Monochromatic personnel scanning at TechMark.

Swinkin, Robert ; Armandi, Barry ; Sherman, Herbert 等

CASE DESCRIPTION

The primary subject matter of this case concerns sexual discrimination. Secondary issues examined include appraising employees and management ineffectiveness. The case has a difficulty level of four, appropriate for senior level courses. The case is designed to be taught in two class hours and is expected to require two hours of outside preparation by students.

CASE SYNOPSIS

This field-based case provides a powerful example of how changing market forces and changes at the top of an organization can uncover core operational problems, which corporate growth and profitability have been allowed to fester. It is also a cautionary tale. A company may espouse equality, empowerment and management, but failure to train, execute and enforce these policies may have substantial repercussions.

This is a case with misdirection and a twist ending; a grievance based upon racial discrimination. It is not evident from the case what the ethnic origins of the people involved are in the case although perhaps the students might hazard a guess as to Katherine's national origin given the mention of Mexico and Latin America.

Moreover, the case seems to focus more on Pat's maintaining her "old girls network" and indoctrinating new employees into that network. Katherine seems to be a maverick, someone always bucking the system, and therefore is not allowed to join Pat's "tea party." Katherine is ostracized by most of the workers in her unit and even Gloria, the top performer in the group, does not go out of her way to challenge the way Pat manages the group. The group dynamics of the participants in the case seem to hold the students' attention therefore creating the "smoke and mirrors" for the astonishing finale.

INTRODUCTION

"Mike, I need you and Pat to come to my office immediately," said Jim Taylor, Senior Director of Employee Relations and EEOC, over the phone to Mike Arend, Senior Director of the Telesales Group of TechMark. "We have a serious problem regarding possible discrimination in your group."

BACKGROUND AND HISTORY OF TECHMARK

TechMark was a global, integrated provider of mobile computing, wireless networking and barcode scanning products sold to an array of customers in several core markets. TechMark's products were used to amass, access and distribute information throughout an organization, thereby increasing efficiency and minimizing human error.

TechMark was headquartered in the New York Metropolitan area and employed 4500 people globally. In addition, it had a network of 3000 partners across geographic areas to ensure that the demands of the marketplace for its products were adequately served. In 2003 sales were approximately $1.320 billion.

The company was founded in 1973, in the garage of current Chairman and Chief Scientist Richard Johnson. Johnson was a former physics professor who began with a simple idea, which was to ensure the quality and readability of barcodes. After creating a verifier that ensured that printed codes could be accurately read by the large, expensive and poorly functioning scanners of the day, Johnson would go on to revolutionize an industry. By harnessing laser technology and with advancements in miniaturization, Johnson, with a handful of early employees, invented a barcode scanner that was accurate, inexpensive and could be held in the palm of one's hand.

This advancement led to the proliferation of the barcode, spreading from retail to manufacturing, to warehousing and healthcare. This rapid success served as impetus to further innovation as TechMark moved to combine scanning with the nascent computing industry and invented the portable data terminal. Now, instead of bringing the barcode to the scanner, the worker could move freely about, capturing and storing information with ease. TechMark's technology progressed further, and by 1990 it had released a wireless network infrastructure to the marketplace. "Spectrum One" portended another revolution. Now, users of TechMark's data terminals could not only collect data at the point of activity, but transmit it as well.

As the tech bubble of the late 90s began to inflate, TechMark was growing sales at 25-50% per year. Profits were accumulating at an even more rapid rate. Every Internet company that opened a warehouse, every manufacturer that was adding capacity, every shipper that was adding more trucks was calling TechMark for the infrastructure to manage their supply chain. TechMark was expanding its scope of activity--consumer scanning, web based business concepts, personal shopping, new wireless and voice products--at a rapid rate. Head count was added, and more partners were signed on.

Unfortunately, leadership was unprepared for the swift and brutal downturn--first in technology and then the economy as a whole -beginning in March of 2000. CEO Tom Randazzo, repeatedly and passionately testified to employees, customers, analysts and shareholders that nothing had changed: TechMark would defy the industry and continue to grow and take market share. Indeed, for several quarters, Randazzo seemed to be proven correct as sales and profits continued to rise, albeit at a somewhat diminished rate. Unfortunately, on both Wall Street and within TechMark's halls, rumors about questionable accounting and sales practices began to surface. Adding to the tension were TechMark's first major headcount reductions in its history. Manufacturing was moved offshore. Sales and support ranks were aggressively reduced. Morale and optimism plummeted.

By early 2002 a new fiscal reality suddenly surfaced. The final quarter of 2001 was a disaster. Sales dropped nearly 30% from the previous quarter. Profits became losses. Analysts rushed to downgrade the stock, shocked by how poor TechMark's guidance had been. Years of credibility were lost.

The next several months were a whirlwind. Nearly all top-level executives in finance and sales were purged. SEC and IRS investigations into TechMark's accounting and financial reporting were launched. Several shareholder lawsuits were initiated. Randazzo and Fred Blair, former VP of Sales, as well as several key finance managers were reportedly under investigation for illegal sales practices.

Rich Johnson stepped back in as CEO, joined by Dave Gable, one of TechMark's first employees, as President and COO. Damage control was their imperative. Though layoffs continued and morale sagged, change was in the wind.

By June of 2002 employees were shocked to learn that Bill Naughton, a Vice President at Chance Systems, a staunch competitor, was to join TechMark as its new President and COO. Johnson was back in his role as Chief Scientist; Gable would take the CEO spot.

Following Naughton came a host of top Chance people: Al Tracy became VP of Worldwide Sales, John Biondo the Chief Information Officer and head of strategic business development. Finance and Operations received new leadership from former Chance executives as well. (See Appendix A)

GROWTH THROUGH CHANNELING: PARTNERSHIPS

As TechMark's sales and scope, both geographically and technically, continued to expand throughout the 1980s and early 1990s, it became clear that the company needed partnerships to adequately address the marketplace.

While servicing large retail and government clients on a direct basis had always been the core business, TechMark did not have the headcount, software development, integration skills, or the geographic reach to penetrate new markets and develop new applications on its own. TechMark simply could not expand quickly or effectively enough to meet demand.

Hence, as in the rest of the Information Technology (IT) business, a "Channel" was developed. TechMark's Value Added Resellers (VARs) would buy its products, integrate them with software and/or other computer hardware and provide a solution for their customer. This symbiotic relationship offered tangible benefits to all involved. TechMark cultivated what was, in effect, an outsourced sales force. VARs accrued margin dollars on TechMark hardware, received access to new products and services and gained affiliation with a well-known and well-respected manufacturer in key market segments.

Perhaps the most critical benefit of being a loyal TechMark partner was the receipt of the "golden nugget," i.e. a sales lead. Potential customers who contacted TechMark for a product or solution to a business problem (route accounting, inventory management, access control, etc) were directed to a partner for fulfillment.

In the early days of the channel, these partner relationships were rather loosely defined and managed; lead-distribution and tracking was haphazard at best. However, by the mid-90s it was clear that this "indirect" part of TechMark's business was the fastest growing and might benefit greatly by increased investment.

THE TELESALES GROUP

In 1999 this investment in partner relationships was realized through the large expansion of the Telesales Group. The group was formed in 1994 by Mike Arend, with the assistance of Pat Hagen. Telesales was a polyglot, performing both customer service and marketing activities.

Most of the staff was comprised of older women who had risen through TechMark's ranks, often coming off of the manufacturing floor. In many ways their job was administrative: answering calls, sending out product literature and calling prospects culled from tradeshows, direct mailings and other corporate marketing efforts. To assist in this effort, a third-party call-center (ETI) was employed and did much of the outbound calling.

The group tracked its performance by "sales closed against leads" that they delivered to TechMark partners. In 1994 the annual quota was 4 million dollars. By 1999 it had grown to nearly $40 million and the workload, or growth expectations, showed no signs of diminishing.

In response to this success, the company funded a "College New Hire" program to grow the Telesales group. New grads would be positioned as "Team Leaders," each responsible for managing partner relationships and small to mid-market sales opportunities within a given geographic area. Any solid sales leads that developed out of the efforts of ETI or the in-house telesales team would be distributed to partners and tracked by a Team Leader until a sale was completed.

The job was promoted to new applicants as an early opportunity to learn TechMark's business while having line responsibility and performing a junior management role. The job was seen as a stepping-stone to a field position or grooming for a mid-level management job within another TechMark division. (See Appendix B)

THE NEW HIRE

Katherine Anderson was quite pleased. Though she had done exceedingly well in school and the economy seemed to be besting the most optimistic forecasts, she never expected to land such a desirable position so quickly. Not only was TechMark a technology company, but it was local, sparing her the commute to Manhattan that her classmates were enduring.

The job, as it was positioned to her by her recruiter, allowed her to learn many aspects of TechMark's business, played a key role in directing sales activity, and prepared her to take an official management position within a two-year time frame. The job was phone-intensive, but Katherine was very sociable and thought that speaking with customers was interesting, if not fun.

She acclimated quickly and was soon appointed "Team Leader" of the Western Territory. While not officially managing staff, she directed the flow of leads produced by a call center staff of 10 people, as well as 8 in-house reps. Though it made her somewhat uncomfortable to be leading a team of older women, some of whom had been working for TechMark for a decade or more, she quickly adapted.

Initially, she spent much of her time learning about the skills and capabilities of partners in the Western Territory to better match sales leads with the companies best able to fulfill their customers' requirements. Nevertheless, as the incoming volume of calls was often very heavy, she readily helped the others by answering the general line. This often produced some uncomfortable conversations, as she found herself unable to answer seemingly basic questions about TechMark's products and services.

When Katherine went to Pat with questions about her job or TechMark's products, she was always referred to Gloria or one of the other older women for answers. As the other new hires-Tara, Rob, and Rhonda--joined the team, they were instructed to do the same.

PRODUCT TRAINING QUESTIONS

When Katherine asked Kerri how she managed to deflect calls requiring product knowledge she simply shrugged:

"I tell them that it's not my job to know, but that I can get them help. I either transfer them to tech support or get a partner to talk to them ..."

Katherine replied, "I thought that tech support was only for customers who already purchased equipment, not presales.... and aren't we supposed to send qualified prospects to business partners, and not people just fishing for information?"

Kerri shrugged, "I haven't gotten too many complaints yet....." Unsatisfied, Katherine approached Pat.

Katherine: "Pat, I wanted to talk to you about something that keeps coming up--and the rest of the new hires are experiencing it too."

Pat: "What is it Katherine?"

Katherine: "I was wondering about getting some formal product training for us. Quarterly sales training is coming up for the field sales force. I was wondering if we could attend."

Pat: "Well, Telesales never has before ... Besides, we need to have people on the phones ..."

Katherine: "But the customers are asking questions that we don't know the answers to. Sometimes I feel stupid that I can't answer questions about our own products."

Pat replied, "How you feel is your concern. We all know that you are not stupid. In your job, we find it is counterproductive to know too much about product ... we diagnose, we don't prescribe...."

Pat continued, "If we direct a caller to a specific product and then refer that prospect to a partner for purchase and the partner thinks that an alternative product is a better fit, then we just caused confusion for the customer and complicated things for our business partner ... Besides we have so many products, it can get very confusing ... believe me, it's easier this way."

Later, Katherine pulled Gloria aside.

Katherine: "Gloria, you know a lot about TechMark equipment. How did you learn?"

Gloria smiled; she took pride in her reputation as a resource. "Some of it comes from the days on the shop floor, some of it from calling the product managers; the rest from sneaking a peak at the sales kits when they are sent out." Katherine: "So, you never went to any training classes?"

Gloria: "Oh no, Pat doesn't like that.... She says we don't need it, but I think it's because it is too much trouble to set up, coordinate schedules and everything. Besides, Pat thinks training is boring."

Katherine: "But isn't that a manager's job? I mean, what exactly does Pat do?"

To which Gloria laughed and shrugged. "The girls and I have wondered about that for years! On the other hand, it's very nice to have a boss that just lets you do your job and doesn't interfere ... you'll learn ..."

Soon, however, tech support was sending callers back to Telesales, as they were being told not to spend their time on pre-sales inquiries. One afternoon, after a particularly frustrating call,

Katherine popped her head into Mike's office.

Katherine: "Mike, sorry to bother you ... do you have a minute?"

Mike: "Sure, Katherine. When the door is open I am always available. You look concerned ... is there a problem?

Katherine: "Well, the group and I feel that some product training will really help us do our jobs better. Callers are asking us questions about our products all the time, and we don't know how to answer them. Tech support is refusing to take any more presales calls and my partners are complaining about being used as a help desk."

Mike asked: "Product knowledge has never been that important before ... has something changed?"

Katherine: "I think it's always been important, only that the women in the group have tried to get bits and pieces on their own ... besides, in the four months I've been here, the levels of inquiries keeps increasing.... buyers are getting smarter...."

Mike: "Does Pat know about this?"

Katherine: "I talked to her twice but she doesn't think it's a problem."

Mike: "I'll see what I can do."

The next week, a manager from the Mobile Computing Systems Group came up to do an overview on the product line. During the 2-hour session Katherine could swear that she saw Pat-seated between Kerri and Tara--glaring at her from across the room.

Over the next several months, training would continue to be a casually implemented, somewhat haphazard affair. As such, it would remain a point of contention.

TELESALES INTERACTIONS

Through the remainder of 2000 Katherine continued to do well. She had consistently made her quota and received bonus pay at the end of each quarter. The group had continued to grow, with two new graduates joining the Telesales group. Though the NASDAQ had swooned, TechMark seemed secure in its core markets and all the talk in the hallways centered on expansion, growth and new opportunities.

Though generally content in her position, Katherine found herself somewhat troubled. The cohesiveness and excitement shared by the new hires started to wane and factions started to form. Though she was still close to Gloria, most of the older women in the group stayed to themselves. Gloria acknowledged to Katherine that there was some resentment toward the rapid ascendancy of the college grads. They were finding themselves more and more as workhorses and less as valued members of the team.

As for the new grads, Kerri and Tara were fast friends. Where the group used to dine together, Katherine found herself uninvited most days. More disturbing was the fact that Pat seemed to be her replacement, often disappearing with Kerri and Tara for lunches that extended well past the allocated hour. Occasionally an invitation would be made, but this was more the exception than the rule. As she was accustomed to being a favorite of past professors and employers, this worried Katherine. She did not exactly feel that she was out of a favored circle, but she knew she was no longer an active participant.

The phones were an area of concern. Though the older women did their best to answer the incoming calls, at times the volume was simply too heavy. While Rob, Katherine and Cathy regularly picked up the general line, Tara and Rhonda did so quite infrequently, Kerri only rarely.

The lack of oversight and clear direction was perhaps the most disturbing element to Katherine. Mike was traveling or in Directors' meetings most of the time and Pat's active involvement seemed to be limited to social planning. Her only interest in the daily functioning of the group was to see that all quarterly sales figures were entered into the system in a timely fashion, as her bonus pay was tied to this number.

Though required by HR, no formal performance reviews were done at year's end. When she asked Gloria about this, Katherine was told: "Pat doesn't like doing those too much. In a couple of months HR may notice that no forms were filed ... then Pat may have you do your own and she will sign them."

Katherine: "That's the way she does it every year?"

"Yup" chirped Gladys.

THE COMPUTER DISCOUNT WAREHOUSE SCARE

In early 2001 Katherine uncovered a problem in the marketplace. Her partners--mainly smaller companies that had invested money in creating software, providing on site support and professional service--were increasingly faced with a new competitor. Computer Discount Warehouse (aka: CDW), the largest of several Internet based direct marketers, had begun to broadly sell TechMark's product line. The company offered no technical support, no integration capability and no software development. Its business model was simple: offer buyers the lowest possible price on all technology gear, put it in a box and ship it to them. CDW used the tremendous sales volume to get rebates and marketing funds from vendors to make up for their slim margins. The result was that customers would often use partners for technical information and advice, perhaps a site visit, and then purchase the hardware from CDW.

While a TechMark partner might still be able to sell their value added services, CDW and its ilk were putting such pressure on hardware margins that formerly loyal partners were losing all incentive to lead with TechMark products.

After watching two deals that she worked on come "unhooked" by CDW, Katherine raised her concerns to Pat.

Pat: "Oh, don't worry about it." I've been working with partners for 10 years, and they always blame it on somebody when they lose a deal."

Katherine: "But this is different. CDW is selling at prices below what our partners can buy it for. This is a problem that isn't going away; it's going to get worse!"

Pat: "I've never heard of CDW, but if management wants to let them sell our product, it must be okay."

With that, Pat turned her back to Katherine and resumed her activities. Katherine fumed when she saw that Pat had Amazon.com on her computer.

Katherine stayed late that night and produced a report for Mike on the situation and emailed it to him the next morning. Later that afternoon Mike circulated Katherine's report to the entire Telesales group.

"Has anyone else encountered this?" he queried by email.

It turned out that the group had seen several similar instances, prompting Mike to elevate the situation to senior management. Within a year, TechMark had constructed a special program to both focus and restrain CDW's activity in the marketplace, allowing for significant growth while limiting damage to the VAR community.

When Mike congratulated Katherine for the thoroughness of her work at a team meeting, she tried not to notice Pat's angry stare.

AN INTERNATIONAL OPPORTUNITY FOR KATHERINE

Shortly after, Katherine was asked to take on responsibility for Mexico and Latin America, while transitioning her existing territory to the other team leaders.

"It's going to be a lot of work, but Pat and I think that you are up to it, "Mike commented. "I think this is going to be an area of tremendous growth and we want you there to help drive it."

Though it involved enhanced language classes at night and occasional travel to Brazil and Mexico, Katherine took up the challenge. She expected that a raise or promotion would be forthcoming but the subject was never broached.

Soon after, TechMark--and the Telesales group--would be rocked to its very foundation. The implosion of the tech bubble finally engulfed the company, exposing its most senior executives to charges of incompetence at best, criminal fraud at worst. Profit targets and growth estimates became losses and contingency plans. Layoffs came swiftly, the first substantial headcount reductions in company history. Manufacturing was moved off shore. Executive management began leaving--or was forced out--in droves. Shareholder lawsuits and Federal investigations into accounting and sales practices started to make headlines.

The Telesales group, a beneficiary of two years of investment, was among the hardest hit divisions. Two of the new hires and some veterans were let go. The budget for the call center was slashed by more than half and most calls now went directly to TechMark headquarters.

Though quotas were reduced, the need to generate revenue was pronounced. While this was happening, an internal audit was performed questioning the accuracy of all sales reporting. The pressure was palpable.

Pat's advice to the group: "Have plan B ready for yourself."

In this charged atmosphere, all of the early seeds of conflict burst into full bloom. As there was no longer any "first line," team leaders were now essentially teams of one. Though the call volume dropped with the economy, headcount had fallen faster. The group was left with a heavy workload and it soon became evident that certain group members were not sharing the burden equally.

Katherine and Cathy stayed late nearly every evening for several weeks to handle the backlog. Rob and Tara worked diligently during the day as well, though they, like Pat and Kerri, were out the door by five.

Cathy sent several emails to Pat asking her to make sure that everyone was shouldering an equal share of the workload. Pat sent out a single missive asking that everybody pitch in. The situation improved temporarily but soon deteriorated. After returning from an unannounced and unscheduled 30-minute coffee break, Kerri found herself the target of Cathy's frustration. A shouting match ensued.

Upon hearing of the disturbance, Pat pulled Cathy aside and chastised her for her outburst in the workplace. When pressed about the personal phone calls, long lunches and unscheduled breaks taken by "certain members of the team," Pat's response: "Work it out." Afterwards, Katherine approached Pat with words of support for Cathy--who was clearly distraught.

"Pat, while I don't agree with how Cathy said what she said, I think she does have a valid point. Some of us are doing a lot more than others, and it doesn't seem very fair."

"Life is not fair," snapped Pat as she walked away.

INITIAL DISCUSSION WITH HUMAN RESOURCES

From that point on, Katherine was certain that there was a definite undercurrent of hostility directed toward her. Uncertain as to its cause, she began to talk with Jim Taylor, in charge of employee relations and EEOC issues at TechMark. She did not want to lodge a formal complaint; she was simply looking for some advice and support. There were few black associates at TechMark and she started to feel quite isolated.

Jim listened closely as Katherine described her past year at TechMark. He agreed that there was not enough evidence to actually lodge a complaint but encouraged her to document treatment or incidents that demonstrated preferential treatment or discriminatory behavior on the part of management. "A feeling is not enough for me to take action on," stated Taylor. Though somewhat uncomfortable with this, Katherine agreed.

Over the next several months Katherine would find much cause. Among the incidents she noted: Others, generally Kerri, Tara and Pat, took extended lunches and coffee breaks. Katherine was cited the one time she returned 15 minutes late in the afternoon.

While others regularly had friends from other parts of the company sit in their cubes and chat, Katherine received an email from Pat informing her that she was not to be visited during the work day. On two occasions Katherine walked over to Tech Support or Product Management to ask a product question and was cited for leaving her desk without letting the other group members know where she was going. Pat would often pull Kerri and Tara into unscheduled meetings at the last minute with no explanation, rationale or advanced notice. This was perhaps most painful of all, as Katherine distinctly felt like an outsider, unable to contribute to the group or participate in steering its direction.

At Jim's urging Katherine scheduled a meeting to sit down and talk with Mike to solicit some feedback. She heard nothing but positives. When Katherine conveyed her impression that Pat did not like her, Mike told her to dismiss the notion out of hand.

"She thinks the world of you," Mike commented.

Later that week Pat pulled Katherine aside and complimented her on the work she was doing. "Is there anything I should be doing differently?" asked Katherine. "Nothing at all" Pat replied.

Yet the ill feelings seemed to linger and Katherine repeatedly documented instances of what she deemed unequal treatment and expectations. As her morale was fading, TechMark was going deeper into a tailspin. Executive management was being purged and the organization seemed directionless and drifting. With Mike on the road all the time and Pat effectively absent, Telesales seemed rudderless. Instead of feeling like a young manager Katherine was feeling more and more like an administrator--forced to handle unanswered customer service calls and send out marketing literature. The fact that others in the group were doing far less made her feel more and more resentful. She accessed a manager's report from the calling system that TechMark used. It showed that she had taken 3300 calls in the first reporting period of 2002; Kerri had scarcely taken 800.

Soon Katherine found herself soliciting Tony Sassone for a position reporting directly for him. While Tony was too mindful of corporate politics to actively poach her from Mike, he let her know that he was open to the change when "the time was right."

FEEDBACK TO THE TOP

As new management swept into power, a series of "all-hands meetings" was held. Their purpose was to introduce the new executives, address questions of strategic direction and, importantly, raise employee morale. TechMark Associates were once again encouraged to "take risks, challenge the status quo, and commit to personal and professional growth."

"Tell us how we are doing," CEO Gable exhorted, "and how we can do it better."

Katherine took his words to heart and sent emails directly to Gable; they also found their way to Bill Naughton and Al Tracy. In her missive she introduced herself, the Telesales Group, and made several suggestions for needed improvements. She neglected to copy Pat or Mike on any of her letters.

Surprisingly enough, Gable responded and asked Katherine to schedule a meeting to discuss Telesales. Surprised and pleased with the response, Katherine sent the CEO's reply to Mike. Pat was never copied. Later that day Pat was in Katherine's cubicle with a printed copy of the email thread.

Pat snapped. "What are you trying to do?"

"Nothing at all. Gable asked for feedback and I thought I might have something to say that could really help out," Katherine replied, somewhat taken aback by the forcefulness of Pat's approach. "I thought this was a good thing."

Pat: "Now he wants a meeting! What do you plan to tell him?!?"

Katherine: "I just wanted to talk about what this group does and how we could do our jobs a little better--perhaps with a dedicated tech support resource to answer customer's presales questions."

Pat: "We've been doing just fine for all these years. What makes you think that you need to change it?"

Pat walked away, shaking her head "you're going to get us all fired...."

Katherine's private meeting soon would include both Pat and Mike who insisted on crafting the agenda. Katherine did not openly object but was distraught and sought Gloria's council.

Katherine: "Why does this keep happening to me? Why does Pat hate me so much?

Gloria: "Hate you? She's terrified of you...."

THE LAST STRAW

Soon morale was on the rise, both within the company as a whole and inside the Telesales group in particular. Senior management seemed to be matching words with actions and investing in growth. Mike's job in distribution development was given to a new hire, and he was tasked with turning Telesales into a focused Inside Sales team. (See Appendix C) He would be given the resources to hire 20 new employees. Clearly, Katherine had every reason to believe that nearly three years of unflinching service would finally be rewarded.

To her dismay, when applicants for the new jobs were being brought in, Pat, Rob, Kerri and Tara were doing all of the interviews. She was not asked to do a single one. Disturbed, she approached Pat.

Katherine: "Pat, I could not help but notice that I was not being asked to interview any of the job applicants. Should I be worried?"

Pat: "Not at all" was the warm and reassuring reply. "You are our Latin American champion ... These applicants are not bilingual."

Somewhat reassured, Katherine tried not to think about events at headquarters as she flew down to Brazil for a week long tour of territory operations.

Coming back, she was shocked to learn that there would be no promotion. While Kerri, Tara and Rob had been promoted to supervisory status, she was still frozen in the same pay "zone." Where the three would be directly reporting to Mike, she was still under Pat.

Though she tried to bear up, she found herself so distraught that she had difficulty functioning. Getting no satisfaction from Pat and no audience with Mike, Katherine finally picked up the phone:

"Jim, I think we need to talk. Can I come down and see you?"

Later that afternoon, Mike was shocked to learn that both he and Pat had been implicated in a formal racial discrimination claim (discrimination against an African-American). Pat knew immediately who filed it.

* All events are true. Names have been changed for confidentiality.

Robert Swinkin, Long Island University

Barry Armandi, SUNY-Old Westbury

Herbert Sherman, LIU-Southampton College