Dinuba Public Schools

Ref: http://www.cogmap.com/chart/dinuba-public-schools

The organizational structure of the Dinuba Public Schools is composed of five layers. The layers shown in the organizational structure, as well, range from the top management (board member) to the lower positions and jobs (such as librarian and warehouse supervisor). This shows that there is clearly a chain of command that exists, where the top of the chain, the board members, make decisions, and the bottom of the chain, the employees such as the librarian, are in charge of listening to the orders and executing them. Clear responsibility authority is shown at the top, as the key decisions are made by the board members, and carried out by the people receiving the orders. Also, in the middle of the chain, significant contributors to the chain who receive and delegate command (such as the Cafeteria Director) are in charge of listening to orders and delegating tasks to the people at the bottom of the chain. Hence, in the middle of the chain, there is both listening to orders and giving of orders. This clearly shows the levels of hierarchy, as there are clearly more workers near the bottom of the chain, and less at the top. In this case, however, there isn't one Managing Director, but rather a board of directors that make the important decisions for the organization.

There is clearly evidence of delegation in this chain of command, as specific commands and orders are given to certain chains of command. For example, monetary information is handled by orders being sent from the board of directors to the superintendent, who then passes the taks to the person in charge of fiscal services, who then delegates tasks to four specialized workers at the bottom of the chain, specifically people in charge of Health benefits, Payroll, and Accounting. This relates as well to how the company is more centralized and less collaborative, as the board of directors clearly have the most control, and the tasks are delegated to different people in charge of certain things, such as Money (Fiscal Services) and People (Personnel). It also appears that Dinuba Public Schools are a tall organization, as there are quite a few levels of management in the middle of the chain of command. This is seen with jobs such as Special Services Director, Maintenance and Operations Director, and Personnel. These tasks simply receive an order from higher levels of command, and delegate the task to one or two people that are lower in the chain of command. Since there are 5 layers of organization in the organization as well, there is clearly some level of intervening management.

There is, however, some evidence of delayering as well, as some people in the middle of the chain delegate tasks to many people, rather than simply one or two people below them in the chain. Examples of such jobs are the Assistant Superintendant and the Manager of Fiscal Services, who delegate tasks to four or more people. There could be more delayering done, however, to improve communication speeds and encourage greater delegation. There is also evidence of a matrix structure present with Dinuba Public Schools. Since people of the same type of skills work together, the organization works smoother, and the jobs are done more efficiently. An example of this is with the Special Services Director, and how he delegates to both a Psychologist and a Speech Therapist.

All in all, the Dinuba Public Schools organization has a somewhat organized structure.

Cadbury's Key Ingredient: Gum

Link to the Article:

http://www.businessweek.com/bwdaily/dnflash/content/sep2009/db2009098_895785.htm

Summary:

This article describes the increasing global market for chewing gum, and the attempts by Kraft to purchase Cadbury by putting a 30%+ premium on the company's value, and offering them $16.7 billion US dollars. Cadbury is a prime target for many confectionery companies as the global gum market has increased in value, from being a $16 billion industry in 2004 to being a $23 million industry in 2008. Cadbury currently controls approximately 29% of the global gum market with its ownership of Trident, the world's best-selling chewing gum and best-selling sugar-free gum, is a key player in the gum industry and would be a great acquisition for any confectionery company.

Topics From Syllabus:

1.7 - Growth and Evolution
- External Growth

4.1 - The Role of Marketing
- The Market
- Market Share

4.3 - Product
- Branding
- Product Differentiation

Applying Business Theory to the Article:

1.7 - Growth and Evolution

In this article, there is evident indication that companies are looking to grow, specifically Kraft. Kraft is willing to pay a 30%+ premium on Cadbury, meaning it's willing to pay over 130% of the market value of Cadbury to buy it out, specifically offering Cadbury $16.7 billion. This offer, however, was refused by Cadbury, the reason being that Cadbury thought the offer was too low.

Cadbury was offered so much money by Kraft because, as mentioned above in the summary, the global gum industry has grown and is continuing to grow, meaning there will be even more money in the industry. Looking at the figures provided in the article, since Cadbury owns almost 29% of the global gum market share and the industry is worth as much as over $23 billion, Cadbury makes a hefty sum of money each year. Because of this, Kraft laying down a 30%+ premium for acquisition of Cadbury, although seemingly a lot of money, is actually an insignificant amount compared to the amount of money generated through Cadbury's gum sales. Since Cadbury is also a worldwide famous chocolate supplier as well, there will be much additional income from that. The gum, however, is the prevalent reason that Cadbury would be an amazing asset to any confectionery company, as "gum accounts for roughly 14% of the global confection market, but its retail value is on track to rise by 4.8% this year, while chocolate and non-chocolate sugar confectioneries are growing at a slower pace, 4.1% and 3.5%, respectively" as stated in the article. Simply put, the gum industry is growing at a higher predicted rate compared to chocolate and non-sugar confectionery, and hence it would be an excellent option to buy into for company growth and expansion.


For more information, look to Alex Hum's blog for the continuation of this thrilling acquisition story.