study
Nakeia Banks
Southern New Hampshire University
Abstract
Engstrom Auto Mirror Plant was faced with extremely low production levels and employee
morale which was causing financial hardship for the company. The plant manager, Ron Bent.
hoped to reverse the decline of workplace productivity and motivation. In Ron's attempt to
reverse these issues, he implemented an incentive program called the Scanlon Plan in which he
had hoped would motivate employees to reach set goals and increase productivity and sales.
Though the plan worked initially, it would prove to only be a temporary solution. When faced
with varying organizational issues, the company began to face the same issues over again: lack
of employee engagement, motivation and production. By reviewing and analyzing the impact of
these issues, I will be able to apply human behavior theories and concepts to develop strategic
action plans that will help revive the company from its downward turn. I will also be able to use
my own personal work experience to apply these same theories and concepts to determine root
causes and create improvement outcomes that are a direct remedy to the organizational issues
3
Introduction
Engstrom Auto Mirror Plant experienced productivity issues with its employees that led
to a decrease in sales over an extended period of time. In an attempt to reverse this downturn, a
plan was introduced that would help motivate its employees to work as a whole organization and
focus on one common goal in production and productivity which in turn would provide them
significant pay bonuses. The Scanlon Plan was a way to incentivize the employees of the plant to
work as one entire team for one common goal: the success of the company.
The Scanlon Plan is a "systematic approach to enhancing organizational effectiveness
through a formal participation program and a financial bonus" (White, 2017). By implementing
the Scanlon Plan, it was the plant manager's hope that the plant workers would be interested in
new methods and new machinery when they are given the opportunity to be a part of the a
company-wide program that allowed them to submit their own suggestions for improvements
within the company. The logic behind this process was to empower employees. Empowerment is
any process that provides greater autonomy to employees through the sharing of relevant
information and the provision of control over factors affecting job performance (Newstrom,
2015). This would lead to both personal satisfaction for the employee that would lead to results
that benefited the factory. The Scanlon Plan helped ease tension between employees as well as
helped the company achieve higher production numbers, profit and quality standards. The plan
also gave a significant financial reward to the employees. These financial rewards were included
monthly with their standard paycheck. Though this plan seemed to be the best plan for the
company and its employees at the moment, issues would soon arise that would cause this plan to
be useful for only a temporary moment of time