Multiple choice

You are heading the team supervising the commissioning of an important manufacturing unit of an MNC. The commissioning has got delayed resulting in financial losses to the MNC. Your headquarters have issued directions to expedite the commissioning. They have not agreed to your earlier suggestion of sanctioning of additional funds and have redrawn the time line for completion of the work. A report received from your subordinate regarding progress shows that the completion of pending work is likely to take more time than the redrawn time line. You are of a different view from your subordinate. You feel that if additional funds are allotted then the unit can still be completed as per the new time line set. You would have liked your subordinate to include this point in his report but his report is silent on this issue and he has expressed unwillingness to modify his report. In such a situation you would

  1. Direct the subordinate to modify his report and seek more funds

  2. Forward the report to the company as it is, intimating of more possible delay and seeking more time for commissioning of the unit

  3. Forward the report of the subordinate, expressing your disagreement and stating that the unit can be started in time without additional funds

  4. Forward the report with a recommendation for allocating additional funds, to enable you to complete the commissioning as per the revised timelines

Reveal answer Fill a bubble to check yourself
D Correct answer
Explanation

As it is your recommendation, you must own it up even if your subordinate has missed it or does not agree with it. (a) Option (a), though in effect would be similar to Option (d), is reflective of lack of desire to own up one’s decision and a dictatorial approach to work. (c) Option (c) is misleading the headquarters that the project can be completed on time. (b) Option (b) shows your helplessness and lack of managerial acumen as you do not recommend any solution to a significant problem. Principal/ Value Tested Ability to own up one’s own decisions Courage to communicate to higher authorities seemingly unpopular decisions which are in the larger organisational interest