1. (TCO All) For the next set of questions , you will first
select ONE of the TCOs of the course. Then, you will be asked to write an essay
about the project you worked on this term over your two companies’ change
program based on the TCO you selected above. Select the TCO your essay question
will cover:
TCO A – Given that progressive and successful companies
require their employees to embrace change, examine how changing work conditions
impact the employees.
TCO B – Given the inherent reality that all organizations
must experience change in order to improve, demonstrate how “models” are used
in Change Management, for diagnosing an organization’s need for change.
TCO C – Given external, internal and/or multi-levels of
organization factors that drive change, assess and create a leadership model
which supports and promotes each type of change within the organization.
TCO D – Given that an organization’s mission and vision will
determine its strategy towards change, ensure that an organization’s change
initiative is aligned with and capitalizes on its culture and mission in
preparation for change.
TCO E – Given a selected Change Management implementation
“model”, determine the causes of change and develop a plan of action to
implement the change.
TCO F – Given that both organizations and their employees
commonly resist change, understand how to recognize and overcome barriers to
change and develop a strategy to manage resistance to change that will ensure
successful implementation of change.
TCO G – Given that developing a “vision for change” and
communicating that “vision” is a critical part of the change process, analyze
the key elements of the “vision for change” and develop a strategy to
communicate the change to the stakeholder.
TCO H – Given the organization’s goal of creating and
implementing a sustainable change while moving toward becoming a “learning”
organization, develop a plan to implement change in a sustainable manner that
can be applied to any change.
Using the TCO you selected from the list above, which you
felt was most relevant to your project this term, write an essay answer
explaining how the change management you saw in one of your companies from your
project this term followed or failed to follow the theory of success ingrained
in the TCO you have selected.
State the #1 thing you think that company’s change agent did
which most contributed to the success or failure of the change and why that
relates to the TCO you selected.
Include in the answer the name of the company you are
discussing.
Explain/analyze why you think this way.
(Points : 35)
Question 2. 2. (TCOs A,E) Your project this term asked you
to compare and contrast two companies’ change projects or programs for change. This
question will review what you learned about the change projects in a
continuation of your project. It will ask you to apply course information to
your project companies. For your answer, be sure to reference the names of the
companies you studied in your project this term to help your instructor
determine the score of your response.
Recall that external and internal pressures often impact
implementation of change in companies. For this question, please write an essay
answering these questions:
A. Define specific (at least 2 each) external and internal
pressures that will (or did) affect the implementation of the changes in your
two companies. (10 points)
B. Name two strategies of handling these pressures that you
would (have) suggested to the company leaders as being the most effective in
managing those pressures during the implementation phase. (10 points)
C. Defend your positions with details about why you feel
your strategies would assist with handling these pressures. (15 points) (Points : 35)
Question 3. 3. (TCOs E,H) Your project this term asked you
to compare and contrast two companies’ change projects or programs for change.
This question will review what you learned about the change projects in a
continuation of your project. It will ask you to apply course information to
your project companies. For your answer, be sure to reference the names of the
companies you studied in your project this term to help your instructor
determine the score of your response.
You will assess the “sustainability” of the changes which
occurred in the companies you studied. Select ONE of the company change
programs for your answer to this question and state it here. Assess the change project. Was it successful or unsuccessful in your
opinion? What will it take (what are some steps the company can, should, or DID
take) to make it SUSTAINABLE? What theories did you consider in coming to this
conclusion? Do you think this change will still be in place in one, five, or
ten years? Why or why not? (Points : 35)
Question 4. 4. (TCO All) This question does not address your
course project. This change scenario is envisioned instead, for this question.
First, the scenario, and then the question.
Scenario: You have
been asked to handle a project where the company is going to close the plant in
your company and offer all of the workers an option of taking a buy-out
severance package which is quite generous OR relocate to another state, where
the business climate is much better (but the cost of living is higher and the
style of living is lower). The current location of the company is in an area
where people live well, the culture is great, and because it is in a college
town, there are many fun things to do on weekends, plays to attend, sporting
events, etc. The atmosphere is quite upbeat. The city where the company is
moving to has very little in the way of entertainment, the housing costs are
higher although not as nice, and property taxes are higher as well. The company
is offering moving costs for relocation costs, but not house sale assistance.
It is likely most of your employees are going to take the buy-out, but most of
them are in their late 30s or early 40s and are not going to be happy about it.
The question: This term, we studied organizational development
theory versus the more systematic nStep method of conducting a change process.
What would be the pros/cons of using OD theory for this change project? What
would be the pros/cons of using nStep? Which nStep would you recommend for this
if you use one? Of the two methods (nStep or OD), which would you recommend we
use for this particular change program? Why? (Points : 35)
Question 5. 5. (TCOs C,D) Your project this term asked you
to compare and contrast two companies’ change projects or programs for change.
This question will review what you learned about the change projects in a
continuation of your project. It will ask you to apply course information to
your project companies. For your answer, be sure to reference the names of the
companies you studied in your project this term to help your instructor
determine the score of your response.
Consider ONE of your company’s change projects (not both
companies – just one.) State the company and the change
process/program/project. Name the leader of the change from that company.
Answer the following questions about that change:
A. What skill competencies related to change management did
you feel the change leader of your change exhibited well? (Consider the images
of change in your answer but don’t focus entirely on those images – discuss
competencies in change managers in this question.) Which important competencies
did you feel that leader did NOT exhibit?
B. Evaluate the leader’s implementation of the change as it
compared to the company’s vision and mission statement. Were they aligned? Did
this alignment (or misalignment) contribute to the success or failure of the
change? Why or why not? (Points : 35)
Page 2
Question 1. 1. (TCO A) Which of the following options
properly identifies external and internal forces which drive change? (Points :
7)
External forces
for change are totally environmental; internal forces for change are more
economic.
An internal
force for change is a lack of diversity in the make-up of the senior
management, whereas an external force for change is a lawsuit by the EEOC
requiring the management to correct diversity failure in the company.
Internal forces
for change tend to create a faster change than external forces for change.
The mimetic
isomorphism pressure to change was seen when Sarbanes Oxley was passed in order
to ensure that an Enron-like scenario never happened again. This was an
external vs. internal force for change.
None of the
above
Question 2. 2. (TCO A) At times, organizations do not change
in the face of external pressures. This has been explained as follows: (Points
: 7)
This is a
paradox which occurs often when change is discontinuous.
This occurred
when newspapers learned about the Titanic sinking.
This is a
dichotomy of multiple organizational flexibilities and transformational
organizations.
An example
occurred when IBM continued building mainframes for 20 years beyond their
maximized potential.
Both B and C
Both A and D
Question 3. 3. (TCO B) Which of the following best defines
the “Six Box” model of diagnosing change? (Points : 7)
Includes
purpose, structure, rewards, and helpful mechanisms
Is based on the
conceptualization of the organization as a transformation process
Can be a
starting point for an organization that has not given attention to the trends
that may impact its future operations
Includes
strategy, structure, process, and lateral capability
Includes structure,
style, skills, super-ordinate goals, etc.
Question 4. 4. (TCO B) During the diagnosis for change
period, it is important to analyze the stakeholders for their readiness to
change. Using the power-interest matrix, you review the level of interest and
amount of power of stakeholders and determine the following: (Points : 7)
Your key
players are those with the highest level of interest, but a lower level of
power.
Your key
players are those with the lowest level of interest, but the highest level of
power.
Your most
unimportant players are those with low levels of power but high interest.
Your
stakeholders who need to be “kept informed only” are those with high levels of
interest but lower levels of power.
Your stakeholders
who need to be “kept informed only” are those with low levels of interest but
higher levels of power.
Question 5. 5. (TCO C) The Burke-Litwin model differentiates
between what two factors, better than other models? (Points : 7)
Transformational
change and environmental change
Transactional
change and transformational change
Environmental
change and structure
Motivation and
leadership
Performance and
motivation
Question 6. 6. (TCO C) A very broad-ranging diagnostic tool
for change agents which should be used as a starting point when an organization
has ignored the impact of trends on the business is (Points : 7)
diagnosis by
image.
diagnosis by
scenario analysis.
diagnosis using
the PESTEL framework.
diagnosis by
gap analysis.
diagnosis by
transubstantiation.
Question 7. 7. (TCO D) The art of a leader managing the
meaning of a vision for followers and aligning it with his or her values is
called (Points : 7)
scripting.
performing.
staging.
norming.
framing.
Question 8. 8. (TCO F) The Emotional Intelligence domains
and associated competencies are used to help us determine when a potential change
agent, or person, is ready for leadership. When a person exhibits the
competencies of integrity, initiative, and optimism, we know he or she has
reached the stage of (Points : 7)
Self-Awareness.
Social
Awareness.
Relationship
Management.
Self-Management.
Personal and
Social.
Question 9. 9. (TCO G) The “inspirational leadership” style
of communicating change as described by Reardon and Reardon states that a
leader’s communication strategy for successful change will do the following:
(Points : 7)
create
consensus; the main communication process is simply involvement.
focus on
performance and results orientation; the communication will direct people
toward tasks.
totally and
irrationally immerse him/herself in the overwhelming amount of change to enact,
the leader will spray information about the change daily and pray that others
will take the message and run, inspiring
others to act accordingly.
develop a
vision of the future and encourage a cohesive community of other change leaders
who will support the vision by communication through creating trust and getting
people mobilized around the change effort.
hire a pastor
to come and work with the organization.
Question 10. 10. (TCO G) Crisis management communication
strategies for corporate situations which create injury or massive
environmental damage (such as the BP Gulf Oil Disaster) might include any of
the following, but almost always should include this one very important piece:
(Points : 7)
total and full
denial of blame.
shifting the
blame.
apology.
shift the blame
and apologize.
initial
delay/silence while reviewing victim responses to the crisis.
Question 11. 11. (TCO H) In July 2006, News Corporation
(owner Rupert Murdoch) bought MySpace for $580 million. In June 2011, NC sold
MySpace for $35 million to Specific Media. News Corp has stated in various
filings that it recouped the total cost of MySpace through an ad contract with
Google, but were tired of the “headache” of the site. 8 months later, through
strategic partnerships with Facebook and Twitter, and investor Justin
Timberlake, the site started to rejuvenate. Whether it will remake its brand
remains a question. To the employees who have been with MySpace since 2005
(pre-Murdoch days) and who remain there in 2012 in the rejuvenation stage, the
past 7 years could be described as a time of (Points : 7)
charismatic
(inspirational) transformation.
cultural
readjustments.
sustaining
change.
All of the
above
None of the
above
Question 12. 12. (TCOs G,H) Review this story and pick the
best answer based on your understanding of change management practices:
Company X,Y,Z establishes a vision for change where “cutting
costs is critical to our survival” and establishes a reward system to the
department which cuts costs the most in one quarter, and states it will be a
“department-based reward” system for the next four quarters. By the “most” the
management establishes, the cuts will be valued by a somewhat complicated
algorithm % and $$ of cut in the total expense budget. The sales team goes for
the gold and cuts their travel budget by 50%, which is by far the biggest
department cut in both $ and %. They win the 1st quarter reward. In quarter 2,
the IT team cuts expenses the most by ending the purchase of all new software
or PCs. In quarter 3, the production line cuts their expenses the most by
laying off 60% of the workers (sales have dropped significantly and technology
problems have slowed production, so this was needed anyway.) (Points : 8)
The company did
a good job establishing urgency and aligning metrics with the vision for
change, and this change appears to be successful.
The company aligned metrics with the vision
for change, and created its own nStep method of change.
The company
culture is dysfunctional and could have
learned from CEO Bethune and the Continental Airline’s own culture of “cost is
everything.”
The company will probably win the J.D.
Power and Associates award for customer satisfaction this year.
The reward
system is a “spray and pray” system.
