Communication Problems at Leapfrog Logistics Inc

Memo

To: Winston Abrams

From: John Smith

Date: November 18, 2012

Subject: Communication Problems at Leapfrog Logistics, Inc.

After reading this case analysis about Leapfrog Logistics, Inc. there were two significant problems that were brought to my attention in regarding this company's culture and means of communication. It stated in the case that "communication between brokers in the bullpen is loud and often multiple people are shouting at the same time." This call and response method may have worked when LLI was a smaller company, however due to its growth in employees over the past three years, there are too many voices trying to send a message all at once, which is creating information overload and in result, disturbing the communication process. There needs to be a better method where employees are less likely to misunderstand the bids and responses given.

Another issue that stood out to me was the subgroup who used the hand signals in order to gain bids. The method of the hand signals itself was not the problem here, but more so the other employees feeling intimidated or spiteful towards this group because of their high volume of productivity. One of the sales managers had mentioned that she heard the employees claim "they hoped that those hot shots learned their lesson after their shipments got screwed up." This raised concern that there is a possibility that other employees may or may not have sabotaged a shipment in order to retaliate against that certain subgroup. Instead of just noticing those employees bad behavior, asking ourselves why that would do that in the first place will get us to the root of the problem. Even though this could possibly be a rumor from the grapevine, it still contains some element of truth. Something needs to be done here in order to create an atmosphere where employees feel like they have just as much chance as success as the highly productive subgroup.

The first step in solving these issues is of course to get as much information as possible from the employees themselves so that we can avoid any miscommunication coming solely from the grapevine, and then address the problems. Liz Stevens had a great solution for the communication problem. By adding the flat screens on the wall to get the information, it creates another way for the message to be transmitted visually just incase a bid or response wasn't heard. This solution is not a drastic change where employees will feel uncomfortable in a new atmosphere and it adds some new mechanisms to make the communication in the organization a little easier. Another concept that seems absent from LLI is knowledge management. The subgroup with the hand gestures should share their method with others so they can achieve