cynthia Flashcards
who is Cynthia carrol?
- the CEO at Anglo American which is a large mining operation based out in South Africa
- male-dominated industry
what are this case’s key themes?
- transforming operations and cultures of a larger organization
- communicating across a diverse organization
- managing key stakeholders
-organizational change
what does being in a mine feel like?
difficult and brutal working conditions
where are the deepest minds and what is the depth?
south africa
2-2.5 deep
how many mine workers?
500,000
how many deaths are officlly recorded around the world?
15,000
what is the historical background of the country?
- mining companies profit from inexpensive and oppressed black labor
-hostility and violence between black workers and white supervisors - unemployment rate of 25%
- Anglo-American competitors are less progressive (they will resist because it will increase operating costs)
what were the financial issues of Anglo Americans?
- stock was lagging
-poor financial performance - lose $8 million per day if mines close
what are the pros of closing the mines?
-sends a message that Caroll is serious about safety
- creates a sense of urgency
- of workers paid, gov, the unions and workers are happy
- establish Anglo Americans as a leader in safety
- stakeholders opposed will stay silent in public
what are the cons of closing the mines?
- expensive
-upset shareholders - may increase the danger of the mines
- Caroll needs more data to determine the cause of deaths
- closing will not address the culture of valuing workers
-focus on safety will increase costs
how does each stakeholder feel?
- shareholder: unhappy
- anglo american senior executives: mixed
- mine managers: nha[[y because of unproductive = no money
- mine workers/unions and the South African government will be skeptical
is Cynthia Caroll the right leader?
- she has a great track record
- as an outsider, she has the chance to build relationships (with gov)
- track record of taking risks to transform organizations
- a record of convincing and persistent behavior
Is Caroll the wrong choice?
- lacks context to the industry
- lack of mining experience
- the previous job was 10% of the size of Anglo
- The mining industry is historically male-dominated
what was her call to action?
- i simply cannot support operations that are killing people
- Caroll unilaterally closed Rustenburg
- many called her crazy
- she believed that these death were preventable
what did she demand?
- she wanted to listen to all her employees
- she wanted Rustenberg managers on board- safety was job 1
- wanted them to meet all safety standards
- all shafts were closed on a rotating basis
what were the challenges of listening to 30,000 employees?
-different languages and dialects
- 70% literacy rate
- people were scared
how did she meet those challenges?
- brought all employees to a stadium
- hired consultants that created groups of 50 people
- used traditional method of village assemblies
- workers were sharing ideas
how were mines reopened?
-mines were brought up to standards
-workers are given right to close the mine if concerned about safety
-workers felt empowered
- mines were less productive - 40 million loss
what were the ideas that had to be continued after the mines reopened?
- identified best practices
- ensure workers’ voices are heard
– getting all executives on board - established a dedicated team ti investigate accidents
- zero tolerance fo no compliance
- bringing regulators and competitors on board
what effect did improving safety have?
- improved relationships with unions, workers, and the government
- safety programs provided strategic opportunities yo address all operations
-ultimately lead to improving overall performance
what were the next steps she took?
created a summit where unions and gov work together for zero harm
- tied executive bonuses to safety
- executives required to go into the mines
- developing new technologies to support newly blasted veins
what were the results ?
70% decrease in deaths
48% decrease in lost time caused by injuries
demonstrated opposing stakeholders can work together
