problem solving

I will attach the direction. you need to do only part three which is 2-3 pages long. I did attach part two and one to complete part three

Organizational Behavior

Problem-Solving Project Guidelines

Winter 2020

Overview: You will identify a current problem or challenge that is personally relevant that Organizational Behaviors research may help resolve or progress. You will then use OB concepts and theory to create an action plan to resolve it, implement the action plan, and summarize the results of your efforts, including lessons learned.

Goals:

1. Gain a deeper understanding, expertise in your selected organizational behavior topic

2. Practice building and executing a project plan

3. Learn how to measure and assess plan progress, including identifying best practices and lessons learned

4. Improve an issue or challenge you are facing this semester

Part 1 – Problem Identification (25 points / %) Done.

1) Select a problem or challenge you are encountering at work or school this semester that organizational behavior topic may be able to provide insight for solving (e.g., stress, motivation, goal-setting, creativity – the syllabus schedule or textbook are good references for ideas). You may also opt to address a personal problem, but be sure to select something you’d be comfortable sharing with the class. Relatedly, do not include specific names of any individuals or companies.

The entire project will be much easier and more effective if you are thoughtful with problem selection; I suggest you keep it simple, select a challenge that you can work to improve over the course of the semester, and make it relevant or interesting to you.

2) Write a 1 page summary clearly stating (1) the challenge or issue, (2) which one OB concept will help you make progress toward overcoming the challenge, and (3) a brief description on why you selected that topic, how it might relate. Format isn’t important, but be sure you clearly include these three elements for full credit. Example summaries are provided in the appendix of this document.

Example challenges include:

Work or organization-related examples:

· working with an unreasonable supervisor (conflict management, communication)

· absenteeism or turnover issues (motivation, job satisfaction, reward)

· conflict with coworkers (communication, conflict, diversity and inclusion)

· obtaining visibility and favorable work assignments (communication, mentoring)

School-related examples:

· finding an internship (goal setting)

· working with a free-rider on a group project (teamwork)

· deciding on or changing one’s major (decision making)

· raising one’s grade point average (goal setting)

· time management (self-management)

Personal examples:

· increasing physical fitness (goal setting, motivation)

· stopping smoking (goal setting)

· reducing stress (stress)

Grading for Part 1 will be assessed based on the following criteria:

· Did you clearly identify and describe the challenge or issue to be improved?

· Did you clearly state the OB theory/theories that you will apply to solve or progress the solution to the problem? [Please select just one & make sure it’s clearly within the domain of organizational behavior]

· Did you describe how you think the theory will help address the challenge [don’t forget to address the link with at least 1-2 sentences!]

· NOTE: Any late submissions will lose 20% of the possible points earned each day late. No credit will be given for assignments submitted more than 5 days late.

Part 2 – Annotated Bibliography and Action Plan and Measurement (50 points/ %) – Done.

Locate and use at least four credible, external sources (library, internet) to find solutions to your problem (author or publication should have relevant credentials). Submit an annotated bibliography that summarizes relevant findings from each source. An annotated bibliography is a word document that lists the full citation of each source followed by a summary in your own words of the relevant information found within that document. Citation should include author, title, date, publisher or publication. Include web address if a website. Scholar.google.com provides this information if you search and select “cite” link below it. Summaries can be in bullets or paragraph form. No fewer than 2, no more than 4 pages (Times New Roman, 12 pt font, double spaced).

1. Document a step-by-step action plan for addressing the problem or challenge selected. Action plans should incorporate and apply what you’ve learned from your personal research (as documented in the annotated bibliography). Each action step should include a target due date. The steps of the action plan (or at least most of them) should conclude before the deadline for Part 3 so that you have feedback to provide on how successful or unsuccessful it was. No fewer than 4 steps. These should be documented as a workplan (a table in word or excel; at a minimum includes action step and target due date).

2. Document at least two key quantitative metrics you can use to assess how successful (or not) your action plan proves to be in resolving the challenge. This metric should be observable and measurable (e.g. interviews scheduled if looking for internship, % change in assignment grades if increasing GPA). If multiple people were asked to observe and track the metric, they should get the same score (you do not need to get multiple people to measure – it’s just a good question to ask yourself to assess whether your measure is quantifiable).

Grading for Part 2 will be assessed based on the following criteria:

· Are all stated requirements met?

· Did the student identify and thoroughly review at least 4 unique and credible (avoid personal blogs or obscure websites – look for author or journal / publisher credentials) resources that accurately relate to the OB theory and topic at hand?

· Is the action plan clearly related to the OB theory used, and does it apply new learnings to solving the problem?

· Is the action plan actionable? Are there clear steps and dates identified that are doable during the semester?

· Is the measurement plan actionable, quantifiable and clearly related to the action plan? Does it include target, desired metrics?

· NOTE: Any late submissions will lose 20% of the possible points earned each day late. No credit will be given for assignments submitted more than 5 days late.

Part 3 – Summary of Outcomes and Reflection (aka Lessons Learned) (25 points/ %) – need to be done.

1) Provide a summary of the outcomes of the action plan, including the measurement of success. Describe how the action plan was executed, noting what went according to plan and what didn’t. Briefly restate your measurement plan and provide results compared to target results.

· NOTE: You will not be penalized in grading if you do not succeed in the goal in the time allotted. So be honest. The goal is to learn the theories, apply them, and learn through the process.

2) Reflect on the overall exercise, summarizing what you learned, what went well, and what you’d do differently next time. Some other things to consider and include (do not need to address all of these, but those that are relevant):

· What was the most difficult part of this process?

· What part of the project required you to master new skills?

· What could you tell another person about how to effectively solve a problem like this?

· How would you go about solving this differently if you were faced with this problem again?

· Are there other theories or concepts you’ve learned since you created the action plan that might further inform a solution to this problem?

· How happy were you with the solution you implemented?

3) 2-3 pages all together (Times New Roman, 12 pt font, double spaced)

Grading for Part 3 will be assessed based on the following criteria:

· Did the student clearly communicate the results of executing the action plan?

· Did the student clearly measure and report back the results of the measurement approach?

· Are the OB concepts that were used in this action plan addressed in the reflection regarding what worked, what didn’t, and why?

· Does the reflection include ideas for how to improve in the future?

· NOTE: Again, you will not be penalized if you do not succeed in the goal in the time allotted. The goal is to learn the theories, apply them, and learn through the process.

· NOTE: Any late submissions will lose 20% of the possible points earned each day late. No credit will be given for assignments submitted more than 5 days late.

APPENDIX

1. Problem description examples:

A. SAMPLE PROBLEM #1 (WORK PROBLEM)

My mother and I own a business together. We manage a concession stand that contracts for a number of festival, convention, and special occasion events downtown and elsewhere. Our concession stand has from 3 to 20 people working at each event. Our employees are usually all still enrolled in high school, and we have a lot of problems getting them to show up for work, be on time, and stay employed through the end of an event. There is a tremendous amount of turnover. We continually have to hire new people. It is frustrating to never know if enough people will show up for work so that customers can be served effectively. When we do a bad job of customer service the word of mouth can hurt our business. It is also discouraging to continually have to hire new people, spend time training them, and then watch them leave so that we have to start over again. My mother and I often work the soda machine when we could be developing strategies for obtaining new business or finding new product lines. The problems here include motivation, work values, and turnover among others. I have chosen to focus on motivation in solving this problem. I think finding ways to increase the motivation to work in the employees will reduce turnover and increase commitment.

B. SAMPLE PROBLEM #2 (SCHOOL PROBLEM)

I am taking a class in which I must work in a group to complete the major project in the course. There are five people in my group, and four of us appear to be committed to the project and determined to get a good grade. Each of us four seems to be working equally as hard on the project. The problem is that one member of our group is not contributing as much as the rest of us. This person does not come to class regularly, contributes few ideas when present, never has assignments for the project finished at the agreed-on time, and generates problems and conflict during the few group meetings where she actually shows up. This problem is important because it can have a significant impact on the quality of the group project. Consequently, it can have a major impact on my course grade, and ultimately my overall grade point average. This is a problem of social loafing, teamwork, and interpersonal conflict. Therefore, I’ll look at the team processes and communication topic area to identify research-supported approaches to communicating within a team about conflicts and to reduce individual team member’s desire to slack off in team work.