Category: Business communication

Project Planning as a Management Function

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Write a summary of your selection and contrast its content with the processes described in the course reading assignments. Base your opinion and analysis upon your own experiences, readings from the text, or any other reference you deem appropriate.

Project Planning as a Management Function
Components of the Project Management Plan
Stakeholder Identification
Establishing Project Priorities
Project Constraints
WBS Development
(Please include the title and author of your article/case study at the top of your initial post. If your source is a video, please include its URL (Internet address) at the top of your initial post in addition to its title and author.)

Intercultural communication effectiveness.

Posted on | by Brian Leakey

Step 1: In a 200-300 word post, reflect on why intercultural communication skills are important to you, personally? Explain. Next, reflect on the transactional model of communication described in the lecture. Which part do you find most challenging when you are interacting with someone of a different culture? Why? Explain.

Please note: You must first post your own original initial response (at least 200 words in length) before viewing the initial responses of your classmates.
Do not post a blank response first and then view the responses of your classmates as doing so will compromise the originality of your own response and result in points being deducted from your score on the assignment or a grade of “0” (zero).

Step 2 : Read at least 5 of your colleagues’ initial responses. Choose 2 to comment to. Each comment should be at least 100 words in length and add to the conversation (reflect on their experience, add your own examples, ask questions, respectfully debate what is said, etc.)

Ethics of an organization.

Posted on | by Brian Leakey

Student Success Criteria
View the grading rubric for this deliverable by selecting the “This item is graded with a rubric” link, which is located in the Details & Information pane.

Scenario
You are the HR manager of a financial firm. There has been a lot of news media discussing recent public opinion surrounding unethical financial behavior. Recently, a former employee of your firm posted questionable items to social media, causing shareholder and stakeholder concerns. This questionable social media post has been identified as having a potentially negative impact on the company’s public image, the potential to reduce employee morale, and to reduce new business. You have been tasked by the leadership team to investigate the former employee allegations and create a companywide newsletter article as a response.

While searching for the full story, you have located a case study that discusses leader’s unethical behaviors in the finance industry. You and the finance manager talk about the current issue and the case study you have found. As the HR manager, you want to ensure that your company is aware of these issues and that employee’s follow best practices. During your discussion with the financial manager, the suggestion was made that you to write a response article detailing the case study for an internal organizational newsletter. This newsletter will make employees aware as well as address their concerns.

Write an article for the company newsletter, which will cover the importance of financial ethics in business and how leaders can create an ethical environment.

In Microsoft Word, create the newsletter article that addresses the following:

Provide a summary of the case study
Clearly state the unethical financial behaviors.
Provide the steps the company must take to ensure the likelihood of ethical financial practices.
Conclude your newsletter with your company’s policy to address the financial impact on the company pertaining to unethical posting on social media by employees.

Best practices for developing and empowering others.

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Pretend that you have been tasked with informing your colleagues of best practices for developing and empowering others.
Decide whom you will be training. Select an audience for your presentation (i.e., your workplace, school, place of worship, or volunteer organization) so you can make appropriate recommendations in your presentation.
Bring to mind some examples of development and empowerment.
Think of how development and empowerment are similar and different. Consider creating a Venn diagram to help you organize your thoughts as you compare and contrast the concepts of development and empowerment.
Review the assigned pages from Chapter 8 in your course text. Pay particular attention to the two views of leadership authority: servant leadership and participative leadership.
Select a view of leadership authority you think would be most likely to empower others in your chosen setting.

Manage stakeholder relationships to sustain a competitive advantage

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Align and integrate a short-term goal with a strategic plan
Create a change management strategy
Scenario
You are a business development manager reporting to the vice president (VP) of business development at one of the largest life sciences organizations in the Midwest. While the organization has shown constant growth and profitability since its inception in 1999, the owners have decided that it is time to sell. Given the current uncertainty in global markets, the organization’s board of directors is not convinced that this is the right approach.

While work was underway to find a potential buyer, the VP called on you to join the strategic planning team to assess the organization’s exit strategy and make recommendations to its board of directors. You have been working closely with your strategic planning team to make some initial analyses and recommendations to help plan for the sale of the organization.

As part of the planning team, your first task was to select people from your organization to build a guiding coalition to help the organization transition during and after the acquisition.

Then, you were asked to analyze one of the organization’s core strengths, its talented pool of employees. This included analyzing the attrition data to understand why employees have left the organization and recommending ways to ensure employee stability in the future. This essential information will be provided to potential acquirers to assure them of the organization’s ability to retain talent.

While planning was underway, your first potential buyer started to get cold feet. So, you were asked to research an alternative buyer and build a contingency plan. This contingency plan is an important part of your exit strategy and your report to the board of directors. You and your team were also asked to formulate an acquisition road map that lays out the action steps and timelines for the plan.

Now that the initial analysis and plans are complete, your VP is ready to make the presentation to the board of directors. The VP has asked you to prepare a formal report that you will send to the board prior to the presentation. This report will include the analyses and plans you have developed over the last few weeks. It is important to note that your report will provide a first impression to the board about the upcoming presentation and meeting. You need to craft a compelling message that provides insights based on all the work your team has done and substantiates your position with data. In addition, as a part of your report, you will also outline a change management strategy that will help ensure a smoother transition after the sale of the organization.

Write a merger integration report that includes your analyses and insights and provides a change management strategy for moving forward toward a sale of the organization in the course scenario. Compile your work from Milestones One, Two, and Three in your report. Remember to address and incorporate any feedback you may have received from your instructor on your milestone assignments.

Guiding coalition: Use the organizational chart and the employee personas provided to guide your selection of the guiding coalition for the organization in the scenario.

Specifically, you must address the following rubric criteria:

Recommendation: Use the organizational chart and the personas to identify people who should be part of the guiding coalition. Review the personas to identify the individuals who have the influence and commitment to make a positive impact while providing guidance for the change initiative.
Rationale: Justify your choice of guiding coalition team members. Your responses should address the following for each individual you recommend for the coalition:
What is the person’s title and how many people do they manage?
How long has each person been with the organization?
What area(s) of the organization does this person influence?
What is your rationale for choosing the person? Consider the person’s characteristics for your rationale.
What role will each person fulfill as a member of the guiding coalition?
Team-building strategies: Describe activities and strategies you will introduce to build a well-functioning team. Your response should address the following:
What strategies will help the members align with the change initiative of the organization in the scenario?
What steps or actions will you take to establish a sense of urgency within the team?
How do these activities and strategies help build trust?

 

Managing Change

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You need to coach your HRD team about using the correct process skills that they will have to teach the leadership of Pegasus. Discuss the following:

Identify and describe 3 process skills that are necessary for the consultant to have to facilitate change.
Describe what will and will not work at Pegasus.

Managing Change

Posted on | by admin3

 

You need to coach your HRD team about using the correct process skills that they will have to teach the leadership of Pegasus. Discuss the following:

Identify and describe 3 process skills that are necessary for the consultant to have to facilitate change.
Describe what will and will not work at Pegasus.

Short Story Idea

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Write a 1-2 page(s) proposal for a short story. This story will be your culminating project for this class. Your short story could be inspired by your past literary/creative writing ideas, this week’s assignments, or any other story idea that you have not fully started crafting. This is an opportunity to craft something new. To fully explore the creative writing process, avoid submitting ideas from completed stories. Keeping in mind that your story is a soon-to-be work in progress, answer the following questions in your proposal:

What is the proposed story theme?
Who are the characters?
What is the setting?
What point of view will you use?
What is the proposed plot?

Short Story Idea

Posted on | by admin3

 

 

 

 

 

Write a 1-2 page(s) proposal for a short story. This story will be your culminating project for this class. Your short story could be inspired by your past literary/creative writing ideas, this week’s assignments, or any other story idea that you have not fully started crafting. This is an opportunity to craft something new. To fully explore the creative writing process, avoid submitting ideas from completed stories. Keeping in mind that your story is a soon-to-be work in progress, answer the following questions in your proposal:

What is the proposed story theme?
Who are the characters?
What is the setting?
What point of view will you use?
What is the proposed plot?

Communication and employee disengagement at the U.S. branch of the Singaporean software

Posted on | by Brian Leakey

S​‌‍‍‍‌‍‍‌‍‌‌‍‍‍‌‍‌‌‌‍​cenario Congratulations! As an HR consultant hired to resolve issues of communication and employee disengagement at the U.S. branch of the Singaporean software solutions organization, you impressed the leadership team. You submitted a change readiness report as Milestone One and highlighted the importance of stakeholders and change implementers. The VP and the management team also appreciated your proactive presentation on employee engagement. Next, you submitted a report on the various change management models and justified your recommendation of one of those models. With each of these submissions, you prepared the VP and the leadership team for your recommended change management plan. It is now time for you to deliver the change management plan to the VP. This document is a significant component of the change management kit you are creating because it outlines individual and organizational activities that require change implementation. Through the change management plan, you will identify stakeholders of significance, outline strategic goals, and recommend steps and strategies to implement the organizational changes required. Prompt Create a report to cover the pre-implementation and implementation phases of the change management plan in the course scenario. Refer to the Case for Change Guide to ensure relevant organizational data is considered. Specifically, you must address the following rubric criteria: Identify two key stakeholders or sponsor roles for the change process from the Singapore headquarters and the U.S. branch. Refer to the Leaders’ Self-Evaluations document for additional context. Discuss the significance of each stakeholder’s role in gaining buy-in, acceptance, and support for change across departments. How can each stakeholder improve the change initiatives’ likelihood of success (for example, by acting as opinion leaders, connectors, counselors, and journalists)? Identify strategic goals that align with the change manageme​‌‍‍‍‌‍‍‌‍‌‌‍‍‍‌‍‌‌‌‍​nt plan and provide rationale. Consider the following in your response: Refer to the Vision, Mission, and Strategic Goals; U.S. Branch Overview; and Leaders’ Self-Evaluations. Ensure there is alignment with the change management plan and the strategic goals of the organization (Singaporean headquarters and U.S. branch). Research emerging trends that could influence employees of the U.S. branch. Explain how improvements to organizational systems can ensure successful and sustained behavioral change. Refer to the Exit Interviews to identify the areas of change. What are the processes, procedures, or policies that need improvement? How will these improvements impact the behavioral change of employees at the U.S. branch? Recommend at least two enhancement strategies for team collaboration. Refer to the Exit Interviews and Leaders’ Self Evaluations to identify the problems of team collaboration. What are the reasons for lack of collaboration between team members across both locations of the organization? How can an individual performer become a team player to improve team collaboration? How should leadership behavior change to build trust? Determine a change management model that can be used at the U.S. branch and provide justification. Based on your evaluation of the challenges that the U.S. branch is currently facing, choose from the following change management models: Kotter’s change management model, Lewin’s change management model, or ADKAR change management model How would you use this model at the U.S. branch? Describe the steps needed to implement the change management model at the U.S. branch. Support your response with research. How would you mitigate and remove any roadblocks in the change management process? What are your plans to deal with the impact of planned and/or unplanned changes and any contingencies? What milestones need to be accomplished for change implementation to succeed? How would you measure the success of your change m​‌‍‍‍‌‍‍‌‍‌‌‍‍‍‌‍‌‌‌‍​anagement plan?