CEO Paper

Abstract

Al Dunlap has been a successful manager and an effective leader by rescuing many companies and turning them around. He got known by names such as Chainsaw Al and Rambo in Pinstripes, and had a tough guy image. However, his strategies are looked down upon and his high claims raise doubts that his business practices are controversial.

Abstractii

Introduction1

Discussion1

1. Why is Al Dunlap a highly respected / highly controversial CEO?1

2. How does Al Dunlap operate using the functions of management?1

3. What is Al Dunlap's strategy for making a company profitable?2

4. What are the components of his strategy?3

5. What were the problems at Scott Paper or Sunbeam Corporation when he took over? Be specific.3

6. What was his game plan to correct these problems? Be specific3

7. What would you have done in his position given the status of Scott Paper? Why? Why not?4

8. Why are these issues important to future managers?4

9. Do you feel Al Dunlap is an effective manager leader? Why? Why not?5

Conclusion6

References7

Introduction

Al Dunlap needs no introduction. He is known in the corporate world for his aggressive strategies that take businesses out of debt and get them going on the run. In this research paper we answer a few questions regarding Dunlap's business practices, while reviewing two of his famous turnarounds - Sunbeam and Scott Paper Company.

Discussion

1. Why is Al Dunlap a highly respected / highly controversial CEO? 

Albert J. Dunlap was appointed as the CEO of Sunbeam Oster in 1997. He was considered a respectable CEO for the sole reason that he used to enter companies that were doing bad and used to completely turn them around to the extent that their profits would run really high. He did that with Scott Paper and Crown Zellerbach. However, after the accounting fraud of Sunbeam in 2001 (Norris, 2001), Al Dunlap was fired. The S.E.C. held charges against him, and Sunbeam was going through bankruptcy.

Albert J. Dunlap was known by names as “Chainsaw Al” and “Rambo in Pinstripes”. But controversy over his business practices was explained in the book “Chainsaw: The Notorious Career of Al Dunlap in the Era of Profit-at-Any-Price” (Byrne, 1999).

2. How does Al Dunlap operate using the functions of management? 

The typical functions of management include planning, organizing, staffing, and controlling. Al Dunlap's management style was abrasive in nature. He referred to himself in an interview with Hedrick Smith:

“People know what I'm gonna do. They know I'm gonna put together the best management team.”

(Dunlap, n.d.)

He used harsh strategies of drastic layoffs in the companies he turned around. Apart from layoffs, he also shut down several business units in one go, which was detrimental in the long run for the companies.

3. What is Al Dunlap's strategy for making a company profitable?

Albert J. Dunlap deployed a harsh strategy for making the companies he entered profitable. He used to cut off companies quickly in order to make them profitable. As quoted by (Plotz, 1997):

“At Scott Paper--his pre-Sunbeam tour of duty--he fired 11,000 employees (including half the managers and 20 percent of the company's hourly workers), eliminated ...