Table of Content

1. Acknowledgement…………………………………………………….….………2
2. Executive Summary…………………………………………………….………...3
3. Introduction…………………………………….……………………....….....…..4
About the Company………………………………………….…………...4
Product Categories………………………………………….…………….4
4. Objectives………………………………………………………….……….……..5
5. Methodology…………………………………………………………………..….6
6. Analysis…………………………………………………………………..……….7
SWOT Analysis...................................................................................…....7
PESTEL Analysis…………………………………………………….…...7
Planning................................................................................................…...8
Organizing…………………………………………………………….....10
Directing…………………………………………………………………12
Controlling……………………………………………………………….13
Communication…………………………………………………………..14
Employee Motivation…………………………………………………....15
Production……………………………………………………………….16
Operational Technologies………………………………………………..16
7. Findings………………………………………………………………………….17
8. Recommendation………...………………………………………………………18
9. Conclusion………………………….……………………………………………19
10. References……………………………………………………………………….20
11. Appendix………………………………………………………………………...21

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1.Acknowledgement

Apart from the efforts of ourselves we are highly indebted to Mr S.D Jayasooriya
(Management Consultant) for his guidance and constant supervision as well as for providing
necessary information regarding the report & also for his tremendous support and help.

We take this opportunity to express our gratitude to Mr R H Dharmarathne (Managing

Director of DSI), Mr Upul Katapearachchi (Production Manager of DSI), Mr.V T
Samarasinghe (Human Resources Executive of DSI), Mrs.Ruwini Gunawardene (Staff
Officer) and Mr.H.G.L.Gunarathne (Minor Employee) who have been instrumental in the
successful completion of this assignment by giving us such attention and time.

However, it would not have been possible without the kind support and help of our parents
and people who have willingly helped us out with their abilities to make our Assignment a
success.

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2. Summary

This report was commissioned to examine and undestand the Management Process of D
Samson Industries Limited (DSI).The introduction provides a clear cut on the background of
the . Company which mainly to produce footwear for local and international market inorder
to fulfill consumer demand.

The heart of the analysis focuses on the entire management process of the company by
discussing management functions as planning, organizing, directing and controlling: with the
information acquired through the interviews conducted with the top management & the
employees. The Hand book given by the company & web resources also contributed in
preparation of the analysis. Analysing in grass route level is done using SWOT and PEST
analysis methods.

Under the findings we focused on positive and negative remarks of the ongoing management
process and the recommendations show the suggested remedial actions that the management
need to consider for a sound improvement in order to satisfy all the areas including social,
economical & environmental sectors.

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3. Introduction

3.1 About the company

DSI Samson Group (Pvt) Ltd established in 1962 is the pioneer footwear manufacturer in Sri
Lankan Business Market. At the beginning, DSI was a small shoe making factory, which
carried out their production process in minor scale. Today, with more than 50 years of
excellent experience they have reached the peak of the industry as the largest footwear
manufacturer in Sri Lanka. In addition, it’s a pleasure to mention that they have widened their
excellence out of the boundaries of the island building up strong markets in Australia, India,
and China as well as in the Middle East and European region. So at present DSI is one of the
a well reputed massive production company which brings in foreign exchange to the Sri
Lankan economy through their exports.

DSI is focussing on providing stylish and comfortable footwear of high quality to the
customer. For the fulfilment of that fundamental objective DSI is using modern machinery
with high technology, imported raw materials of best quality and the productive labour of
highly skilled massive workforce with a long term experience in DSI, to produce high quality
products to customer.

DSI shoe manufacturing factories are located in Galle, Kaluthara and Mahara where as the
main factory & the head office is situated in Galle. When considering the technology of the
machinery which is used in the production process has been imported from China, Taiwan
and Japan. China and Japan are the technological advisors to DSI, with a great deal of
excellent experience in the industry. The company produces more than 60,000 pairs of
footwear per day and has the workforce of 1,000 employees.

DSI is the first Shoe Manufacturing Company in Sri Lanka who has been awarded the ISO
9001:2000 quality certifications. They launch their production process to touch all the
requirement varieties of the customers, always coming up with the latest fashions of high
quality.

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3.2 Introduction to Management

In every organization there is a key factor called “MANAGEMENT” which serves as the
foundation & the controller of the entire functioning. Management is simply the art of getting
things done through subordinates, while taking efficient & effective use of the limited
resources they have.

Management Process can be categorized into four main functions as follows;

 Planning
 Organizing
 Directing
 Controlling

Planning lays the basis for the management process by setting well determined goals &
objectives for the organization & introducing strategies to be implemented in order to achieve
the desired goals & objectives.

Organizing is the effective method of work & resources are divided and coordinated within
the organization in order to implement the prepared strategies & plans

Directing gives the directions for the subordinates to operate productively with the use of
effective leadership by managers, employee motivation & proper communication among
employees.

Controlling is the process of ensuring that actual activities confirm to the planned activities,
it reviews the actual operations in comparison with the planned strategies.

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4. Objectives

Purpose of this report is to analyse the study of management practices of D Samson industries
with the following objectives

 Study of Planning, Organizing, Directing and Controlling.

 Study of Leadership functions and Styles.
 The process of employee Motivation.
 Performance Evaluation.
 Operational Technologies.

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5. Methodology
We started our proceedings from the point of a field visit to DSI main plant situated in
Bataduwa , Galle. We had a detailed interview with Mr Upul Katapearachchi (Production
Manager of DSI) & with Mr.V T Samarasinghe (Human Resources Executive of DSI) on the
entire management process including Planning,Organizing,Directing
(Leadership,Motivation,Communication) & Controlling functions. A brief interview was
conducted with Mr R H Dharmarathne (Managing Director of DSI) on the present position
and operational behaviour of DSI in shoe manufacturing market in Sri Lanka.

In the mean time we collected information from Mrs.Ruwini Gunawardene (Staff Officer)
and Mr.H.G.L.Gunarathne (Minor Employee) through a questionnaire, in order to analyse the
middle level management process & functional operations of the company with respect to
their levels.

We got the aid of company website to gather some additional information. Detailed
information was also absorbed from the ‘Introductory Hand book’ given to us by the
company.

All the above methods of acquiring details provided a way to study & to take a concise idea
about the ongoing management process of DSI company.

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6. Analysis
6.1 SWOT Analysis
Environment
Internal
Effect
Strengths
 DSI is a Family Group.
Favourable  Over 50 years experience as
the pioneer in local shoe
manufacturing market.
 The massive workforce
 High recognition &
Reputation.
 Stability in the Sri Lankan
business market with more
than 20 sub companies of
Samson Group.
Weaknesses
 Unaffordable prices for
Unfavourable local people in some
products.
 Centralization in decision
making functions.
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External
Opportunities
 Most Trustworthy
Footwear Production
Company in Sri Lanka.
 Creatinging numerous Job
opportunities in the Sri
Lankan economy for the
local people.
 Contribution rendered for
massive social services
activities through
Sponsorship.
Threats
 Has not identified a strong
local competitor & there’s
a possibility of an
unexpected sudden arise.
 Increase in the price of raw
materials (Rubber & Dies).
 Latestly innovated modern
designs are being
continuously imitated by
minor scale local footwear
producers shortly.
6.2 PEST Analysis

 Political
Frequent & unpredictable fluctuations of Taxes & Duties over import/ export of raw
materials directly affect the local footwear production. Further, Government rules and
regulations regarding rubber industry is a crucial aspect as well.
 Economical
After the establishment of peace, Sri Lankan economy grew rapidly.So with the effect
of that favourable changes took place in all the economical sectors including
production market . With respect to the improvements in footwear manufacturing
stream,DSI company also has indicated a considerable growth.For example, Exports
of rubber products increased by 118.7 per cent, year-on-year widening the possibility
of increasing their production.
 Social
DSI is looking forward to fulfil the numerous requirements demanded by the
consumers according to the variety of their culture,raise,age,religion,professional &
social status and lifestyle.DSI which is always focused on innovations,comes up
with modern designs changing rapidly from time to time to meet with the consumer
desires.
 Technological
DSI always utilizess the modern technology in order to design and produce footwear.
They are specialized as manufacturers of Sports and School shoes using hi tech
injection moulding machinery. The EVA injection plant which is the most recent
investment of the company is the only plant of its kind in Sri Lanka.

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6.3 Planning
The entire management function of DSI Company, is based on planning process as it gives the
directions for the performance of the company. Planning mainly sets objectives & determines the
strategies to achieve them effectively & efficiently.

In order to achive these, DSI has a well defined vision and mission which clearly indicates
their unique purpose & the scope.

 Mission
We will be the manufacturer of footwear & components to the whole family, while
optimising returns to stakeholders.

 Vision
To be a regionally recognized manufacturer of footwear and components.

Process of Planning

Top Management sets up the main objectives and the corporate goals & strategies
accordingly. The Director Board includes 5 members namely the chairman,managing
director,general manager,director (supplies),director(marketing).Goals recommended are set
to meet with Market Standards, Productivity, Profitability, Innovations as well as Employee
Welfare and Social Responsibilities. Then a wide analysis on current status of their business
& market share is conducted in order to set strategies and future plans.

Strategic plan is always matching to the company's vision, mission and values. SWOT
analysis is the most important factor for the process of strategic planning.

SBU Plans typically targets the marketing plans. They are set up fundamentally on analysis
of competition, and marketing campaign.In this regard DSS,the sister company of DSI which
is mainly engaged in the marketing process of DSI products plays an important role.DSS
forecasts the future demand for the footwear and submits the seasonal plans for DSI
production process.Basically,DSS takes into account four main seasons of every year
namely,Christmas Season,School shoes for new year,(these two seasons go parallel),Sinhala
& Hindu New Year Season & Ramazan Season.

Usually the plan submitted by DSS is a 3 months plan.It is analyzed in DSI and simplified
into a monthly plan and finally into a daily plan. Daily plan includes Daily Target to cope

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with each seasonal demand successfully. That means the company follows a backward
scheduling method which begins preparations & actions before 3 months to get the seasonal
target produced on time.

From the beginning of the 3 months period, the Production Department gets the infrastructure
requirements completed. It includes finding appropriate material, preparing cutters & dies,
machinery adjustments, innovating new creative designs to meet with the seasonal
demand,producing / testing the samples & deciding the prices.

Functional and Operational plans are determined and distributed separately among all the
other departments with respective to their specific objectives. These are carried out &
supervised by middle level management with the assistance of top management.

Planning process of DSI productively sets the employees to do their tasks in a proper
manner. Benefits of a good planning process provides a sense of direction to all employees
which paves the path towards organizational goals, Serves as an effective communication
media which motivates the employees, Lays the basis of control,Facilitates effficient use of
resources,Helps delegation,Provides coordination and Reduces uncertainty by anticipating
change. These advantages of proper planning directly benefits the company & the employees
and eventually benefits all the stakeholders as well.

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6.4 Organizing
To implement the plans and strategies accurately,DSI Company is always concerned about
the Organizing process which divides & coordinates the duties and resources efficiently.

 Work Specialization
During the training period, all the employees in the production department of DSI are
practically involved in all the functions of the whole production process .This is for
them to obtain an overall practical knowledge in entire footwear manufacturing
process. But at the end, each employee is assigned for a specific task in a particular
section . This method is very effective because it simplifies each complex task into
easily done single duties & with everybody’s effort the final target is methodically
produced. Delegation of specific work is found in every department of DSI Company.
 Departmentalization
Common tasks of similar manner are categorized together & allocated into specific
departments. So all the line & staff functions of the company can easily be
coordinated and controlled in an orderly way without any confusion.
 Chain of Command
Authority is extended from the top management (CEO & the director board) of the
company to the lowest level (labourers) according to a tall structure with many
hierarchical levels including , Department Managers, Assistant managers, Executive
grade, Staff grade and labourers. Employees of each level reports immediately to its’
above level.
 Delegation of Authority
Authority and responsibility is given appropriately to the employees according to the
situational needs, to carry out the specific activities and tasks in the most probable
best way.
But we can identify DSI as a company in which the authority is centralized. That
means decision making power mainly belongs to the top management. However it’s
specially noticed that lower level employees too can do an influence by contributing
their practical & creative ideas . Their ideas of experience are always taken into
account by the top management when making particular decisions for the benefit of
the company.
 Formalization

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 Almost perfect Working Environment has been established & maintained
systematically in DSI Company. It’s well set and standardized favourably for the
employees to do their professions very well. This favourable working environment
creates both physically & psychologically ideal atmosphere for DSI employees.
 Coordination
Top, Middle & Bottom Level management are interlinked via effective two way
communication to implement strategies as planned and to review the operations.
Coordination among all the departments is equally essential in this process to take the
company towards desired goals and objectives as a combined unit.

Organizational structure
President

Managing Director

Director

Creative Planning Supply Shoes Quality HRM Marketing Accounts

Maintain Export Sector
sector Sector Sector Manufacture control Sector Distribution Sector
sector
sector sector Sector
Shoes Manufacture Supply Shoes Technical Shoes HR
Designi Planning Stores Manufacture Civil quality development & Local Foreign Finance
ng Stores health & Lab Employee distribution marketing &
protection Relation & marketing Accounts
Welfare

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6.5 Directing
 Leadership Functions

Managers of all three managerial levels (top, middle & bottom management) are
considered as the leaders of the company. They have a special responsibility of giving
leadership to the subordinates by performing a set of particular leadership activities.
These include both task related and group-maintenance functions.

 Leadership Styles

Leadership style in DSI Company is a employee favourable style which displays

significant characteristics of Employee Oriented Style. They are focused on getting
targets achieved through building up a friendly and trustful environment where
respect of the employees is effortlessly earned by the leaders by keeping a warm
relationship with subordinates. So employees are encouraged to work hard following
the advises & according to the orders of their respectful leaders.
Seminars & Training Programmes are often conducted by the Human Resources
Department to improve the leadership skills of the employees.

In DSI despite the positional powers such as Reward power, Coercive power &
Legitimate power granted to the managers by their posts, the leaders effectively
applies their own personal powers namely Expert power, Referent power &
Information power to enhance the strength of their leadership.Specially,Information
Power is effectively used by the managers in DSI.

6.6 Controlling
Organizational Control

The process of assessing performances of all the departments of the company, in order to
ensure that the actual activities confirm to the planned activities. This is done basically by
setting up particular Standards with respective to each operation of the company & then
comparing Actual Performance against Standards time to time.

Process of Controlling

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DSI uses 3 types of control

 Feed-forward Control
(Stock & Quality checking of row materials-inputs)
 Concurrent Control
(Done by appointed supervisors who look over all the operational activities-process)
 Feed-back Control
(Quality checking of the products and getting the customer feedback-outputs)

The sister company DSS,which is engaged in marketing process conducts research to

get the customer feedback for DSI products.

For the Top & Middle level managers to monitor on going operations, each section has a
CCTV camera system. So through this camera system, the efficiency of each section is under
the examination of the management. This modern method of applying technology to the
controlling function has made management process of DSI Company far easier &
standardized.In addition to that, DSI is a company which implements 5S concepts within
their working environment in order to minimize the errors & to reduce wastage of resources
like electricity,cost,time etc.

At a moment when any considerable deviation has been noticed in actual performance or any
other problem has risen in operations, a special committee of 5 members called PDC(Problem
Data Control) is appointed to take preventive & corrective actions.The committee analyse the
problem as a whole & visits the particular work site where problem occurred to collect
information from the employees every single level, in order to find the actual reasons for the
problem & to determine suitable solutions. This “Go & See” Method is highly valued & used
by the managers of DSI.

Importance of the Controlling Process

Implementing an effective controlling process always keeps the company on the correct path
directed by strategic plan which leads the company towards attainment of expected
objectives.Any deviation which can occur in the middle of the journey can be either
prevented or corrected through productive controlling function of the management.

6.7 Communication
Communication is simply the transfer of information from the sender to the receiver with the
information being understood by the receiver. Interpersonal formal & informal
communication is found within every organization. It is an effective tool which should be

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handled carefully by all the managers in order to benefit the company, avoiding adverse
effects occurred by lack of proper communication among employees. Proper Communication
of Information is the life blood ofall the operations of the company.

Communication process of DSI

Communication within the company is basically functioned in a centralized manner, like a

chain.

Eg: - Production Department

Production Manager

Coordinator

Supervisor

Worker
Internal Communication

DSI is being using following ways to maintain the internal communication.

 General Notice board

 Intranet
 Announcement System
 E-mail
All the employees within & above the non staff level are daily updated about all the
major functions & the current situations of the operations with the help of systematic
emailing process.
 Letters
 Meetings

External Communication

 Advertisements over media

 Company website
 Social Services
 Researches from DSS group

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 All the employees can submit their suggestions or complaints to the top management by
either placing the suggestions in to a suggestion box kept at every department or by
directly contacting the top management. When taking these suggestions or complaints to
consideration also, managers of DSI give priority to ‘Go & See” Method. So DSI is
concerned about building up a proper two way communication between top management
& bottom levels in order to avoid adverse effects.

6.8 Employee Motivation

In order to make employees willing to exert a high level of effort towards the company goals,
company has to encourage the employees by satisfying their individual needs.

As a company which follows employee oriented leadership style within a very favourable
working environment for workers, DSI provides numerous benefits and incentives towards
employees to motivate them.

Benefits

 Medical Services from the medical centre/free medical counselling service.

 Provides Transport Services & motorbikes are given to employees for concessional
prices. In addition to that a special allowance as boarding fees for those who are
staying at boarding houses.
 Goods & food products of KVC subsidiary of DSI group are provided for
concessional prices at the Welfare Shop.
 Giftwouchers given every two months to buy DSI Footwear from any DSI showroom.

 Meals Provided at the canteen-Breakfast is provided to all employees free of charge &
lunch is provided for a very low charge
 Loan scheme- Housing Loan Scheme & other welfare loans
 Insurance Scheme for the whole family
 Death benefit scheme

 Annual Get together, Sportsmeet with various activities of fun, entertainment &
friendship.
 Entertainment activities by Art Society /Social Services and Buddhist Affairs by
Buddhist Society

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  Annual Reward Ceremony for 25 years long service & highest performers of the year.
 Foreign Scholarships & Trainings
 Telephone allowances

Incentives

 Incentives are given efficiency based; if the productivity is high incentives are high.
Ex: - Target for an employee is daily output of 85% - 100% production. If they
exceed 85% of their target then additional 85 rupees given, if they exceed 90% then
additional 90 rupees given.
 Gift vouchers for the best workers
 Attendance bonuses

So it is obvious that as a private firm,DSI Company has taken tremendous efforts to

provide welfare of its employees in every aspect like Physiological needs,Security
needs,Social needs,Esteem needs & Self-actualization needs...


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7. Findings
 Quite effective management process.

 Sometimes one subordinate has to report to two superiors

 Chemicals used with rubber and discarding materials still leads to environmental
pollution.

 “5S” concept has been useful for efficient use of resources.

 “PDC” method in problem solving is effective.

 People oriented leadreship style & employee motivation are up to a satisfactory level.

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8. Recommendation

Recommendations and suggestions for the D Samson Industries are being estimated and
made regarding the information gathered from the analysis and findings.

1. Reduce the initial cost in order to reduce the price of the products while maintaining
the quality. This can be done with importing raw materials cheaply and use new
technologies such as robots and Nano technology.
2. Design innovative products in order to compete with other brands.
3. Start researches on their chemical usages in order to reduce health issues and provide
safety.
4. As the Information Technology rapidly develops usage of E-commerce should takes a
place allowing the customers for online purchases. It will leads for an incensement of
the sales.
5. Improve eco-friendly production.

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9. Conclusion
DSI has a good management team in order to manage the whole process within the company.
As they are experiencing 50 years of corporate excellence, able to become the leading local
footwear manufacture in Sri Lanka. They use the location advantage in order to get the raw
materials easily and provide job opportunities for large number of people. Usage of modern
machineries in order to reduce the labour cost can be seen. Overall DSI is conducting a better
management process in order to archive their goals and objectives. The Benefits are not only
gained by the company but also by the society as they do many social services. But DSI
should do more researches on health and safety and degree of the ecological issues. Usage of
E-commerce should apply in their business in order to widen their market.Above
recommendations will be helpful in order to minimize their errors and thecontent of this
report is observer biased.

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10. References

Web Resources

 dsi.lk (2012) , online, Available World Wide Web : http://www.dsi.lk/sector/footwear/

[accessed 12/08/2012]
 dsifootwear.com (2012) , online, Available World Wide Web :
http://www.dsifootwear.com/ [accessed 12/08/2012]

PDFs and Hand Books

 Introductory Hand Book – D Samson Industries (2010).

 Annual report of DSI (2010).

Questionires

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11. Appendix

11.1 Interview Questions

Basic

 Introduction about the company.

 Vision & Mission
 Plans of the company? /Goals /Objectives
 Company Policies.

Organizational Structure
 Departments / Chain of command hierarchy
 Authority – Management and Power
 Decisions making – Centralized / Decentralized

Leadership functions and Styles

Organizational Control

 How monitor activities.

 How ensures actual activities confirm to planned activities.
 Process of Controlling

Organizational Change and Development

 Details for SWOT and PESTEL analysis.

 Challenges.

Communication

 Formal Channel of communication.

 Communication Networks.
 Feedback from customers and employees.
 Competitor details.

Production

 Product Details.
 Local and International market.
 Branches and Stocks.

HRM

 Process of Employee Motivation.

 Benefits and Incentives.

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Performance Evaluation

11.2 Web Resources

Company Website

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