Case Name :      CONNECT: The Knowledge Network (A)

Authors :           Joan Winn

Source :             North American Case Research Association (NACRA)

Case ID :            NA0119

Discipline :        Human Resource Management

Case Length :    12 pages

Solution sample availability : YES

Plagiarism : NO (100% Original work)

In 1992, Maureen Clarry and Kelly Gilmore quit their jobs to start CONNECT: The Knowledge Network, an Information Technology Consulting company. Maureen and Kelly did not take a salary for the first six months of operation, and expected to keep expenses down by working out of their homes. When both women became pregnant, they had to redefine their business model and find a suitable office space. They found an old Victorian house with a separate building to serve as an on-site daycare center and proceeded to create a family-friendly office environment. They focused their business strategy on building a network of consultant “partners” to provide data warehousing and information systems consulting to large companies in the Denver area. In 1998, as companies attempted to expand their workforce in an increasingly tight job market, CONNECT added permanent-placement to their temporary-placement services. This new service line required an increase in CONNECT’s workforce, and within a year, CONNECT expanded from 8 to 20 employees. The economic downturn of 1999-2000 prompted CONNECT to refocus the business once again, forcing a layoff of some long-time staff as well as its recently hired recruiters. This case chronicles the process that Maureen and Kelly and the entire staff of CONNECT went through in making the difficult downsizing decisions.