Background: Your Group has been assigned to be part of the Succession Plan Committee at Life Science Nutraceuticals (LSN). This Committee has been hard at work for months, planning the successor for President and CEO Alexandria Marvel and the rest of the executive team (largely occupied by the immediate family.) They have assigned your group to complete the Succession Plan for five key leadership positions. These positions will need to be filled over the next 12-24 months. There is not an immediate need for any of them currently, but vacancies will be imminent. The preference is to fill these internally, but President – CEO Marvel has stressed that if the right leader for a position does not exist already within the company, she would rather search for someone externally than settle for less than the most qualified individual. 

Your Group has already analyzed these five leadership positions and presented a report to President and CEO Marvel about them. Now it is time to identify any internal candidates that may be suitable for these positions. 

The Committee has already interviewed five different internal candidates that have expressed an interest in furthering their careers at LSN. All have leadership positions currently at different levels and within different departments of LSN. All have agreed to accept any leadership position assigned to them, and all are open to relocating. 

Instructions:

Step 1: Course Material

For this project, you are required to use the case scenario facts and the course material. External sources are not permitted. You are not researching on the Internet or using resources from outside the course. You are expected to answer the requirements identified below, showing the connection between the case scenario facts and the course material. Using course material requires going beyond defining terms. Students are expected to apply the terms in the applicable case-scenario situations. Avoid making unsupported statements. Make observations that explain how something happens or why something happens and that focus on importance and impact. In closing the loop, you will demonstrate the ability to think clearly and critically, demonstrating an understanding of the logical connections among the ideas presented in a case scenario, the course material, and the question(s) being asked. A significant in-text citation is expected throughout this assignment. Using one or two in-text citations from the course materials will not earn many points on this assignment. The in-text citation of a variety of course materials is expected to support your analysis. The in-text citation support must be relevant and applicable to the topic being discussed. Points are not earned for mentioning a term or concept but for clearly and thoroughly explaining or discussing the issue being addressed. 

Step 2: Review the Leadership Competencies Table 

Review the Leadership Competencies Table completed in Week Two to accompany the Job Announcement. (You may also wish to review any feedback received by your Instructor about your Table.)

Step 3: Review Upcoming Positions 

Review the five different upcoming positions your group has been tasked with filling and the leadership competencies you identified for each position. You may also wish to review any feedback received by your Instructor about these competencies. 

Step 4: Read Profiles of Five Internal Candidates (only doing 2)

Read the profiles of the five internal candidates that have put themselves forward for leadership positions.

Candidate 3 – Mohammad Darvish – Current position – Marketing Manager, Homeopathic Division (Corporate Headquarters) 

Darvish currently manages the sales of the Homeopathic Division. He enjoys working with a customer until they are satisfied and regrets having to short change the time he spends with customers today. He also feels that the company culture has become more rigid over the past few years. When asked to elaborate, he responded, “Folks are scared of making mistakes. If there has been anything I’ve been seeking to change in the homeopathic division, it’s that it’s okay to make mistakes, as long as we learn from them.” When asked what characteristics he thought a leader needed to succeed in the 21st century, he replied, “…flexible, risk-tolerant, insightful and honest.” 

He liked the collaborative culture of LSN and showed signs of having done his homework on the other divisions, particularly Asia. LSN, he said, would do well if the company made sure that this division continued its existing culture because it encouraged creativity. 

When asked how he created followers among his employees, Darvish replied that he liked to use incentive motivational techniques and would sometimes empower workers if they demonstrated the ability to take risks. Darvish said he was sometimes a laissez-faire leader because it encouraged freedom of thinking. He said he would solve problems largely through “good teaming and collaboration.” He said his favorite leadership theory was contingency theory because it allowed him to approach things based on the situation. He liked to agree with people and saw himself as being flexible. When asked how he dealt with change, he replied, “In this business, if you’re not changing, you’re dying.” 

Candidate 4 – Marge Simpson – Current position – Sales Director, Chicago Office 

Marge Simpson is 36 years old. She is a single mother of two. She was a nurse for 8 years before coming to work at LSN in the marketing area of the sales division in Chicago. She has been working for the company for four years. Her immediate manager reported that Marge is highly motivated and competent at her job. Her manager said that Marge’s biggest asset is that she “looked at challenges as opportunities and often found creative solutions to problems that others had not considered.” 

Simpson’s nursing years were spent at the University of Chicago in Orlando Park. Surrounded by a large Muslim community, the hospital gave classes in Arabic, and Simpson found it very useful in her work to attend Arabic classes. She learned how to carry on a conversation with non-English speaking patients and the names of many drugs and over-the-counter treatments. Simpson enjoyed her time in Orlando Park and found the culture of the families very compatible with her own ideas of family. 

When asked if she was risk-tolerant or risk-averse, she answered: “I occasionally reward risk-taking in the work environment. I do not think the poorly planned risk is wise, but sometimes you have to take a chance in sales. It is not for the faint-hearted. But at the end of the day, I’d describe myself as more risk-averse than tolerant.” 

Having read about the opportunity through LSN’s HR division website, Simpson was excited about the possibility of moving her career forward. When asked if she were to relocate to other regions, such as the Middle East, if it would present problems for her, she hesitantly stated: “Initially, but if I plan things out well, surround myself with good people and learn about my clients, I am sure I could overcome the cultural drawbacks to being a woman.” 

While she describes herself as being very familiar with Muslim cultures, Simpson freely admits that she knows little about Europe or South America. She has read some information and thinks she could learn another language if given help and the time needed to learn. 

Simpson has many innovative ideas about increasing sales. Simpson’s evaluations are superior, and she works well with her team. Her colleagues suggest that she is flexible and a people-first person. Her eye contact is good, and she comes off as being very authentic. She describes her leadership style as “a blend of situational and transformational” and describes herself as a relational leader. The interviewer noted that at times she seemed to be more future-oriented in her comments and may need to worry more about the here and now when getting things done. 

Recommendations:

For each of the five positions, identity: 

• The internal candidate recommended for each position and why (supported by course materials).
• A brief discussion about any candidate not chosen for a leadership position at this time, with justification for this decision supported by course materials.
• If any of the positions cannot be filled by the current candidate pool, describe why an external search is recommended. (Note: The grading rubric assumes an external search is needed.)
• If any of the positions cannot be filled by the current candidate pool, briefly describe the qualities that you feel the LSN recruiting team should look for in the external candidate for this position. (Note: The grading rubric assumes your team will identify the qualities needed by external candidates.)