Leslie Case

        Leslie assigned each of the three analysts the responsibility of making stock recommendations, where she would then make the final investment decisions. The analysts were expected to write a one-page report on companies they had followed and be able to present it to Leslie in a strategic and convincing way. Also, there would be meetings held everyday at 8:00 a.m. where the position of each firm and industry would be reviewed and new ideas would be brainstormed. Leslie would then research the firms and introduced she was introduced to through the analysts on her own to call the shots on whether to short or hedge a stock. The decision-making process all depended on Leslie and seemed very simple and straightforward.

        A purposeful decision-making process would normally involve four steps: identifying the problem, generate possible solutions, refining/critiquing possible solutions, and implementing the solution. The goal at Versutia is to beat the benchmark index and be profitable no matter the state of the economy. Leslie applies the first step through assigning analysts to write the one-page report, which helps the analysts understand the current scenario of the industry better. The second step involves team work as well where all team members should feel free to put out their ideas without fear of censure or criticism as explained in “A Note on Team Process”. The most popular methods under the second step are brainstorming and nominal group technique. Leslie attempts to brainstorm through the 8:00 a.m. meetings, however they seem to be unsuccessful and not going the way she would like. One of the analysts commented on how Leslie kept asking the same questions repeatedly and wasn’t as patient or understanding many of the answers that were given to her. The third step involves agreement amongst team members, where team members are comfortable with the final decision. Versutia Capital lacked this step, as Leslie was the only one who made the decision no matter what everyone else’s opinions were.