United Coal Limited: Preparing for Transformation
Case Study
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.53361/dmejm.v3i01.01Keywords:
environmental challenges, infrastructure development, coal mining, Human resourceAbstract
Organizations dealing with B2B products experience significant challenges when
customers are unhappy. As the number of customers is few and volumes of
transactions are high, customer satisfaction is essential for a company’s well-being.
CalTech Thermal Plant Corporation, a coal customer, lost 203 crores due to substandard
coal being supplied by their long-term business ally UCL. As a result of a
report by CalTech, the Minister of Natural resources and Power downgraded 250 coal
mines of UCL after analyzing coal samples from various mines. UCL, a Government
owned Maharatna status mining company, was a monopoly in coal extraction and
selling in India for a long time. Over time, UCL has grown in size both in terms of the
number of mines and employee strengths. However, a complacent and sheltered
organization UCL was exposed to a bouquet of challenges starting from the closure
of coal mines in 2017, its own in-house HR problems, threats from international
competitors, and substitutes for their customer’s products in the form of Solar power.
The case study discusses the various environmental challenges influencing UCL to go
for major strategic decisions to endure the present crisis. The management of UCL is
at a crossroads in making the organization profitable and ready for future challenges.
