ABN University - Project 'CGPA': People, Systems or Culture?

IntroductionOh...! Now, what is to be done at this movement?' was the response of Dr. Andrews during the emergent Faculty-Meeting of Department of Business Management. The problem was serious, and required immediate solution. Such types of problems were not unusual for the Department, where every day was filed with such bureaucratic hurdles and bottlenecks. The extent of day-to-day confrontation within the organizational situation was such that only the persons with extraordinary level of enthusiasm could successfully maintain their motivation to perform well in their routine assignments. 'Every time it happened and any-how the solution discovered, but this time the situation demanded some extra-ordinary skills and moreover there was no visible direct solution' thought Dr. Marshal, who was chairing the departmental meeting. The lack of clarity about organization's fundamental purpose, role ambiguity and incompatibility among the organizational sub-systems, were some of the critical factors that had always threatened the organization's natural growth, but the things progressed in a hope that some-day, something will improve.Everything was normal till last day, when after two months of the University Examinations, Secretary of the Examinations Mr. Chappel communicated that the officials of University's Examination-Office have expressed their inability to prepare the result based on the newly proposed CGPA system. It was beyond all expectations and was something never expected from a support system. Just thinking about the efforts made by everyone during last one and half year in an ambitious 'Project CGPA', the departmental leadership was not sure how to proceed further as implementation was also at the last stage. Everyone in the Department was surprised, not with the attitude and behaviour of the support system, but with the future of the organization under fast changing environment, where the quality of services was the critical factor of success in growth of any academic institution. Perhaps, this might not have happened earlier in any organization elsewhere that the support systems influenced the strategic and operational framework for the main functional units. Lets' just explore what happened to the dream project of a University's department, and help the Department's team in dealing with the situation.University: The History and GrowthThe ABN Greenland University is a Public University, established in year 1987. The university, initially served only through different affiliated/ associated institutions, spread across geographically large area. As per the functional requirements of an affiliating university, initially the main focus of the university was, in time conduction of examination, and declaration of the result, in addition to the curriculum planning, research coordination, and maintenance of standards in its affiliated college (Exhibit 1 and 2). In the year 1990, it was a time for the university to go for forward integration by introducing two-year's full time Master degree course in Business Administration (MBA). The initial years were challenging, as the work culture of the university evolved mainly to facilitate affiliation function. In year 1994, university's administrative operations were shifted in its new 172 acre campus. Keeping in view the dearth of quality professional higher education facilities in the region, a number of Engineering and Technology courses were introduced during 19941996. The things were moving fast and 1998 brought a major shift in the university, as its new Vice-Chancellor Prof. Graham Alfred took over and chalked out an ambitious growth plan for the university as a fully-developed residential university. It was felt that for a university to grow, it was necessary to make it eligible for Government Funding through Central Grants Commission (CGC). As per the regulations (Exhibit 3), it was essential criteria to develop a multi-faculty residential campus for Govt. …