Poject on FEDEX MANAGEMENT ...

Controlling___________________________________________________
Identification of Controlling Issues
Control:
The world of business stands up to its reputation: only the strongest companies survive. In order to be the strongest, a company needs to be successful; in order to be successful, a company needs to make money; in order to make money, a company must have a solid concept of what control and organization are and how to execute them. FedEx demonstrates this through its measures of control.
Control is a process that involves monitoring activities to assure that they are being completed. If these activities are not being achieved as planned, then variances will be corrected. This idea is carried out one step further by a procedure called the control process, which involves three steps: measuring, comparing, and correcting. Through this method, proper changes and growth can be achieved. Measuring consists of collecting the raw data. Comparing determines the variation between actual performance and a previously set standard. Corrective action is then taken by managers to remedy the cause of any problems or simply to further improve any aspect possible.
In regards to FedEx, some of their major controls include the following: number of packages delivered, capacity of trucks and aircraft, number of phone calls received, number of electronic transmissions sent and received, and the number of both miles driven and flown; these transactions are measured by the minute, by the hour, and again by the minute respectively.

Based on the success or failure to meet this number, they can investigate the cause of this number being met, or change it if it is found to be too high.
 
Comparing:
The second step in the control process is comparing (organizational performance). After measures are taken, they are then used to determine a company’s operation; this performance is an accumulation of all the organization’s work movements and procedures. FedEx assesses their organizational performance in relation to productivity by package count and revenue yield per package, and in relation to effectiveness by on-time service and customer service ratings. Based upon what goals are for the set amounts of time, they can see if, for example, they are delivering at least 500,000 packages a day in a given area. As stated in the article by Fortune Magazine on November 1, 2004, FedEx’s sales and revenue have been on the rise, and are projected to continue to be on the rise until at least the year 2008 (Boyle). This demonstrates the high effectiveness and productivity at FedEx.
Corrective Action:
The final step in the control process is corrective action. This step can be carried out in one of two ways. The first is immediate corrective action the second is basic corrective action. Immediate corrective action is exactly what the name suggests—fast. When a problem is identified, a manager will not take the time to analyze or look at anything besides the facts on the surface. From that, he or she takes action to correct the problem. On the other hand, an effective manager uses basic corrective action which involves taking the time to find the root of a problem, analyze what went wrong, and concoct a solution. After doing so, the manager then decides on what corrective action needs to be taken.
As successful as FedEx is, having managers use immediate corrective action is unreasonable; therefore, they use the method of basic corrective action. As stated before, when a problem is identified and encountered at FedEx, the duty of resolving it does not fall on one person, but a whole team of specialists. Their focus is identifying the root cause of problems and working with the customer and operational teams to determine a solution. The basis for finding a workable solution is that they meet the needs of the customer while working within operational parameters of the company.
 
Analysis & Recommendations for Controlling
Overall, FedEx’s success has a lot to do with its methodology of control. By monitoring their employees’ actions and performance, they are able to evaluate what needs attention and what does not. In measuring their deliveries, trucks and aircraft, phone calls, electronic transmissions, and miles they determine the volume of their productions. At the same time, they measure their performance through on-time service, package count, revenue yield per package, and customer service ratings. In sum, these measurements show how FedEx keeps their operations in check, and modifies them upon their discretion. Therefore, the control process, as carried out by FedEx, plays a big role in their success. Considering how well the company keeps up with times and continues growing, it appears as though the control processes are very solid and little needs to be changed. The only worry would be their capacity to continue controlling effectively as they continue to grow in size and services offered.
 
Conclusions__________________________________________________
Little research is required to understand that FedEx is a company of great success. If not for the fact that the name ‘FedEx’ was years ago coined as a verb for mailing something fast, then the fact that it is one of the most recognized brands in the world. With research, however, there are a myriad of reasons that can be found and rightly attributed to FedEx’s position as a leading, global corporation, despite humble beginnings.
In this report, we have gone into the company’s approach to management, planning, organizing, leading/influencing, and controlling. In all of these sections, there is a wealth of information demonstrating that each of these areas have been given continual thought, to the point that they suit the exact needs of the company today, and the direction in which it is going. Thus, little remains to be said about how FedEx is handling itself in these areas except, “this looks good, keep it up.” This is likely the reason FedEx has been on Fortune’s, “Most Admired Companies” list for the past three years, as well as the recipient of numerous other awards.
If there had to be one main reason for FedEx’s success, what would it be? Looking at all the different aspects, there seems to be one major commonality: change. At the start, FedEx was a paper written on how the air-freight system was inadequate; it was looking at how things worked, and saying things could be improved.
Today the FedEx Corporation does exactly that; it looks at the various divisions and asks how things can be improved. How can Kinko’s and FedEx ground work better together? Where can we decrease delivery time from Hong Kong to Kentucky?
 
This results in constant improvement and changes that allow FedEx to be successful despite rapidly changing times. Thus, adaptability can be called FedEx’s strongest asset. In conjunction with solid principles, their adaptability will allow them to surpass the dinosaurs such as UPS or DHL, and continue to do so no matter what society or the world can throw at them.
 
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