3.10 Discussion and Practice

Identify two different and distinct social settings in which you interact and for which decisions are made (e.g., family, work, school club, sports team et cetera). For each of these two settings, who are the core individuals who influence decision-making? Now, apply the three steps that comprise gathering psychological intelligence: 1) Assess sources of power, 2) Evaluate motivations, and 3) Determine perceptions. What insights have you gained about how decisions are made? Based on this insight, how can you play a more influential role in helping the organization achieve key goals? Be prepared to share your observations in class.

Power is a vital element in almost all relationships. Identify two social settings in which you interact (e.g., family, friendships, work, school club, sports team et cetera). For each of these two settings, which of the five sources of power do you possess? How effectively do you use this source of power to influence decision-making? Is there another source of power that you could cultivate to increase your influence? What specific steps could you take to develop and use this alternative source of power?

Now, identify one other person from your choice of the social settings you identified above. What is the source of this person's power? How well does this person use this source of power to influence decision-making? Compare and contrast the two sources of power (your power source and the other individual's power source). How do they interact to lead to the outcomes you experience in this relationship? Be prepared to share your observations in class.

Using the Internet, find a trade press story about a company that successfully re-structured its purchasing organization For the company you found, identify the following: 1) the motivation for change, 2) specific steps the company took to manage the transformation, and 3) the benefits achieved from the re-organization.

Alternatively, find a company that has recognized a need to re-structure its sourcing organization, but not yet been able to successfully make the transformation. For this company, identify the following: 1) the motivation for change, 2) the reasons the company has failed to make the transformation, and 3) the costs of the failed re-organization.

Document your personal (individual or family as appropriate) spend for the past month. Now that you can see where you are spending your hard-earned money, what opportunities can you identify to standardize, aggregate, reduce duplication, or switch suppliers to enable you to improve your standard of living?

Remember the following comment from the chapter: "Anything you can do to accelerate the rate of learning will speed the cost savings." Let's put this to the test. Assume the following:

• The supplier's learning rate is 30%.

• So, the process is operating on a 70% learning curve.

• Labor rates are still $20 per hour.

How much time would be required for the 250th unit? What would the labor cost for the 250th unit be? What percent savings does this represent compared to the 80% learning curve discussed in the chapter (i.e., $503.60)? Finally, what are some ways you could improve a process' learning rate?