Graded Homework

OBJECTIVES

The Course Project is designed to provide you with a real-life practical application of an organization’s human resource benefits program. You will create a written analysis of a real-world organization’s benefit plan design with suggested opportunities for improvement that use the concepts and knowledge introduced in this course.

GUIDELINES

The Course Project must be comprehensive and must adhere to the following analytical stages.

• There are eight parts in this Course Project. Different parts are due during Weeks 1, 4, and 7.
• Papers should be formatted according to APA or MLA guidelines (12-point font, double-spaced, including a cover page, table of contents, introduction, body of the report, summary or conclusion, and a works cited page).
• Even though this is not a scientific-type writing assignment and is mostly creative in nature, references are still very important. Ten or more outside resources or references are required (anonymous authors or web pages are not acceptable). These sources should be referenced according to APA or MLA guidelines.
• Appropriate citations are required following APA or MLA guidelines.
• All DeVry University Policies are in effect, including the plagiarism policy.
• Please post any questions about these papers in the Course Q & A Forum.
• These papers combined are worth 310 total points and will be graded on quality of research topic, quality of paper information, use of citations, grammar, and sentence structure (see the rubrics below).

Part 1: Select and Profile an Organization for the Benefit Plan (40 Points)

There are a number of ways in which an organization and benefit plan can be selected. You have the option of looking at your current employer’s benefit plan, that of a previous employer, or one from a random organization of your choice whose benefit plan has a perceived need for either a revision of specific benefits, addition of needed benefits, or an overhaul of its benefits program. Provide a clear profile of your chosen organization as well as the organization’s current benefits program. Present key facts that are important in understanding your chosen organization’s benefits program.

Part 2: Statement of the Issue (40 Points)

This section should present an analysis of the major benefits issue or issues. It should include a statement of the specific benefit plan you are addressing. Some questions to ask when formulating the statement of issue include the following.

• Have I identified the basic issue or am I dealing with the symptoms?
• What is the point of the paper?
• If I have identified more than one issue, are the issues separate or related?

There are several sources from which the issues can be determined. They include business documents, such as employee surveys and competitive analysis reports; assessment questionnaires that can be created to probe for areas of benefit needs and employee desires; observations of how employees use or do not use their current benefits; and interviews with key management and selected employees to determine benefit issues.

Part 3: Literature Review (40 Points)

Address what was discovered in the search of relevant literature, related articles, and the employee benefit text, as well as what was discovered in Part 2. This means not only reviewing theories, concepts, and studies discussed in the text or in class, but also reviewing websites and what other writers have to say about benefit plans. Given the limited number of weeks that a term provides and the number of steps involved in the Course Project following the literature review, no more than 2 weeks should be spent reviewing literature.

It is critical that those completing questionnaires, being interviewed, or providing information in any other manner be assured that their responses will be kept in the strictest of confidence and will not be discussed in whole or in part to any member of the organization or outside the boundaries of the classroom. It is recommended that you begin your literature search by accessing Keller’s Online Library. While you may use information obtained from HR-related websites, you must also obtain information from current scholarly journals, business publications, and newspapers. Ten or more outside resources or references are required.

Part 4: Issue Analysis (40 Points)

Here we are bringing Parts 2 and 3 together. This section should provide a detailed analysis of the benefits issue that was identified in Part 2. A major objective is to clearly illustrate how the concepts of the course and gained knowledge of benefits are being used, as well as to show what was learned from the literature review. Show that you are applying course material.

Part 5: Issue Solutions (40 Points)

Create a developmental strategy. Offer several solutions or options that are appropriate for the benefits issue or issues. The solutions should follow logically from the analysis. The expected outcomes, positive and negative, should be addressed.

Part 6: Solution and Its Implementation (40 Points)

This segment should outline your recommended solution to the identified issue. The solution will be one or a combination of the solutions provided in Part 5. This part should be specific, stating what benefit plans are recommended, timing for implementation, and in what sequence. It includes not only what should be done, but also how it should be done. A specific solution should indicate what benefit is most appropriate for the issue and how it will be implemented in the organization. Some questions to keep in mind when writing the solution section include the following.

1. Has an awareness of the problem of implementation been addressed?
2. Have you been too general?
3. Do the solution and implementation address the issues identified earlier?
4. Does your solution take into account the identified pros and cons?
5. How will you evaluate the effectiveness of the implemented benefit plan?
6. What process checks or procedures will you put in place to institutionalize the improvement?
7. Was the realism of your proposed action plan assessed? For example, are there adequate time, money, and other resources for your solution?

Part 7: Justification (40 Points)

This section of your analysis should, using course knowledge and concepts, tell why your solution and implementation would work. A major objective is to clearly show how you are applying course concepts and content to arrive at a workable solution and implementation for the issue identified. Some questions to ask when writing your justification segment include the following:

1. Have you applied the appropriate course material?
2. Do you support your conclusions and recommendations with appropriately referenced facts, quotes, readings, and class activities?
3. Does your justification recognize the pros and cons identified earlier?