Principles of Management June 2026
Q.1: A leading retail company regularly makes small operational decisions (such as restoring supplies) and also major strategic decisions (such as entering a new geographic market). Recently, management observed that routine decisions are handled smoothly using fixed rules and procedures. However, major strategic decisions often create confusion and take a long time to finalize. The Chief Operating Officer (COO) wants to improve the company's overall decision-making by using different approaches for different types of decisions. Based on your understanding of programmed and non-programmed decisions: Suggest how the company should handle operational and strategic decisions differently. Explain which decision-making models or tools can be used for each type of decision and why?
Answer:
Introduction:
Retail firms make decisions daily at varying levels of the company. Programmed decisions are made for routine issues (such as restocking) with set procedures already established for these types of operations while there will also be Non-Programmed Decisions among companies that have little or no past operational processes, such as entering new geographic markets and/or implementing new business models, creating unique situations for the companies to make decisions on. Hence, the retail company can be seen as effective when dealing with basic operational decisions because of the existence of pre-established procedures, however, less effective when making Complex or Unique Strategic Decisions due to those decisions requiring additional time for analysis as well as the use of both analytical and financial assumptions, and creativity to make that unique decision. As such this note demonstrates that you will likely need to utilize different Decision-Making Processes to hand each of those two types of Decisions.
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Q.2 (A): A rapidly expanding retail company is restructuring its organization to improve coordination and performance. Management is considering widening the span of control, redefining reporting relationships, and reorganizing departments based on product lines instead of regions. Using the concepts of span of control, chain of command, and departmentalization, evaluate how these structural changes may affect the organization's efficiency and coordination.
Answer:
Introduction:
A fast-growing retail organization is going to redesign its structural operation to work properly and effectively as their business grows in India. The approach with structural elements such as span of control, chain of command, and departmentalization will determine how the organization's management functions and make decisions. By increasing span of control, changing the way reports are handled, and changing from regional departmentalization to product-based departmentalization, The Retail Store will be able to increase their ability to respond quickly to changes in their market and improve their operation for efficiency. However, with these changes can come both benefits and challenges.
Q.2 (B): A multinational corporation is planning to expand into three new international markets over the next five years. The executive team is considering the development of strategic, tactical, operational, and contingency plans to support this expansion. Explain how these different types of plans are connected to each other. Why is coordination among them important for successful expansion?
Answer:
Introduction:
A multinational company expands into the global marketplace through the use of various types of plans to successfully operate within the different international markets. These types of plans are referred to as strategic, tactical, operational, and contingency plans, and each has a defined purpose; however, all four types of plans function together as a unified system. Strategic plans provide direction for the long term, while tactical and operational plans translate that strategic direction into executable actions. A contingency plan is created for any unanticipated events, issues, or concerns.