Sarah’s Snacks
Instructor’s Guide
Paul S. Myers
Simmons University School of Business
Boston MA
Synopsis of the Case
Sarah Woodley, CEO of Sarah’s Snacks, faces a decision about how to improve an organizational change
effort that has failed to show its expected results. The maker of organic snack foods has responded to
competitive and cost pressures that have reduced margins by embarking on a process re-design initiative
aimed at improving supply chain effectiveness, increasing time to market for new products, and reducing
costs. Beginning with a single process and then expanding to others, the company has created new work
and information flows that integrate across functions. Doing so proved more challenging than
Learning Objectives
This case is intended to help students apply the concept of organizational alignment in the context of an
organizational change. The learning objectives include:
1) Identify the components of an organization that influence behavior.
2) Apply Nadler and Tushman’s model of organizational alignment to diagnose barriers to
organizational change.
Linkage to Concepts and Theories
This case is designed to illustrate Nadler and Tushman’s congruence model, which is introduced in
Chapter 3. Data are presented that address four components of this model: formal organization, work,
informal organization, and people. The Nadler and Tushman model can be used for organizational
Methodology
This is a fictional case developed to capture the dynamics of organizational change as experienced by
many companies across industries. The specifics are drawn from accounts of business process re-design
activities at several leading companies.
Discussion Questions & Discussion
1. How well did Sarah’s Snacks fit Nadler and Tushman’s congruence model before it began its
organizational change?
2. Why have the changes at Sarah’s Snacks not produced the expected results?
The following analysis addresses the discussion questions in the order they are presented.
Fit with Congruence Model
One way to approach this question is to compare the organizational alignment of Sarah’s Snacks before
and after the organizational change. Sarah’s Snacks was reasonably well-aligned. The business strategy
sets the context for understanding why the company chose to pursue the organizational change. There is
no indication that the company’s strategy is flawed. The organizational problems do not lie on the
demand side; if anything, stockouts indicate that sales are strong. Rather, the issues concern operations
and costs.
The company hired people based on existing skills and as a result had no formal training process. The
well-specified jobs did not require adaptability or a learning orientation, so the company did not hire
with these traits in mind. The organization was mission-driven and had a culture that encouraged a sense
of family, benevolence, and trust. This management style suggests that desired behaviors were achieved
through commitment rather than control.
Failure to Achieve Results
The underlying cause of the disappointing results is the lack of organizational alignment at Sarah’s Snack.
The shift from a functional- to a process-based organization focused primarily on the work and how it
was accomplished. We can see this by examining the failure to make significant changes in the formal
organization, people, and the informal organization.
1. Formal Organization
The company neglected to make changes to some key systems that comprise the formal organization.
Although the process re-design centered on the implementation of a new information technology system,
2. People
The company did little to prepare its staff for the changes they faced. They lacked the skills to adjust to
the new technology and a way of understanding the implications of the new approach to work. For
instance, they were now expected to accept a new definition of who the customer was that focused
internally rather than externally on consumers. The new system was difficult to learn, and the company
3. Informal Organization
A main factor in the delayed implementation was the need to reach consensus on the re-designed
processes. While adhering to this value can lead to greater commitment to decisions, it also takes time.
Moreover, seeking solutions that are acceptable to all may have meant that they were sub-optimal. For
instance, the case does not specify what changes were made to the product development process, but the
lack of improvement there implies not enough was done to streamline it. Ironically, another aspect of the
Recommendations
To get the change initiative back on track, Sarah Woodley needs to have a clear understanding of how the
organizational context has shaped it. To do this, she must step back from the specifics of what has been
done to think about why so much has stayed the same. Meeting with her senior team to hear their
explanation of the problems may overlook the inattention to the non-process related aspects of the
organization. Bringing back the external consultant to assess the situation may be an effective way to get
a more systemic view of the situation.
A top priority must be to build the commitment of employees to the change. One way of doing this is by
explaining its rationale and benefits and helping employees more clearly see how and why their roles are
being affected. This requires a training approach that combines a focus on technical tasks (i.e., how to use
the new system) as well as the opportunity to learn about what it means to be a process-based
organization. The company should make an investment in building a training process that will not only
address the current pressing needs but also create a capability that the company and its employees can
benefit from in the future.
Once the training is completed, the company can shut down the old technology systems as their functions
are replaced by the new one. This will leave employees with no choice but to change the way they get
their work done. Clarifying the lines of authority may also help with this; while the company has not
been control-oriented in its management approach, it needs to be sure the new configuration of the
hierarchy still serves a supervisory function.
Teaching Suggestions
This case will work well when paired with an initial mini-lecture on Nadler and Tushman’s congruence
model. Points to emphasize are the distinct characteristics of each component and that successful change
implementation relies on alignment between the formal and informal aspects of an organization. It is also
important to discuss how managers can use the framework.
Although it is brief, the case has enough data to be the basis for a 50–60 minute class discussion. Equal
time should be given to each of the study questions. For all three, the congruence model should be used
as the organizing frame. To make this explicit, the instructor can draw or list the model’s components on