Indian Farmers Fertilizer Cooperative Limited: Employee Data Conundrum

In July 2022, the joint general manager of personnel and administration at the Indian Farmers Fertilizer Cooperative Limited (IFFCO)’s Paradeep unit received a call from the Delhi corporate office informing him of a complaint filed by the wife of a deceased employee against a current employee of the unit. The complaint alleged that the employee had defrauded the widow of approximately US$40,000—the sum total of her husband’s terminal death benefit. As the joint general manager worked to investigate the matter and prepare a report for senior management, he found himself struggling with the managerial need to safeguard the organization’s image. As a human resources manager, he contemplated several questions: How could an ethical culture be established and sustained in IFFCO? What strategic human resources measures should be adopted to avoid such situations in future? How could communication be used as enabler in this critical situation? Despite his mixed emotions and the limited time available to present his findings, he knew that he needed to ensure a fair and thorough investigation to resolve the issue.

This case can be used in undergraduate and postgraduate programs in courses related to organizational behaviour, strategic human resource management (SHRM), and managerial communication. It covers topics including organizational culture, the role of co-workers and peers in the workplace, social learning theory (SLT), the use of SHRM in creating and maintaining ethical practices in the workplace, the application of the capabilities, composition, and culture (3Cs) model to analyses of human resources, and the use of strategic communication to encourage effective decision-making.<br><br>After working through the case and assignment questions, students will be able to do the following:<br><ul><li>Explain how to create an ethical culture in the workplace, and explain the role of HR, employees, and the employer in maintaining an ethical work culture.</li><li>Explain the strategic shift in HR responsibilities during crises, and explain how a strategic human resource management approach can be adopted to tackle such situations.</li><li>Use social learning theory (SLT) to illustrate the roles of organizational participants like co-workers, HR managers, and management and the organizational environment in employees’ learning.</li><li>Explain how managerial communication can act as an enabler to build interpersonal cohesiveness.</li></ul>

• organizational behaviour
• strategic human resource management (SHRM)
• managerial communication
• organizational culture
• social learning theory (SLT)
• ethical practices
• 3Cs model
• inter/intra-personal communication
• effective decision-making
• peer learning