Imt Custom Machine Company Case Study

IMT Custom Machine Company, Inc. (CMCI) is a subsidiary of International Machine and Tool—USA (IMT-USA). They are a highly regarded company and are the world’s leading manufacturer of custom machines. IMT has a lengthy history involving multiple acquisitions and mergers which have led the company to its current form. Throughout the extensive changes that have taken place throughout the company’s history, and especially within the last twenty years, the company has lost much of its cohesion and unity. By 1999, the CMCI culture was fractured, its work flow stuttered, and many changes were needed in order for the company to remain abreast of market changes in a competitive world.
In 1999 June Page, an experienced manager in the custom machines industry, was appointed Vice President of CMCI. She was mainly responsible for two manufacturing plants in Chicago, Ill and Fort Wayne, Indiana, that together produced around 150 machines per year. She was also in charge of a third factory that provided support to the two main factories through the production of spare parts and other necessities.
The production of these large, complex machines was handled by teams of educated, highly experienced engineers and designers. The machines were built for the production of parts for large items, primarily used within the automobile industry. June Page did not have any background in Information Technology, nor was she particularly aware of how information systems of each of her factories worked. She did realize upon being appointed to her position as VP of CMCI, however, that the underlying organizational problem at IMT was the lack of a clear and cohesive company culture. One of her first duties as VP was to work with upper management to create a statement of the corporate mission, guiding principles, and vision. This statement was meant to be universally applicable to IMT and its various subsidiaries throughout the world.
Page understands the value of a clear and concise set of...