Career and Succession Planning Research Paper—Due Week 4
Introduction: The topic for this research paper generally describes a staffing-related
functional area that is part of the entire staffing process. It is your job to zero in and
create a sub-topic that is of interest or of value to you. There is a substantial list of
potential sub-topics listed below this page.
Focus: This is a research paper assignment that will be of interest to most students.
You are working towards a Master’s degree because you want to drive your career
further and in the direction that you want it to go over time. As a potentially future HR
professional it will be part of your role to manage the talent development process. Here
is your chance to learn more specifically how a talent development program and
succession planning contribute to the strategic success of the organization.
Summary: The topic for this paper is a general topic and you can take the direction
around career and succession planning that is of the most interest and value to you as
an HR professional. Produce a sub-topic that is important to you. Take the professional
perspective. The paper should be, in total, five to eight pages in length.
Directions:
Structure
Title Page
Introduction
Approach
Focus
Literature Review
Results
Description
Include the title of your course paper, your name, e-mail
address, school name, instructor’s name, date of the
submittal, and class (HRM594).
Generally review what this paper is about and what the
reader can expect to find inside the pages of this
research paper. State the topic and why it is important.
Potential topics found at the bottom of this page. The old
advice, "tell them what you plan to tell them" applies
here.
Describe what specific sources you will use to research
this assignment. That will likely include using the DeVry
online library to find primary sources, review of
documents in the workplace, using the Internet to find
respected sources, such as SHRM, professional journals,
etc. Explain what you expect to get from these sources.
What is the specific focus of the paper? Describe a
problem, situation, real-world case, etc. that causes you
to take this direction. See the list of sample topics below.
What is the practical relevance of this research paper?
Summarize the scholarly research that you found on the
topic. You must use no less than four resources outside
of your textbook. Use primary sources.
What did you learn about the topic, both qualitative and
Points
5
10
10
10
20
20
Conclusion
References
quantitative? This is where you present the model you
created or the recommendations that you have for the
organization or the proposal that you will present to upper
management. This is where you make your argument.
How do you interpret the results of your research as it
relates to the specific topic that you addressed in the
assignment? How does your research help the
organization to improve in some way? How does the
organization benefit from your results, the model, the
recommendations, etc.? How do you expect things to be
better because of your research and recommendations?
You must use no less than six resources outside of your
textbook. That includes the four you cited in the Literature
Review section of this assignment. Cite all sources. Use
the APA style guide. All references must be cited in two
places: within the body of your paper and on a separate
reference list. Choose references judiciously and cite
them accurately.
A quality paper will meet or exceed all of the above
requirements.
15
10
100
Example Topics for This Assignment
1.
2.
3.
4.
Prepare a methodology to identify top talents: tools and processes.
Create a corporate-wide development plan for top talents.
Build a career ladder for a particular job family.
Construct a practical model that shows the relationship between development
and training and how that can be used to prepare future leaders.
5. Prepare a practical succession planning process for an organization.
6. Design an Assessment Center to help provide feedback to existing managers.
7. Propose a practical mentoring (not coaching) methodology for a corporate
executive development program.
8. Compose a useful behavioral competency model for managers at all levels of the
organization: identify the competency, define the competency, level the
competencies by manager title, and explain how it could be used in a 360
feedback tool.
9. You come up with a sub-topic that is of interest to you or of particular value to you
or useful to the organization where you work.
10. Take any of the above example ideas and modify them to fit what is of interest or
value to you.
Best Practices
Avoid any type of plagiarism. The best way to avoid plagiarism is to make sure all
quotes, ideas, or conclusions, not your own, are given proper acknowledgment in
your text.
Plagiarism in its purest form involves copying passages either verbatim or nearly
verbatim, with no direct acknowledgment of the source.
Paraphrasing does not relieve you of the obligation to provide proper
identification of source data.
All references must be cited in two places: within the body of your paper and on a
separate reference list. Choose references judiciously and cite them accurately.
Use the APA style guide.
Please do not select the same topics that you used to create the previous two
assignments for this course.
Take the perspective of an HR business partner when writing this assignment.
Be sure to proof read your work.
Take a research approach to writing this paper, but have practical
recommendations.
Structure the paper using the grading rubric categories: Approach, Focus, etc.
