Case Analysis 10 pts. Study the case of Insurance Company and answer the following questions.
Background Information
Sandy Jones supervises a clerical and secretarial pool of eight employees at the American Standard Insurance Company. Her group is responsible for typing and filing the insurance claims and registrations for Standard's customers in the Southern region. It is high-volume work that, although requiring speed and accuracy, is often tedious.
Sandy is proud of her unit because they get the work done well. Generally, Sandy enjoys her job and likes the people she works with. Most of her subordinates are young women who recently graduated from high school, some from the same school. By and large, this is their first regular job.
Sandy has one headache, though, and that headache is Katherine Bruskowicz. Katherine is a very good worker, perhaps quicker and more accurate than anyone else in the unit. She learned the job very quickly and now finishes her work before the others. The only problem with Katherine, as Sandy told a friend at lunch one day, is that "she's" just a pain in the ass."
"For example," Sandy said, "Katherine talks all the time. Now I know the work can be tedious, and I let the girls talk as long as they get their work done, but Katherine can get really loud at times, especially when I'm gone. I know, I've gotten complaints from others." Sandy is worried that Katherine's talkativeness may become an annoyance and distraction to the other employees.
Even more disturbing than the volume of her talk is its content. Katherine seems to delight in verbally harassing and intimidating the other employees in the unit. She brags about all the boyfriends she has. She'll often mock how other employees dress or talk, and will argue with them about doing certain tasks. She even picks on Sharon regularly, teasing her about her weight and lack of boyfriends.
Some of the employees in the unit have become accustomed to Katherine and can now take her in stride, although there are others who have a more difficult time dealing with her, and whom she still upsets. In either case, the employees in the unit have to make adjustments, and morale in the unit stays low. Sandy is certain that if Katherine weren't there, everyone would be much happier.
Sandy has informally talked with Katherine a few times about these matters, and Katherine will behave for a day or two-then pick up again where she left off.
Case Questions
1. Is there a problem? Explain in a bulleted form.
2. How should Sandy respond?
