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9B20C048 ALL WOMEN RECYCLING: STAFFING CHALLENGES DURING A GLOBAL PANDEMIC Shreshthi Mehta and Motshedisi Mathibe wrote this case solely to provide material for class discussion. The authors do not intend to illustrate either effective or ineffective handling of a managerial situation. The authors may have disguised certain names and other identifying information to protect confidentiality. This publication may not be transmitted, photocopied, digitized, or otherwise reproduced in any form or by any means without the permission of the copyright holder. Reproduction of this material is not covered under authorization by any reproduction rights organization. To order copies or request permission to reproduce materials, contact Ivey Publishing, Ivey Business School, Western University, London, Ontario, Canada, N6G 0N1; (t) 519.661.3208; (e)
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[email protected]. i1v2e5y5pubs Copyright © 2020, Ivey Business School Foundation Version: 2020-11-09 On March 23, 2020, President Cyril Ramaphosa announced a 21-day national lockdown in South Africa due to the COVID-19 outbreak in the country.1 The lockdown was to take effect on March 26, 2020. The government advised people to practise social distancing2 in order to slow the spread of the virus. Under the lockdown rules, people were not allowed to leave their homes, except to buy food and medical supplies, collect social grants, or seek medical attention. All shops and businesses were ordered to close, except for pharmacies, supermarkets, banks, and other essential services. Officials from the World Health Organization predicted that the pandemic could continue for the next five years.3 Lynn Worsley, owner and director of All Women Recycling (AWR),4 sat in her office and considered the best staffing strategy for her business during the lockdown. AWR, a small manufacturing business located in Cape Town, South Africa, upcycled plastic bottles into unique products. The company’s crafters were based in a workshop in Industrial Village.5 AWR employees would be unable to travel to work during the national lockdown. Worsley knew that the irregularity of train schedules had caused problems for the crafters in relation to travelling to work prior to the pandemic. She wondered what could be done to fulfill the business’s orders while the full lockdown was in place, in addition to after the easing of lockdown restrictions when people could start travelling to work again. Worsley wanted to ensure that her decision was in the best interests of the company and its employees during the lockdown and after it was lifted. During the pandemic, clients continued to place orders that the AWR team needed to fulfill. Could a reduced staffing model be developed? Such a staffing model would mean that only a few people could work at the workshop at any one time in order to limit physical contact. Or was it advisable to develop an entirely new remote staffing model whereby employees could work from home? Worsley knew that there were 1 Brent Swails and David McKenzie, “South African President announces three-week lockdown over coronavirus,” CNN, March 23, 2020, accessed November 5, 2020, www.cnn.com/2020/03/23/africa/south-africa-lockdown-intl/index.html. 2 “Social Distancing,” Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, July 15, 2020, accessed November 4, 2020, www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/prevent-getting-sick/social-distancing.html. 3 Sam Meredith, “WHO warns it could take up to 5 years before the coronavirus pandemic is under control,” CNBC, May 14, 2020, accessed November 5, 2020, www.cnbc.com/2020/05/14/coronavirus-who-warns-it-could-take-up-to-5-years-to- control-pandemic.html. 4 Lynn Worsley, “Turning discarded plastic bottles into unique gifts,” All Women Recycling, accessed November 5, 2020, www.allwomenrecycling.com/our-story. 5 Industrial Village is a suburb of Cape Town in South Africa. A ut ho riz ed fo r us e on ly b y Iq tie r A ha m m ad in B U S I 3 31 0 at M em or ia l U ni ve rs ity o f N ew fo un dl an d fr om 9 /6 /2 02 1 to 1 2/ 31 /2 02 1. U se o ut si de th es e pa ra m et er s is a c op yr ig ht v io la tio n. https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/prevent-getting-sick/social-distancing.html https://www.cnbc.com/2020/05/14/coronavirus-who-warns-it-could-take-up-to-5-years-to-control-pandemic.html https://www.cnbc.com/2020/05/14/coronavirus-who-warns-it-could-take-up-to-5-years-to-control-pandemic.html https://www.allwomenrecycling.com/our-story Page 2 9B20C048 advantages and challenges associated with both approaches. What could she do to manage grievances, ensure the safety of her staff, and continue to operate a profitable business? THINKING OUTSIDE THE “BOTTLE” Worsley thought back to when she started the business in 2009. As a single mother, she had needed to make multiple visits to the maintenance court for hearings, as her case dragged on for five years. She only received financial support for her children after the verdict was delivered. Worsley knew there were other single mothers in court who received no financial support, and it could take many years for the court to arrive at a decision. A lot of the women that Worsley met at the maintenance court were either unemployed or uneducated. She wanted to do something to support them, which led to the idea of establishing a business to support single mothers. Worsley pasted posters about her business on the walls of the court, and many women expressed interest. During hiring conversations, Worsley tried to determine whether a candidate had the drive to work hard and develop the necessary skills to help grow the business and become successful. After meeting several candidates, she hired seven women who wanted to be financially independent, and she started the business from her home in 2009. As a committed naturalist, Worsley had always wanted to do something to reduce waste. With her artistic skills, she created unique products from disposable plastic PET6 soda bottles. Since the business involved women who recycled waste products, the company was named All Women Recycling. As AWR was intended to be a for-profit company, Worsley focused from the beginning on developing a business that was self-sustaining. She envisioned developing a product line that would generate enough sales to pay the wages of all those involved. Due to having limited finances and other resources, she knew she had to be creative and think outside the “bottle” (box) to operate her business. GROWTH OF AWR Before building her team, Worsley had created various sample products to determine customer readiness. After speaking to artists, home décor experts, salespersons, and other individuals involved in the handmade crafts industry, she realized that products used solely for decorative purposes were hard to sell. Conversely decorative products that also served a function were more likely to sell. Worsley continued to operate the business from her house, and the prototype for the very first AWR product, the Kliketyklik BoxTM, was developed in her dining room. It was a gift box made from a plastic bottle that could be used as Christmas décor, to store jewelry or to store candy. It could also be gifted as hostess gifts, or used as wedding favours (see Exhibit 1). In February 2009, Worsley’s former business colleague and friend, Daniel Brown,7 paid her a visit. He saw the Kliketyklik Box and asked about it. Worsley showed Brown how the box operated and said, “I was once a plastic bottle. I am now a gift box to fill your imagination.” Brown was impressed by Worsley’s creativity as well as the AWR business plan. He knew the prototype needed improvement in order to become a product that could be sold commercially. He asked Worsley if he could help her financially, and after some discussion, Brown invested R17,0008 in AWR. Worsley used the money to register the company name and rent premises in Industrial Village. She also bought glue, art brushes, scissors, paper, varnishes, and other supplies. 6 “PET” is the acronym for polyethylene terephthalate. It is a form of polyester that can be extruded or moulded into plastic bottles and containers for the packaging of food, beverages, personal care products, and many other consumer products. 7 Name changed to maintain the privacy of the individual. 8 R = ZAR = South African Rand; R1 = US$0.0566 on June 23, 2020. A ut ho riz ed fo r us e on ly b y Iq tie r A ha m m ad in B U S I 3 31 0 at M em or ia l U ni ve rs ity o f N ew fo un dl an d fr om 9 /6 /2 02 1 to 1 2/ 31 /2 02 1. U se o ut si de th es e pa ra m et er s is a c op yr ig ht v io la tio n. Page 3 9B20C048 In October 2009, AWR received a huge order for 500 Kliketyklik Boxes from a multinational pharmaceutical company. While fulfilling the order, Worsley observed that there were differences in terms of the way the plastic bottles were cut by different members of her team, which resulted in the end products having varying dimensions. For the next few days, she stayed up until 2:00 a.m. and cut each bottle herself to ensure consistency. She learned from her mistake and developed a process involving detailed instructions so that all the women followed a standardized procedure to create high-quality products. The crafters depended on AWR for their livelihoods. It was necessary to train them well and continuously monitor their progress if