Business Ethics Case Study: The Birth Of Hewlett Packard

Company Background
Birth of Hewlett Packard (HP) can be traced back to a very humble beginning by Bill Hewlett & Dave Packard in a one car garage in 1939. Dealing in electronic test & measuring instruments for first 20 years, HP has now expanded its range to include Computers, calculators’ medical electronic equipment, instrumentation for chemical analysis & solid-state components. In 1980 sales had grown at a compounded rate of 23% over the last decade whereas net profits had compounded at 27%. Such a growth was thus followed by the increasing number of employees which rose to 57,000 across the world. There are presently twenty manufacturing locations across United States & eight others around the globe. (Beer et. al.,, 1982)
Introduction

And to keep employee efforts focused on company goals, steps were taken i.e. open door policy, management of wandering around etc. to bridge the communication gap between managers and employees.
It may seem from the case study that policies/culture (The HP way) adopted by HP is perfect for its growth and success. However In the following sections, my analysis of this case study highlights some potential and actual issues/problems that arise from “The HP Way”.
In this case study analysis, I will discuss some important qualitative facts followed by some quantitative facts. Based on this fact, some potential and actual issues/problems will be discussed. In the last section, I will highlight the core issue followed by suggestion/recommendation.

Some Qualitative Facts from the

No layoffs: There is always a chance of hiring a bad resource no matter how good the recruitment process is. So, a company should take steps to get rid of low performing people but HP doesn’t believe in firing its employees thus no matter how poor the performance once HP hires the person it will not fire him.
c. No clear Career Path. There is no specific career path an employee can follow to advance in its career. This sometimes leaves an employee wandering about his future in HP.
d. Job Instability / Retention Issue
Core Problem
Every picture/story has two sides, they say. Same can be said for HP Way of doing things. On one side it promotes a culture which brings the best out of people. But on the other side, it creates ambiguity and non-directiveness. Lacking formal structure, employees can be unaware of what is expected of them. Especially for first 1 – 3 years at HP – when employee is trying to settle in HP culture, it can be very frustrating and might result in poor performance.
Recommendations
Not all the people are same in an organization; hence they need to be treated differently. HP should look to formalize some of its ways of doing things so that employees who likes their tasks and responsibilities to be clearly stated can excel at HP. Implement proper HR practices & set standards.
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