Case Study 02

Tanima IslamAMM-103, 0078Case Study#0211/10/08

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Discussion Questions

1. How do you think good decision making has contributed to the success of NASCAR?

Ans. Almost every company wants success. To have a successful company, we need to know

about the decision making process, and how, and when it works. According to the text,

“Decision-making process is a set of eight steps that include identifying a problem, selecting

an alternative, and evaluating the decision’s effectiveness.” Not only does a manager need to

know this term but they also need to know when it should be applicable. In my point of view,

NASCAR is a huge, well-known company. They must use the decision making process to

make their company successful, because without knowing this knowledge, a manager can’t

do his/her work perfectly.

2. A decision to go after a new market as Brian is doing is a major decision. How could he

have used the decision-making process to help make this decision?

Ans. NASCAR company’s chairman and CEO is Brian France. He decides to go after a new

market. It is a major decision, because to launch a new market strategy sometimes does not

work. It could fail, but if he doesn’t change his market decision, then maybe his fans will get

bored to see only one market. In my point of view, Brian must use the eight steps of the

decision making process to help make this decision. First he needs to identify the problem of

launching this new market strategy, because if he doesn’t identify the problem of launching a

new market, then later it could create a major issue. Secondly, he would definitely identify


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decision criteria, because decision criteria defines what’s relevant in a decision. If his

decision criteria were not relevant to the work, then his launching would be fails. After all of

these two things done, he must do developing alternatives and analyzing alternatives. Then,

he selects an alternative and implements that alternative. Without selecting all of these

alternatives, going to the new market is risky. The last step is evaluating decision

effectiveness. He must do the evaluation, because if he doesn’t do evaluating decision

effectiveness then it will be hard for him to go for a new market. However, we can say that

all of these decision making steps help him to make his decision more easily.

3. What criteria do you think would be most important to Brian as he makes decisions about

the company’s future?

Ans. According to the text, “Every decision maker has criteria that guide his or her decision.”

I think identifying decision criteria is most important as Brian makes decisions about the

company’s future, because decision criteria help what’s relevant in a decision. This criterion

helps a decision maker to remove irrelevant things. So, Brian must use this most important

criterion while he is thinking about his company’s future.

4. Would you characterize the conditions surrounding NASCAR as conditions of certainty,

risk, or uncertainty? Explain your choice?

Ans. While NASCAR company making decisions they must face the conditions of certainty,

risk, or uncertainty. NASCAR Company faces certainty when they are doing their business in

the same market with the same customers, because they all know about their outcomes. They

also face risk, because some outcomes they don’t know. They have to put their money and


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effort in a market and then they can see their outcomes, but before that it is risky, because

NASCAR Company can’t tell without seeing the outcome what is risky and what is not risky.

Another thing they can face is uncertainty. When they will go to the new market it will be

uncertain whether they will get profit or losses. All of these things NASCAR have to face,

because they are doing business with other companies. In my point of view, I think

NASCAR Company is now facing uncertainty, because they are going to launch a new

market strategy. They don’t know about outcomes. They will get profit or loss that is

uncertain, so I can say that NASCAR Company is facing uncertainty.

5. What could Brian learn from the concept of highly reliable organizations to help him be a

better decision maker?

Ans. The concepts of highly reliable organizations come from Karl Weick, an organizational

psychologist. He says that a highly reliable organization has five habits. First, they are not

tricked by their success. Second, they defer to the experts on the front line. Third, they let

unexpected circumstances provide solutions, fourth, they embrace complexity and fifth, they

anticipate, but also anticipate their limits. If Brian learns these five concepts of highly

reliable organizations then it will help him to give more progress to his company. I think if he

put the first habit of highly reliable organization then he will be a better decision maker,

because first habit teaches that not tricked by success. Sometimes some company tricked by

their success, which means they feel too much proud for their success, so they don’t work

hard like before, and lose their reputation. If Brian learn and apply this method for his

company then I think he will be a better decision maker. Not only first habit he can apply, but


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also he can use other four methods to be a better decision maker. But I think the first one is

more applicable for his company, because his company is a huge successful company. They

would be tricked by their success, so it is better to choose the first habit to be a superior

decision maker.

Case Study 02

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