• Assignment 1 Role of The Manager and The Impact of
Organizational Theories on Managers (Week 3)
Purpose:
In the first assignment, students are given a scenario in which the
shipping manager who has worked for Galaxy Toys, Inc. since
1969. The scenario serves to set the stage for students to
demonstrate how management theories have changed over time.
For example, management 30 years ago is different than
management in the 21st century.
Outcome Met by Completing This Assignment:
integrate management theories and principles into management
practices
Instructions:
In Part One of this analysis, students are to use the facts from the
case scenario to determine the two different organizational
theories that are demonstrated. For Part Two, students will
compare the 21st century manager to that of the main character in
the case scenario and discuss using the course readings the
implications of change in being a 21st century manager.
In selecting a School of Thought and an organizational theory that
best describes the current shipping manager, students will use the
timeline, the information provided in the course schedule, the
course readings. Students will use the course readings to
respond to most of the assignment requirements but will also
need to research the theorist(s) and theories to complete the
assignment. Students are expected to be thorough and
demonstrate accuracy in responding to the assignment, analyzing
the case scenario and in supporting all reasoning.
In Part Two, students are going to take what they have learned
and compare the management skills of the 21st century shipping
manager to the skills of the current shipping manager.
Step 1: Preparation for the Assignment
Before you begin writing the report, you will read the following
requirements that will help you meet the writing and APA requirements. Not reading this information will lead to a lower
grade:
Review “How to Analyze a Case Study” under Week 4 Content.
You are expected to use the facts from the case scenario focusing
on using this information to determine opportunities and solve
problems.
Read the grading rubric for the assignment. Use the grading
rubric while writing the report to ensure all requirements are met
that will lead to the highest possible grade.
In writing this assignment, you will read and following these tasks:
Task 1: Third person writing is required. Third person means that
there are no words such as “I, me, my, we, or us” (first person
writing), nor is there use of “you or your” (second person
writing). If uncertain how to write in the third person, view this
link: http://www.quickanddirtytips.com/education/grammar/firstsecond-and-third-person.
Task 2: Contractions are not used in business writing, so you are
expected NOT to use contraction in writing this assignment.
Task 3: You are expected to paraphrase and are NOT to use
direct quotes. You are expected to paraphrase, which can be
learned by reviewing this
link: https://writing.wisc.edu/Handbook/QPA_paraphrase2.html.
Task 4: You are responsible for APA only for in-text citations and
a reference list.
Task 5: You are expected to use the facts from the case scenario
paired with the weekly courses readings to develop the analysis
and support the reasoning. No more than three (3) external resources can be used in completing the assignment. The
expectation is that you provide a robust use of the course
readings. If any material is used from a source document, it must
be cited and referenced. A reference within a reference list
cannot exist without an associated in-text citation and vice versa.
View the sample APA paper and the How to Cite and Reference
file located under Week 4 content.
Task 6: In completing the assignment, students are expected to
use the facts from the case study and company profile paired with
the weekly courses readings to develop the analysis. View the
company profile here: Galaxy Toys, Inc. Company Profile.
Step 2: How to Set Up the Paper
Create a Word or Rich Text Format (RTF) document that is
double-spaced, 12-point font. The final product will be between 57 pages in length excluding the title page and reference page and
appendix. You may not exceed seven (7) pages so it is important
to write clearly and concisely. •
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•
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• In addition to providing an introduction, students will use headings
following this format:
Title page with title, your name, the course, date, the instructor’s
name;
Introduction
Background on the Galaxy Inc. scenario – one to two paragraph
that is paraphrased (approximately 150 words);
Part One;
Part Two
Step 3: Create the introductory paragraph. Within this
paragraph, provide a brief overview of the scenario. Then,
provide a thesis statement and tell the reader the main topics covered in the paper. The introductory paragraph is the first
paragraph of the paper but is typically written after writing the
body of the paper (Questions students responded to above).
View this website to learn how to write an introductory
paragraph: http://www.writing.ucsb.edu/faculty/donelan/intro.html
Step 4: Part One: Read critically and analyze the following
scenario:
The shipping manager for Galaxy Toys Toledo, Ohio branch, Bart
Aldrin, has been in his job since 1969. Prior to coming to Galaxy,
Bart worked as shipping clerk for International Shipping, a large
container company. Bart quickly rose to supervisor at
International Shipping because of his ability to plan daily work,
provide detailed instructions to workers that helped optimize the
way tasks were performed and his knack of implementing
processes so workers could be trained to perform their
specialized sequence of motion in the most efficient way. He
brought this management style to Galaxy, which helped to
improve the methodology of toy assembly as well as the shipping
processes.
Employees often criticized Bart, who was heard to say (on many
occasions), "It’s my way or the highway" or "Just do your
individual task the way you were trained and don’t worry
about what others are doing." In fact, it was clear that Bart was
focused on efficiency and to that end, he had a keen
understanding of all of the tasks that needed to be completed and
was focused on hiring and training workers that could perform
their individual task in the most efficient way possible. In his early
days, one could find Bart on the shipping floor taking copious
notes as to each individual task completed and figuring out ways
to turn the employees into robots…programming them to perform
their one task in the single-most efficient way possible (at least
from his perspective).
A major shift in management occurred in the late 1980’s and early
90’s that caused Bart (and other managers) to reconsider their management approach. For example, heightened competition,
advances in technology, the workers threat to unionize, a greater
demand for employee management participation, work-life
balance and a general shift in employee workplace values caused
management to change the culture of Galaxy. A greater focus on
employees led to a new approach to management at Galaxy:
people focus within a learning environment. The owners of
Galaxy embraced diversity and were willing to hear the ideas of
employees and this change in attitude and culture was evident in
Bart, who embraced these changes wholeheartedly. These
internal changes enabled the company to adapt to uncertainty
and to respond to its competitors more quickly.
Step 5: Identify and discuss the School of Thought that best
describes Bart’s management style when he first joined Galaxy.
Remember to explain the facts that you have relied upon in your
selection. Note that there is one best answer so not doing a
thorough analysis will yield partial credit for this element.
Step 6: Discuss the theorist (only one) under the identified
School of Thought that best depicts Bart’s management style
when he joined Galaxy. What contribution did this theorist make to
management and why was his or her contribution important to the
field of management? Remember to explain the facts that you’ve
relied upon in your selection. Note that there is one best answer
so not doing a thorough analysis will yield partial credit.
Step 7: Identify and discuss the School of Thought that best
describes the management style Bart used once the shift took
place. Why is this School of Thought the best choice?
Remember to demonstrate that the facts given in the scenario
align with your choice. Note that there is one best answer, so
doing a thorough analysis will yield partial credit for this element.
Step 8: Identify and discuss the theorist who best supports this School of Thought. Address the principles of the theory and how
these principles affected the new approach to management as
exhibited Bart and his fellow managers. How does what the
theorist propose support the facts in the case study? Remember
to demonstrate that the facts given in the scenario align with your
choice. Note that there is one best answer, which is not related to
the P-O-L-C, so doing a thorough analysis will yield partial credit
for this element.
Step 9: Compare and contrast the two Schools of Thought
that were identified above. To help you understand how to
do this element, view Writing a Comparison and Contrast
Paragraph. The expectation is that this element is covered in
detail, which is more than 2-3 sentences.
Step 10: Part Two: Read critically and analyze the following
scenario:
Recently, Bart announced his plans to retire. His replacement is
Joyce Barnhart. Joyce is confident as a 21st century manager that
she is capable of handling the new position as manager.
Step 11: As a 21st century manager, how will Joyce’s
understanding of the role of a manager be
manifested/demonstrated in how she approaches her job?
Remember that in responding to this question, students are
expected to demonstrate an understanding of the 21st century
management concepts discussed early in this course.
Step 12: How will the new approach to the job likely change the
production and shipping department at Galaxy headquarters? • Step 13: Proofread the paper for spelling and grammatical issues,
and third person writing as this assignment requires college-level
writing.
Use the spell and grammar check in Word as a first measure; •
• Have someone who has excellent English skills to proof the
paper;
Consider submitting the paper to the Effective Writing Center
(EWC). The EWC will provide 4-6 areas that may need
improvement.
Step 14: Submit the paper in the Assignment Folder.
