Business strategy and HR Policies at WalMart Stores Order Instructions: •For your organization, or another organization that you know well, familiarise yourself with the organization’s business strategy and existing HR policies.
Business strategy and HR Policies at WalMart Stores
•Identify your chosen organisation and specify the HR policies that you will evaluate.
•Recommend changes to specific aspects of HR policies and/or practices based on your analysis and provide a justification for each recommendation.
Business strategy and HR Policies at WalMart Stores Sample Answer
Business strategy and HR policies at Wal-Mart stores
When business executives develop business strategies and plans, in most instances they leave out a vital aspect of these business plans. The human resources (HR) personnel are usually not asked to take part in the process of planning. When finance, production, sales or marketing departments are required to execute their tactics and strategies for the next financial year, they often find themselves with team members or employees who do not possess the right abilities. It actually makes sense to align business strategies with the human resources and this has been found to help organizations attain their corporate goals (Binyamin & Carmeli, 2010). This paper provides a critical evaluation of the human resources (HR) policies of Wal-Mart stores for their alignment with the business strategy of Wal-Mart. The paper also provides a recommendation of changes to specific facets of human resources policies and human resources practices basing upon the analysis. A justification for the recommendations is provided.
Chosen company: Wal-Mart Stores
The chosen company is Wal-Mart supermarket chain. This retailer has a workforce of over 2 million globally and the corporation is one of the biggest firms worldwide not just based on the number of workforce, but also based on market capitalization. The firm was founded by Sam Walton and has its head offices in Bentonville, Arkansas (Reuters, 2016). At the moment, this retailer has nearly 8,000 retail stores in about 27 markets worldwide. In the United States, Wal-Mart is recognized as the biggest grocer and retailer. The retailer offers a wide variety of services and goods at everyday low prices. It carries out its business operations through 3 segments: Sam’s Club; Wal-Mart International; and Wal-Mart United States (Halzack, 2015). Wal-Mart competes with BJ’s Wholesale Club and Costco Wholesale in America.
Human Resources policies to evaluate
Compensation and benefits: compensation is an essential aspect of employment and an integral policy of human resources management. Compensation is not just about what a person is paid as it includes more than just salary. It also includes indirect and direct rewards as well as benefits which the worker is given in return for his or her contribution to the company (Holbeche, 2013). Career development and training: training and development are functions of human resources management which comprise leadership training, job skills training, orientation of new employees, as well as professional development (Buller & McEvoy, 2012). Employee relations: employee relations refer to the human resource management practices which ensure staff members are productive and happy. Tooksoon (2011) reported that employee relations offers policy development, employee recognition, in addition to all sorts of problem solving. These three are the HRM practices that would be evaluated in relation to Wal-Mart.
Wal-Mart’s business strategy – Low-cost leadership
This retailer has adopted the cost-leadership strategy as its business strategy, and its slogan, everyday low prices, is globally known. Ever since its founding in the early 1960s, the mission of this retail giant has been to save its clients cash and enable the customers to live better (Ferguson & Reio, 2010). By adopting a low-cost strategy, this corporation seeks to be the low-cost leader in the retail sector. The retailer imports a large amount of products cheaply from low-cost regions particularly China. By procuring goods from suppliers at a cheaper cost than its competitors, Wal-Mart is able to pass this lower cost to its customers by selling goods in its retail stores at comparatively cheaper prices than other retailers; although it makes marginal profits from each product. However, because it sells in high volume, it is able to make significant profits (Halzack, 2015).
HR policies aligned with Wal-Mart’s business strategy
Compensation and benefits: Wal-Mart’s HR management compensation and employee career development practices are centred on reducing costs. As a case in point, as part of the giant retailer’s cost leadership generic strategy, this firm always seeks to reduce spending for HRs (Halzack, 2015). Therefore, the HR management (HRM) at the company focuses on ensuring that its compensation packages are actually minimized, though not reduced to the point where it may compromise the employees’ job performance. It has been reported that Wal-Mart is an employer that exploits employees with extremely with low salaries and pay (Alfes et al., 2013). Wal-Mart is generally well-known for low wages and low prices. The low pay for its workers is often criticized for being inadequate to support the needs of the employee. At the moment, Wal-Mart pays an hourly minimum wage of $7.25; an amount that is considerably lower than the $9.93 national average (Binyamin & Carmeli, 2010). Even so, the retailer is planning to increase the minimum wage for its workers to at least $10.00.
Wal-Mart retailer recognizes that it cannot really attain its mission or realize its business strategy without the support of its millions of associates/employees. As such, Wal-Mart has various programs for the benefit of its staff members. For example, all employees along with their families are currently offered health coverage. Besides comprehensive health insurance plans, other benefits the company offers its employees include associate discounts, associate stock purchase plan, as well as company-matched 401(k) contributions to six percent of salary (Jiang et al., 2012). The retailer is able to maintain employee motivation by means of these employee benefits. It is worth mentioning that these employee benefits address the HRM objective of retaining employees and reduce turnover costs.
Career development: in addition, Wal-Mart has in place career development strategies which are aimed at minimizing employee turnover through maximizing the level of fit between staff members and their duties. These HRM considerations are crucial in ensuring that the employees at Wal-Mart are at all times adequate in supporting Wal-Mart’s continued international expansion (Halzack, 2015).
Employee Relations: employees at Wal-Mart are recognized as associates rather than workers. They are referred to as associates and there are in excess of 2 million of them. The company has realized that the human resources function is one of the most vital throughout the organization. For this reason, Wal-Mart’s HR department treats the company’s workers as a vital aspect of the business, and by calling them associates, the employees are inclined to feel as being part of the organization and actually become motivated to give their best even when the pay is low (Alfes et al., 2013). Furthermore, the retailer gives recognition to employees who perform highly. This helps to motivate and retain workers and avoid costs associated with employing new workers thereby keeping costs low.
Recommendations
All in all, the human resource management of Wal-Mart has done a really good job aligning the HR practices to the company’s overall low-cost business strategy which focuses on ensuring everyday low prices. However, it can still do more. As described above, Wal-Mart’s HR department has strived to align only a few HRM practices with the company’s strategy; career training and development; compensation and benefits; and employee relations. However, the HR department can do more to align HR with business strategy. Therefore, it is recommended that Wal-Mart’s HR department should adopt the following cost saving in line with the retailer’s cost-leadership strategy: use subjective performance measures extensively; apply consistent policies to decrease the costs of employee turnover; and carry out effective training programs aimed at improving the effectiveness and efficiency of employees (Holbeche, 2013). Moreover, the HR department should utilize performance evaluation as a control device; ensure that job descriptions are explicit; provide detailed work planning; give emphasis on job-based salaries/wages; emphasize on job-specific training; and emphasize on technical skills and qualifications (Buller & McEvoy, 2012).
These recommendations are suitable for Wal-Mart since they will ensure that all of the HR practices at Wal-Mart are truly aligned with the cost leadership business strategy and help achieve corporate goals and objectives. When Wal-Mart’s HR is properly aligned with the company’s business strategy, the HR department could actually contribute to successful strategy and the company’s fiscal bottom-line. Proper alignment will mean that the HR department of Wal-Mart ensures that the company’s human assets are effectively aligned with business strategy adopted by the company’s top leadership which would allow the company to attain a competitive advantage over its competition.
Business strategy and HR Policies at WalMart Stores Conclusion
To sum up, this paper has exhaustively evaluated the human resources policies of Wal-Mart stores for their alignment with the firm’s business strategy. The findings of the evaluation reveal that on the whole, Wal-Mart’s HRM has been rather effective in aligning its HR practices to Wal-Mart’s low-cost business strategy that is focused on providing everyday low prices. Several recommendations have been made that if adopted and implemented, would give this retailer a competitive advantage over other retailers.
Business strategy and HR Policies at WalMart Stores References
Alfes, K., Shantz, A. D., Truss, C., & Soane, E. C. (2013). The link between perceived human resource management practices, engagement and employee behaviour: a moderated mediation model. The international journal of human resource management, 24(2), 330-351.
Binyamin, G., & Carmeli, A. (2010). Does structuring of human resource management processes enhance employee creativity? The mediating role of psychological availability. Human Resource Management, 49(6), 999-1024.
Buller, P. F., & McEvoy, G. M. (2012). Strategy, human resource management and performance: Sharpening line of sight. Human resource management review, 22(1), 43-56.
Ferguson, K. L., & Reio, T. G. (2010). Human resource management systems and firm performance. Journal of Management Development, 29(5), 471-494.
Holbeche, L. (2013). Aligning human resources and business strategy. Albany, NY: Oxford University Press.
Jiang, K., Lepak, D. P., Han, K., Hong, Y., Kim, A., & Winkler, A. L. (2012). Clarifying the construct of human resource systems: Relating human resource management to employee performance. Human Resource Management Review, 22(2), 73-85.
Tooksoon, H. M. P. (2011). Conceptual framework on the relationship between human resource management practices, job satisfaction, and turnover. Journal of Economic and Behaviors Studies, 2, 41-49.
Relationship of Project to Strategy of the Business Order Instructions: Research paper on one of the following topics:
Relationship of Project to Strategy of the Business
•Changing Organizational Priorities that change the scope of projects
•Change Management impact on Projects and/or Change management impact on operations management
•Lack of accountability on project requirements
•Unrealistic deadlines for project completion
•Relationship of the project to the strategy of the business
Guidelines:
•Relate your paper to a specific project or initiative (this can be a past or future project at your organization, a past project from another company or a future project you wish to undertake). In the review of all of the aspects of Project Management what one area do you believe will be your biggest challenge? Explain for the project chosen, explain, analyze, synthesize, and summarize the impact that the application of operations management will have. Provide examples of specific projects or operations failures for the chosen company, and relate how this conforms or deviates from effective project management standards/theory.
Relationship of Project to Strategy of the Business Sample Answer
Relationship of the project to the strategy of the business: Wal-Mart
Acknowledgment of the strategic significance of project management (PM) within the corporate world is on the rise. A major reason for this rapid acceleration is the fact that business leaders strongly believe that aligning PM with the strategy of the business could greatly enhance the attainment of the company’s objectives, strategies, goals as well as performance. According to Buys and Stander (2010), the strategy of the project should follow the strategy of the business. A lot of business organizations suffer from misaligned projects as well as a lack of an orderly method of aligning PM with the strategy of the business. Even though in many organizations projects are by and large the fundamental building blocks of business strategy, PM is not usually acknowledged as a functional strategy and is hardly ever viewed as a business process, which actually makes the attainment of business strategy/PM alignment even harder (Schmidt, 2012). This research paper provides an exhaustive discussion of the relationship of the project to the strategy of a business. The discussion is made in relation to a specific project that was undertaken by Wal-Mart.
Business strategy: in general, the definitions of business strategy are focused on how to deal with the competitor’s in a better way by developing competitive advantages; advantages which provide companies with the benefits that would sustain them when they attract clients and defend themselves against competitors (Srivannaboon, 2011). The main business strategy is Porter’s generic strategies. According to Porter, a company has to reinforce its selected strategies for it to attain a sustainable competitive advantage. There are 3 generic strategies that could result depending on the scope: focus, differentiation and cost leadership. Differentiation strategy – an organization that pursues a differentiation strategy seeks to position itself in the industry as a company with a unique and distinctive identity which meets their clients’ desires (Buys & Stander, 2010). Cost Leadership – an organization that pursues this strategy seeks to gain competitive advantage and increase its share of the market by being the lowest cost producer in its market. Stuck-in-the-middle – some organizations choose to combine cost leadership strategy and differentiation strategy in order to create a sustainable competitive advantage. For instance, they seek to address customer value and provide low-cost goods. When a company adopts more than a single generic strategy, it would perform below its capacity (Patanakul & Shenhar, 2012).
Project Management: Project Management (PM), as Parker, Parsons, and Isharyanto (2015) pointed out, is a specialized form of management utilized in accomplishing various business strategies, objectives, as well as work tasks in a well-defined budget and schedule. Project management is essentially aimed at supporting the implementation of a company’s competitive strategy so as to deliver the desired outcome. Some scholars recognize PM as an essential business process (Allen et al., 2015). As per this viewpoint, an organization is defined as the process and describes PM as one of the vital business processes which allow an organization to execute value delivery systems. As such, when an organization links its projects to its business strategy, it would be better able to achieve its organizational objectives and goals (Allen et al., 2015).
Relationship of business strategy and project
The projects that business organizations implement usually differ very much from one organization to another, even amongst companies that do businesses within the same industry. The projects that organizations decide to implement are partly determined by strategic planning (Martinelli, Rahschulte & Waddell, 2012). It is worth mentioning that strategic planning describes a process in which managers create business goals and develop a strategy for achieving those goals. Strategic planning is an essential aspect of business management given that it guides a company’s overall direction. In the process of strategic planning, a manager begins by first formulating a mission that serves as the organization’s fundamental guiding purpose and objectives which fulfill the mission. The manager then studies the company’s business environment and creates a business strategy which he or she believes would best allow the organization to achieve its mission and goals (Martinelli, Rahschulte & Waddell, 2012). The projects pursued by an organization are the implementations of a strategic plan. Simply put, a project is a concrete action taken by a company to implement its strategic plan; hence the relationship between project and business strategy. For instance, in the course of strategic planning, a manager may see a particular weakness in a competitor which they can take advantage of in order to gain more clients. Consequently, the company may launch a new advertising campaign that points out the weakness. The company’s advertising campaign, in this case, is a project which is executed due to the strategic planning process (Milosevic & Srivannaboon, 2013).
Researchers have reported that for projects to be successful, they have to link directly to the strategy of the business, and a project manager has to know how the project actually supports the strategy of the business (Patanakul & Shenhar, 2012). There are a number of factors that influence the failure or success of any given project, for instance, funding, resources, and schedules. Even so, studies have demonstrated that the single most significant factor that influences the success of a project is the connection of the project to the business strategy of the company and the project manager’s knowledge of how the project, in fact, supports strategy of the business (Petrevska, Poels & Manceski, 2015). Put simply, the tighter a project’s link to the strategy of the business, the smoother the project would progress. On the other hand, the more tenuous the connection between the business strategy and the project, the more difficulties the project would come across. In essence, the relationship of a project to business strategy is really the best determinant of the progress of the project (Petrevska, Poels & Manceski, 2015).
Companies typically focus on short-term results, for instance, immediate monetary goals. Even so, projects are usually anticipated to attain results which actually link back to the overall business strategy of the company. If projects undertaken in an organization are successful in aligning their efforts with the strategy of the business, they would better contribute to the company’s long-term objectives and goals (Patanakul & Shenhar, 2012). Strategic alignment, as Schmidt (2012) pointed out, is a 2-way process given that the overall strategy of the business informs project planning and project success, in turn, impacts the success of the business. A project’s strategic alignment takes into consideration team leadership, operational efficiency, and strategic focus. The degree to which a project focuses on each of these aspects determines the strategic maturity level for a particular project. Researchers have demonstrated that higher strategic maturity levels are linked to higher levels of project success (Srivannaboon, 2011).
It is important for project managers to know the strategy of the business organization and how the project actually supports the project. Alien et al. (2015) observed that many project managers do not always know the strategic nature of the projects which they are overseeing. As a result, some project managers do not have the context that is needed to flag whenever the project veers from its original intent and course-correct toward the planned strategic outcome. In addition, higher-performing Project Management Offices are 4 times more probable compared to lower performers to implement a planned strategy, 3 times more probable to succeed, and more probable to enable a company to perform well fiscally (Alien et al., 2015). Project Management Offices (PMOs) that ensure alignment with the company’s strategic goals are about two times as likely to become high-performing teams with the ability to implement successful strategies and create substantial value (Alien et al., 2015).
Researchers have reported that just a few projects ever attain project success: only 2.5% of multinational enterprises attain 100% project success (Parker, Parsons & Isharyanto, 2015). A key reason for the failure of many projects is that organizations mostly fail to ensure that each project they execute aligns with their core business strategies. If companies were to execute only those projects that aligned with their core strategic objectives and goals, then their rate of success would go up considerably. Most projects are not related to departmental and/or corporate strategic plans. As such, it is unsurprising that project failure is extensive as top managers are not providing support, direction or guidance to projects in their organizations. Moreover, most companies lack a methodical approach for prioritizing projects or connect them to strategic or corporate goals (Parker, Parsons & Isharyanto, 2015).
To align projects with the strategy of the business, the following need to be done: review every project that is currently ongoing in the company and those that were completed over the last 12 months; come up with a methodical approach for prioritizing every project; and align every project to departmental or corporate strategic plans (Petrevska, Poels & Manceski, 2015). If a number of projects failed due to a lack of resources, then the resources needed for completing projects in the future must be considered as a criterion for determining the validity of a project. If a project needs a lot of resources, it might rate low basing on this criterion. However, if the senior executives decide that the project is a strategically significant one, then they would have to make sure that the required resources are provided for the project so that it does not fail (Martinelli, Rahschulte & Waddell, 2012). Projects which are somewhat not related to business strategy or have low priority should be terminated. Terminating them right away would make sure that they do not cost the company time, resources, lost clients or money any longer. A project that is not related to the strategy of the business does not add any measurable or quantifiable value to the company (Schmidt, 2012).
All in all, the result of project failure is wasted money which steals profits of the investors and has an adverse impact on the bottom-line of the company. Aligning projects with the company’s strategic goals is of great importance for the success of the project and proper return on investments (ROI). Srivannaboon (2011) noted that the superior performance of the business depends upon effective project management and creating a culture which supports projects. As such, top executives should contribute more of their effort and time to sponsoring projects and prioritizing them based on their strategic fit. Whenever a project is in alignment with the strategy of the business, that project would be able to meet targets of profitability and produce the needed ROI (Alien et al., 2015).
A past project was undertaken by Wal-Mart
Wal-Mart is one of the biggest corporations globally in terms of revenue and is, in fact, the largest retailer globally. This retailer has operations in over 60 countries internationally and has its head offices in the state of Arkansas (Green & Stead, 2013). Wal-Mart formulated the business strategy in which it seeks to accelerate efficiency. By December 31, 2020, Wal-Mart wants to decrease the energy per square foot intensity needed for powering its buildings worldwide by 20% versus its 2010 baseline (Wal-Mart, 2016). Wal-Mart has a strategic business goal of using 100% renewable energy and has a long-term commitment to making renewable energy a part of its business well into the future (Gilchrist, 2015).
The project implemented by Wal-Mart was undertaken by a project team that Wal-Mart calls world-class renewable energy team. A part of Wal-Mart’s goal is to be supplied by one-hundred percent renewable energy – the company envisions a world in which citizens utilize renewable electricity which is actually good not just for people, but for also this earth as a planet (Wal-Mart, 2016). As this retailer expands its international operations to satisfy the quickly growing demand for retail services – for instance, healthier, safer foods which necessitate a cold supply chain – the company strives to be the most sustainable and efficient retailer possible (Helman, 2015). As such, the renewable energy activities of Wal-Mart focus on 3 main objectives: (i) to develop and install new renewable energy projects at scale; (ii) to secure stable, cost-effective renewable energy pricing which actually beats or meets the pricing of utility power; and (iii) reduce the cost of renewable energy (Wal-Mart, 2016). Wal-Mart’s approach is in line with its mission and business strategy and would steer the most sustainable, quickest, and largest quickening of novel renewable energy projects worldwide (Ghazzawi, Palladini & Martinelli-Lee, 2014).
To achieve its business goal of being supplied 100% by renewable energy, Wal-Mart decided to implement the project of installing solar power on no less than 1,000 facilities and rooftops by the year 2020. As part of this renewable energy project, Wal-Mart also develops wind energy technologies, fuel cell technologies in addition to other technologies (Wal-Mart, 2016). This project is current because it is still ongoing and would be completed in the year 2020. Wal-Mart’s management believes that finding more affordable and cleaner energy is crucial to everyday low cost. By using renewable energy as the source of its electricity, Wal-Mart hopes to lower the prices of its products.
In terms of Porter’s generic strategies, Wal-Mart retailer employs the cost-leadership strategy. Wal-Mart has succeeded in making use of its strategy of every day low prices in attracting shoppers (Helman, 2015). Through the idea of every day low prices, Wal-Mart consistently offers product items at a cheaper price in comparison to the competition, instead of depending on sales. The retailer manages to accomplish this owing to its efficient and extensive supply chain. It is notable that this retailer sources its goods from low-wage overseas such as Vietnam and China markets and cheap domestic suppliers. This has allowed Wal-Mart to sell its products at low price rates and to make profits from thin margins at high volume (Green & Stead, 2013).
The renewable energy project that Wal-Mart is undertaking relates to its business strategy of cost-leadership – that is, every day low prices – in that by operating all its buildings and facilities with electricity from renewable energy sources such as solar and wind, Wal-Mart would be able to lower its energy and electricity costs. Wal-Mart would then transfer those reduced costs to its customers through further decreases in the prices of its products inside the stores. This way, the renewable energy project will have been aligned with Wal-Mart’s business strategy and helped the company achieve its strategy of every day low prices which enables the company to attract even more clients (Wal-Mart, 2016).
In this Wal-Mart project, the project has so far had very few challenges primarily because the project has a clear strategic value. The project undertaken by Wal-Mart has direct strategic value for attaining the objectives and goals of Wal-Mart stores. All in all, this project is progressing smoothly to completion due to the tighter link that it has with the business strategy of Wal-Mart stores (Wal-Mart, 2016). Furthermore, the project manager for this project understands the business strategy and the way the project supports that business strategy. In other words, the project manager understands the strategic value of the Wal-Mart project which he is overseeing. Consequently, the project manager has the context to flag whenever the Wal-Mart project appears to veer from its original intent and can course-correct the project toward the right strategic outcome. As an organization, Wal-Mart connects portfolio management and project selection to the strategic planning process in order to ensure that the projects it chooses to undertake are in fact quantifiably strategic. This also helps to prevent shifting priorities from hindering the success of the project (Patanakul & Shenhar, 2012).
ArThe area that would present the biggest challenge
In the review of each of the Project Management aspects, one area that would be the biggest challenge is project scope. The scope of the project is essentially what is in the project and what is not in it. A major killer of projects is scope creep, which could present the biggest challenge for Wal-Mart’s renewable energy project. Scope creep refers to a sequence of minor scope alterations which made to the project devoid of using appropriate or relevant scope-change management techniques. According to Schmidt (2012), a lot of projects fail not because of estimating or problems with skills of team members, but rather because of the team members of the project working on major and small project deliverables which were in fact not part of the original business definition or project plan. Even though Wal-Mart’s project may have in place effective procedures for scope-management, there are 2 noteworthy aspects of scope-change management which should be properly comprehended by the project manager in order for the project to succeed: scope creep and knowing who the client is (Allen et al., 2015).
To effectively guard against scope creep, the project manager at Wal-Mart will need to know how to invoke scope-change management procedures in case he or she is asked to include a major new deliverable or function to the renewable energy project. Even so, it may occur that the project manager is not aware of the minor scope changes which are included to the project over time. With scope creep, various small changes could accumulate and have a substantial overall impact on the project (Srivannaboon, 2011). Wal-Mart’s renewable energy project could fail owing to scope creep. For this reason, the project manager has to be diligent and watchful in protecting against scope creep.
Impact of the application of operations management
Operations management basically relates to managing the activities which create the core products or services that a company provides. In essence, operations management is a continuous function of an organization that carries out activities to supply services or produce products, for example accounting operations, production operations, Information Technology service management, and manufacturing (Buys & Stander, 2010). Operations management at Wal-Mart stores is focused on approaching strategic and everyday business issues in a systematic way. Through the application of operations management in Wal-Mart’s renewable energy project, operations and project management experts at Wal-Mart were concerned with analyzing the design, control as well as improvement of operations and projects carried out by the retailer. Through operations management, Wal-Mart seeks to ensure that it offers retail services and sells its products using operations that are as energy efficient as possible by means of renewable energy sources. Solar panels and wind turbines are installed to generate electricity that powers Wal-Mart’s buildings and facilities (Wal-Mart, 2016).
One potential project failure that Wal-Mart’s renewable energy project may face is inadequate resources. In essence, it is important for the business organization to make sure that a sufficient amount of resources in terms of equipment, funding, time and people are available. Internally, this involves the company’s Human Resources department hiring the required personnel for the project, the Information Technology department providing the required software or hardware, and the Facilities department giving pertinent support such as providing offices. In addition, a project should have allocated finance and budget in addition to suitable timelines for it to be completed successfully (Martinelli, Rahschulte & Waddell, 2012). Every project activity in Wal-Mart’s renewable energy project has an associated cost, which could be in the operational costs in its undertaking, resources spent, or any items which have to be purchased for instance hardware. This renewable energy project could fail because of inadequate resources for instance the allocated finance/budget may not be enough to complete the project successfully; it may fail because of the lack of relevant skilled personnel for the project who possess the required skill set; or it may not be delivered within the stipulated timeframe, that is the year 2020.
Relationship of Project to Strategy of the Business Conclusion
In conclusion, there is a strong relationship between the project of an organization and the strategy of a business. Strategic planning is a vital facet of business management since it guides a company’s overall direction. The projects pursued by a company are actually the implementations of a strategic plan. For projects to be successful, they have to connect directly to the strategy of the business, and a project manager has to know how the project supports the strategy of the business. In essence, the tighter a project’s link to the strategy of the business, the smoother the project would progress. Aligning and linking projects with the company’s strategic goals is critical for the success of the project and the proper return on investments.
Relationship of Project to Strategy of the Business References
Allen, M., McLees, J., Richardson, C., & Waterford, D. (2015). Project Planning and Best Practices. Journal Of Information Technology & Economic Development, 6(1), 1-15.
Buys, A. J., & Stander, M. J. (2010). Linking projects to business strategy through project portfolio management. South African Journal Of Industrial Engineering, 21(1), 59-68.
Ghazzawi, I. A., Palladini, M., & Martinelli-Lee, T. (2014). The Wal-Mart stores, Inc.: An American dream that touched the world. Journal Of The International Academy For Case Studies, 20(1), 9-32.
Gilchrist, R. (2015). Focus on renewable energy. Chain Store Age, 91(1), 25.
Green, H., & Stead, D. (2013). Wal-Mart: Let the sun shine in?. Businessweek, (4018), 14.
Helman, C. (2015). Everyday Renewable Energy. Forbes, 196(7), 66-68.
Martinelli, R., Rahschulte, T., & Waddell, J. (2012). Aligning a program with its organization’s business strategy. PM World Today, 14(1), 1-4.
Milosevic, D. Z., & Srivannaboon, S. (2013). A theoretical framework for aligning project management with business strategy. Project Management Journal, 37(3), 98-110.
Parker, D. W., Parsons, N., & Isharyanto, F. (2015). Inclusion of strategic management theories to project management. International Journal Of Managing Projects In Business, 8(3), 552-573. doi:10.1108/IJMPB-11-2014-0079
Patanakul, P., & Shenhar, A. J. (2012). What project strategy really is: The fundamental building block in strategic project management. Project Management Journal, 43(1), 4-20. doi:10.1002/pmj.20282
Petrevska N. R., Poels, G., & Manceski, G. (2015). Bridging Operational, Strategic and Project Management Information Systems for Tactical Management Information Provision. Electronic Journal Of Information Systems Evaluation, 18(2), 146-158.
Schmidt, T. (2012). Strategic Project Management Made Simple : Practical Tools for Leaders and Teams. Hoboken, N.J.: Wiley.
Srivannaboon, S. (2011). Linking project management with business strategy. Project Management Journal, 37(5), 88-96.
Objective: Now that you have had the chance to learn the detail background on ERP systems.
Purpose/ Description: Discuss how you would integrate ERP systems internal and external across your entire organization or an organization of your choice? Describe how you would structure the implementation of your ERP system using the project management framework. Then discuss the positive impact that an ERP will have on the organization that you work for or one of your choices especially the impact on operations and project management. Support your details with in-depth research.
(The writer can choose which organization he wants to write about).
SAMPLE ANSWER
The enterprise resource planning is a set of integrated systems that seek to ensure the efficient management of various critical operations in a given firm. The management will involve both the external and internal resources of a given organization (Chou et al, 2014). The ERP is supposed to facilitate the information flow between the various functions of business in an organization for the management of connections with the external stakeholders. The enterprise resource planning makes it possible for all the firm’s units to have accessibility to the current information and data to support planning and operations. The process entails the integration of the systems with the enterprise information resources. Such processes in an organization include customer services, marketing, human resources, finances and inventory control (Chen et al, 2013). My organization of choice that I seek to integrate the ERP system with other operations is a research marketing and computing firm.
There are various strategies adopted during the process of integration of the ERP systems internally and externally in my selected organization. When it comes to the integration of the systems, I will ensure focus is given to the customer relationship system of management. Customer interface is critical in every organization requiring the exhibition of uniqueness. I would adopt the enterprise service buss to ensure the effective integration of the internal and external systems in the research, marketing and computing firm (Chou et al, 2014). The integration process aims at including the mobile platforms and cloud-based applications that have the new and evolved protocols which are key in integrating the external systems in an organization. Adopting the enterprise service buss helps in decoupling the ERP system with other applications. The ESB system used for integration has the cloud connector that efficiently enables the enterprises to connect with cloud-based applications efficiently. The company in question requires the real times transition making the integration approach suitable in this situation. The approach to be used in this organization supports a wide array various formats of data e.g. the web-based protocols which make the integration easier (Chou et al, 2014). Information systems are core in every organization. In this case, the ESB mode of integration for both the internal and external system would you be used to integrate the whole organization.
Successful implementation of the adopted approach of integration in the organization requires careful planning toe ensure the process is effective in nature. The effective implementation ensures all the internal and external systems are linked together to ensure the smooth operations in an organization. The implementation of the ERP implementation process in an organization has some crucial phases. The phases of the process help are designing the structure for implementation using the project framework leading to success (Hepner & Dickson, 2013). The process of implementation would be structure based on the following phases that have to be followed. These phases are strategic planning, procedure review, and designs, development and data collection, testing and deployment of the project. The assignment of the project team with the employees in various departments in the organization is one of the tasks during strategic planning (Hepner & Dickson, 2013). An analysis of the operations to be improved is done in this phase. The setting of the key objectives is important in this phase of implementing the ERP. Development of the project plan by the team appointed is essential in the process of implementing the process of integrating the ERP. Procedure review is structured as one of the crucial steps during the implementation process. Training on the use of the ERP system and identification of the manual process that should be automated with the ERP systems is carried out. The standard operating procedures are also developed for every aspect of the organization’s operations. The design involves the efforts by the project team to work with the configuration of the systems (Marakas et al, 2014).
Development is the next step that is undertaken during the implementation of the ERP system. The systems are prepared for going live, which entails importing data, completing the necessary customizations and development of the user training. Testing is a paramount structure that is required in any organization while implementing the effective ERP system (Marakas et al, 2014). The alignment of the system with the set requirements is tested in the development and testing structures of the ERP implementation process. The accuracy of information and checking for any adjustments needed is done during the testing phase. Evaluation, going live and deployment is another application structure I would use when following the project development framework. The ERP system is activated safely while another round of testing can be carried out before the launching (Tang, 2015). The data for the internal and external systems is loaded and properly validated before going live. The project team starts adopting the new system in carrying out the operations of the organization.
The ongoing support to the implementation of the systems is the final stage involved in the process which entails the advances efforts requiring attention beyond the initial phase of installation. Adhering strictly to the requirements during the implementation of the ERP system in the organization leads to success and effective integration (Tang, 2015).
The ERP system has massive positive impacts on an organization after its successful implementation. The ERP is very important during any project management process in the organization due to its benefits.ERP system enhances customer responsiveness, productivity, and flexibility. Integration of the system into the core operations maximizes the business efficiency across the entire firm. The organization that conducts the marketing and computing operations improves while the products can be produced faster. There is increased productivity and also the faster delivery of the services. The ERP has the positive impact of improving customer service making the relationship management efficient in nature (Wei & Ma, 2014). Integration of the ERP system makes it possible to forecast supplies to demand the services offered. Another positive impact brought about by the integration of ERP systems is that it eliminates inefficiencies and costs in an organization. The ERP system helps in improving the company’s operations by standardizing the business processes (Tang, 2015). The management of the relationship with vendor results in a company is made easier in lower cost for the purchased items. The level of inefficiencies and increased inventory turns results due to the better resource management in a company made possible by the integration of the ERP system.
Data consistency is a great positive impact that emanates from the integration of ERP system in the organization. The organization of my choice deals mostly with marketing and computing services which deal with a lot of data processes. The business management functions of the organization are efficiently integrated into the ERP system (Nwankpa, 2015). The level of inconsistency from various systems is decreased for the effective running of operations in an organization. The managers of my organization can now easily gather accurate information to ensure the making of informed decisions. The integration of the ERP systems is also a great opportunity to expand the business operations of the organization using the internet forum. All functions and operations are linked together using the ERP systems making it easier to use the internet forum as part of the business strategy leading to success (Nwankpa, 2015).
The web-enabled technology for the organization makes it possible to run business processes, access the correct information and also communicate with the firm’s customers from anywhere in the world. Project management in ERP is usually complex and big in nature. The ability to complete the projects with the inclusion of the e-business in an organization is beneficial leading to success and quick completion of the projects in the most effective manner (Chen et al, 2013). The ERP system enhances the potential growth of the organization and future e-supply and e-commerce investments which are crucial for the organization of my choice. The ERP makes the organization have a decreased order-to-cash cycle which increases cash flow for the company which is essential when it comes to gaining of profits and quick development. The ERP system has positive impacts on the organization by reducing the chances for delays and ensuring the proper budgeting of finances (Hepner & Dickson, 2013).
In a nutshell, ERP system has many positive impacts that lead to the faster growth and development of the organization where the system is integrated. Implementation of the ERP creates data standardization, effective cross-module integration, and industry best practices. The successful implementation of the ERP system with the organization operations and projects enhances the increased flexibility of the firm and improved integrability (Marakas et al, 2014)
References
Chen, F., Wang, Q., Wei, Q., Ren, C., Shao, B., & Li, J. (2013, July). Integrate ERP system into business process management system. In Service Operations and Logistics, and Informatics (SOLI), 2013 IEEE International Conference on (pp. 436-439). IEEE.
Chou, H. W., Lin, Y. H., Lu, H. S., Chang, H. H., & Chou, S. B. (2014). Knowledge sharing and ERP system usage in post-implementation stage. Computers in Human Behavior, 33, 16-22.
Hepner, M., & Dickson, W. (2013). The value of ERP curriculum integration: Perspectives from the research. Journal of Information Systems Education, 24(4), 309.
Marakas, G. M., & O’Brien, J. A. (2014). Introduction to information systems. McGraw-Hill Education.
Nwankpa, J. K. (2015). ERP system usage and benefit: A model of antecedents and outcomes. Computers in Human Behavior, 45, 335-344.
Tang, G. (2015). System Integration of PLM and ERP Based on Cloud computing.
Wei, J., & Ma, Y. S. (2014). Design of a feature-based order acceptance and scheduling module in an ERP system. Computers in Industry, 65(1), 64-78.
We can write this or a similar paper for you! Simply fill the order form!
This paper will follow order# 114243 Selling a project to the right management is critical to its survival and overall success.
Purpose: From the project from order# 114243, support for this project and the projects standing in the strategy of the business. Elaborate on how you will develop and implement the process to convince management of its promising benefits and operational effectiveness.
Description: Answer the following discussions:
Now that you have identified critical information over the previous weeks do you see any risks in selling this project to your management team? Explain
You have indicated whether this project fits the strategic plan for the business.
IF this project fits the strategic plan, explain how you plan to present this project to your management?
IF this project does NOT fit the strategic plan, explain how you plan to present this project to your management
SAMPLE ANSWER
Selling Project to the Management
Introduction
Management survival and success is to a great extent influenced by the ability to sell the project to the right management. To achieve this, the project must be feasible and present undisputable benefits and demonstrate operational effectiveness. The project should also be aligned with the organization’s strategic plan and hence ensure that it adds value to the organization. This paper details how I will convince the management on the potential benefits and operational effectiveness of the Samsung Galaxy A10 project. This involves the development and implementation of the process of convincing the management.
Risks in selling the project
Selling the project to the management presents various risks, mostly based on how strategic the project is in relation to the organization’s goals and objectives. There is the risk of having the project rejected by the management if it is not considered feasible enough to warrant funding. Such decisions are informed by factors such as return on investment, presence of more promising projects and management judgment among other factors. Shenar & Dvir (2013) note that at any particular time, managers have to make a decision based on numerous project proposals.
The second risk is that the project may not be within the company’s immediate goals and aspirations. Samsung implements numerous projects depending on what is considered most strategic for the company to compete effectively. If the company’s objective is to promote its electronics business for example, the likelihood of a mobile phone project being funded may lower than a project for developing new television technology. The company’s priorities thereby determine the feasibility of the project. Unfortunately, mobile phone technology is phased out quickly and therefore the project cannot be effectively pushed forward to a later date and it would therefore remain fruitless.
The third risk is that the associated cost may limit the company from investing in the project. This would render the project futile, despite the efforts invested towards its development. Hulett (2012) notes that managers are often biased towards costs and the likelihood of judging the project based on costs are high. This means that the presentation must be convincing enough to make managers look beyond costs and instead consider the impact and future potential of the project. In the event that managers are more concerned about the project cost but find the idea worthwhile, the budget may need to be adjusted, which may impact on certain project parameters.
The ability of the plan to communicate the impact and show costs versus benefits is of great importance. In presenting the project plan, this may not come out as effectively as it should and this presents a risk of the management not understanding the process well (Swathi, 2015). This is the fourth risk and which is mostly associated with the presenter’s ability to connect with the audience, such that what is presented is interpreted in the intended manner. If the management for example fails to capture the idea and justification, the project may end up being rejected. This may also be influenced by personal factors such as bias towards certain technology and past experience with similar projects.
Project presentation plan
This project aligns well with Samsung’s strategic plan, which seeks to provide customers with the highest quality products and the latest phone technology. This insinuates that the project plan involving the production of Samsung Galaxy A10 will be well embraced by the management. It is however important to note that managers are presented with numerous projects, all with high potential to positively impact the organization’s bottom line. Accordingly, the presentation must appeal to the management based on its ability to contribute to the organization’s performance and its feasibility (Maley, 2012). In this regard, demonstrating the alignment of the project to the organization’s strategy is imperative. The presenter’s zeal and passion also contributes significantly to the management’s decision on the project. In this relation, I intend to present the project to the management as detailed below.
The first thing is to prepare effectively for the selling meeting. This includes understanding the project concept and processes, identifying the managers who will be present at the meeting and thinking about potential questions and queries that they may have (Duarte, 2012). Swathi (2015) notes that the trick is to be adequately prepared for the presentation by mastering the facts of the project including the project plans and deliverables, budgets, timelines, risk analysis, possible challenges and how these factors influence the organization’s position.
Besides understanding the components of the project, I will ensure that I demonstrate the knowledge on the problem, which is keeping up with competition, meeting customer growing needs and enhancing profitability; and the solution, which is producing a phone with improved capabilities such as the A10. I will ensure that I effectively demonstrate how the benefits associated with the project are likely to impact on the organization’s profitability. It is at this point that I will indicate how the project feeds into the organization’s strategy. As noted by Maley (2012), a project is more likely to be accepted if it contributes to the company’s strategic goals; hence the reason why it is considered an important aspect when selling a project to the management.
An important factor to consider is to ensure that the management fully understands the value addition potential of the project (Shenar & Dvir, 2013). Quality, customer satisfaction and industry leadership are major concerns for Samsung. A project that promises to improve these aspects is therefore likely to receive positive feedback from the management. In this regard, I would make quality and customer satisfaction my focus; indicating how the project would lead to significant growth in the market share based on the high quality and unique smart phone. To further justify the A10 project, I would demonstrate the phone’s superiority to competing brands and how this would ensure that Samsung can compete effectively in the smart phone industry. A comparison of various smart phones in the same category would serve the purpose of demonstrating how the A10 will compete in the market. This approach is considered effective because it makes major strategy objectives and potential value addition the focus of the presentation.
In presenting the project, it is important that I make the management aware of overall project risks and challenges that are likely to affect the timeline. This should also include the mitigation plans to ensure that the project is successfully completed. Being open about the project shortcomings ensures that the management anticipates such challenges, as opposed to where the presentation only shows the perfect side of the project, only for the challenges to emerge when the project is underway (Thamhain, 2013).
Making a presentation and answering questions may not always be enough to provide adequate information regarding the project. Therefore, I plan to come up with reference documents that can be distributed to the panel for further reference. The documents will provide the information presented in details and with additional models and graphical presentations.
It is important that I leave the management convinced about the project and my presentation must therefore end with a reemphasis of the project’s contribution to the company. This will involve repeating the project goals and objectives and how its implementation will influence the company’s ability to compete effectively in the smart phone market.
To ensure that I address the management questions effectively, I intend to familiarize myself with all the project details, including mitigation plans for possible challenges that are likely to be picked from the presentation (Soriano, 2012). This may be anticipated through prior circulation of the project document to the concerned managers and asking them to make comments on possible issues that they would like to be addressed.
Conclusion
It is clear from this discussion that convincing managers to accept a project can be a daunting task and the presentation must be done in such a way that it is highly persuasive. This includes demonstrating the impact of the project to company strategy and future performance. This discussion also establishes that there are various risks that could emerge the presentation of the project; thus limiting the management’s ability to adopt the project.
In developing the presentation, I will ensure that I emphasize on how the project will affect quality, customer service and profitability. I will also ensure that I am well prepared by understanding all aspects of the project and answering all queries and concerns effectively. Finally, reemphasizing the relevance of the project to the company’s strategic objectives will play an important role in ensuring the managers are well convinced.
References
Duarte, N. (2012). How to Present to Senior Executives. Retrieved from
Swathi, T. S. (2015). The Importance of Effective Presentation for Organizational Success. IUP
Journal of Soft Skills, 9(2), 7-21. Retrieved from eds.a.ebscohost.com/ehost/pdfviewer/pdfviewer?vid=7&sid=ba93f0fb-01b2-4504-8bd5-4cf308c0a6e4%40sessionmgr4002&hid=4108
Thamhain, H. (2013). Managing Risks in Complex Projects. Project Management Journal,
44(2), 20-35. doi:10.1002/pmj.21325. Retrieved from eds.a.ebscohost.com/ehost/pdfviewer/pdfviewer?sid=290126a3-af89-4de8-a534-9d871089f2a1%40sessionmgr4002&vid=1&hid=4108
Business Competition and Technology Industry Order Instructions: CLIENT IS FROM AUSTRALIA
About HR assessment
Business Competition and Technology Industry
task 1,2 and 3 in (1249) are based on blockbuster..and 1510 is different
example: Assessment Task 1: Business analysis review and report
Conduct an analysis of business strategy, framework, and performance, as well as an analysis of industry/market conditions, using appropriate templates/tables and compile a report of approximately 1200 words
Business Competition and Technology Industry Sample Answer
Abstract
Initially known as Research in Motion, BlackBerry Limited surprised the technology industry with its innovative and advanced technology. The BlackBerry wireless email solution became very popular to people, especially to business people. The company was an enormous giant in innovating devices that are businessmen-friendly. However, with the birth of iPhones and Androids, BlackBerry Limited slowly exited the industry and silently sit on the sidelines. What used to be on top, now seemed to be slowing down in the world of technological competence. Business competition in today’s corporate world is very high. Big and small business firms should continue to modify and improve their products to compete with the innovative products launched differently by several corporations. Thus, BlackBerry might want to opt to change its strategy. The risk may be high, but the results outweigh the efforts.
Keywords: Blackberry, business competition, the technology industry
Looking into a Technological Giant: A Business Analysis Review and Report of Blackberry
Introduction
Blackberry Limited initially started as Research in Motion (RIM). It is a Canadian telecommunications and wireless equipment company founded by Mike Lazaridis. Lazaridis is an engineering student from the University of Waterloo, who founded the company in 1984. He was just twenty-three years old at that time when he created RIM. Another engineering student from the University of Windsor, Douglas Fregin, co-founded the company. RIM has its roots as an electronic and computer science consulting company. In 1988 the company became the first wireless data developer in America. It was also the first ever company, outside Scandinavia, to evolve connectivity products for Mobitex wireless packet-switched data communications network.
RIM became famous for introducing innovative technologies such as the DigiSync™, Film Keykode™ Reader, the first Mobitex protocol converter, and the BlackBerry wireless email solution. The BlackBerry wireless email solution became very popular to people, especially to business people. The device allows workers to send and receive e-mails while away from the office. As what authors describe it, BlackBerry became the indispensable accessory of business executives, heads of states, and Hollywood celebrities (Gillette, Brady, & Winter, 2013). However, BlackBerry’s fame wavered when iPhone and Android came to the picture. The global economic condition affects all kinds of businesses (McQuerrey, 2016).
The upsurge in the economy proffers new business prospects for small operations. On the other hand, a declining economy can have a lasting impact on the firm. In a robust and better economy, businesses prosper, people have a high income, and low unemployment; on the other hand, a sluggish economy poses many challenges to investors. Shareholders may suffer from profit losses which will urge the company to cut their workforce. Furthermore, the high competition in the business world is prevalent. Companies gain an advantage against the world’s biggest competitor because of pressure. It pushes companies to improve their products and be continually competitive. It is in this light that the analysis of Blackberry was created.
Blackberry Company Analysis
The BlackBerry Limited (BlackBerry) is a supplier of mobile communications devices. The company is engaged in providing BlackBerry wireless solution that includes smartphones, software, and services. The core areas of the company are on Enterprise Services, Messaging, Devices business and BlackBerry Technology Solutions (“Company Profile”, 2016). BlackBerry Limited is considered a global leader in mobile communication. The company continues to inspire its customers by producing innovative products which the market will surely patronize. The company operates across continents such as North America, Asia-Pacific, Europe and Latin America. There are 20 executives and directors of Blackberry under the leadership of John Chen, Executive Chairman of the Board and Chief Executive Officer. (“About BlackBerry”, n.d.).
Due to high competition and economic recession, the company incurred a negative growth in sales. Thus, it experienced a loss of its profits. In the year 2013, the company laid off thousands of its employees and sold the company to about US $4.7 billion (“BlackBerry timeline: A look back at the tech company’s history”, 2013). The company which is considered a technology giant, slowly shrink its stakes in the global smartphone market share by 3 percent. In the last few years, the company continues to have a negative growth (Sturgeon, 2013).
Engineers and technicians are brainstorming about new technologies to incorporate into blackberry phones. With its new Blackberry 10 (BB 10) launched in 2013, the company is positive to increase its sales. The new product has an innovative design, and its system has multimedia, applications, and touchscreen features. This product is said to be a crucial determinant to the long-term sustainability of the company (Radio-Canada, 2013). BlackBerry 10 sees the implementation of a whole new user interface, doing away with the conventional BB system that people are used to in favor of something that resembles the likes of Androids and iOS (McCann, 2013).
Industry Analysis
In doing an industry analysis of BlackBerry Limited, it is essential to look into the company’s political environment, economic advantage, social relations, technological advancement, legal policy6, and environmental (PESTLE) contexts. PESTLE enables one to assess the risks that they are facing, and seeing what impacts do current factors have (PESTLE Analysis: Strategy Skills, 2013). Moreover, PESTLE is used to examine the many factors in the macro-environment that may affect the decision of the managers in organizations (PESTEL Analysis of the Macro-environment, 2011).
The nature of Blackberry business is risky because of the rapidly changing technology. Now and then there are new innovative product lines that are readily available in the market. Competition is very high among its industries. Among its competitors who are also familiar with the market include LG Electronics Mobile Communications Company, Apple Inc., Microsoft Corporation, Google, Lenovo Group Ltd., Huawei Technologies Co., HTC Corporation, ZTE Corporation, and Nokia. Other competitors are Xiaomi Inc., IBM, SAP AG, Citrix, VMware, Inc., Mobile Iron, Inc., Good Technology Corporation, Green Hills Software, Intel Corporation, Mentor Graphics Corporation, and Sysgo AG. Some internet media are also in the competition such as Facebook, WeChat, Viber, Kik, Kakao Talk, Telegram, Snapchat, Cumulocity, Exosite, IBM, and MontaVista Software.
With the presence of its equally technologically advanced competitors, standing in the communication technology industry is a challenge to BlackBerry Limited. The company should create one of a kind innovative product which is more advanced compared to others. Its marketing strategies should also be strengthened.
Looking at the situation of BlackBerry Limited in the competitive world of technology, it can be said that the company has a failing technological strategy. Apple and Android have already taken BlackBerry from the limelight. The two companies are now ruling the gadget world. This condition is primary because of the rapid pace of technology; BlackBerry Limited was not able to hop on the train of innovation faster than the other companies. The company never saw it coming that what was once impossible may be a common trend at some time. Below is a table of the growth rate of BlackBerry Limited in comparison to industry and sector.
Company
Industry
Sector
Sales (MRQ) vs Qtr. 1 Yr. Ago
-29.70
6.37
13.66
Sales (TTM) vs TTM 1 Yr. Ago
-35.23
3.74
12.06
Sales – 5 Yr. Growth Rate
-35.87
15.04
11.18
EPS (MRQ) vs Qtr. 1 Yr. Ago
-956.68
45.89
32.42
EPS (TTM) vs TTM 1 Yr. Ago
23.87
—
—
EPS – 5 Yr. Growth Rate
—
39.16
14.52
Capital Spending – 5 Yr. Growth Rate
-42.31
-2.30
9.91
Table 1. Blackberry growth rate in comparison to industry and sector
It is shown in the table above that the company recorded a negative growth rate in sales by 35.87 percent during the last five years. These results mean that the firm is losing profits. Regarding growth rate, in capital spending, the company also incurred a negative growth of 42.31 percent. The situation is alarming. If the condition continues, the company will have to lay off more employees in the future.
SWOT, Gap, and Cost-Benefit Analysis:
A SWOT analysis is a device that aids business personnel to assess the strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats involved in any business enterprises (Ommani, 2011). Moreover, SWOT can help us gain insights into the past and think of possible solutions to existing or potential problems for an existing business or for an existing venture (USDA as cited in Ommani, 2011). To better understand the situation of BlackBerry Ltd, it is also necessary to look into its strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats, coupled with the gap and cost-benefit analysis.
SWOT Analysis
Strength
· Adequate assets and equipment
· Skilled and enough human resource
· Excellent marketing strategies
Weaknesses
· Financial Capability
· Employee Turnover
Opportunities
· Billions of customers
· Development of new and high-tech communication products that could compete globally
Threats
· High competition
Table 2. SWOT Analysis
As we can see in the diagram, BlackBerry is on the edge when it comes to its resources such as the equipment, assets, and human resource. Moreover, the company has an excellent marketing strategy. Just last year 2010, the company hired a new CEO, who is a Hong Kong -born British-American business person and an electrical engineer. This new CEO is none other than John Chen, known for his many achievements and for turning around failing companies. The said CEO pushes hardware profitability as the next big thing in BlackBerry Ltd and as an answer to the threats that the firm is facing. Furthermore, the company sees an opportunity in developing new and high-tech communication products that could compete globally with other international corporations.
High competition is seen as one of the threats to the company, but despite this, BlackBerry Limited sees opportunities in the near future. As what the CEO of the business stated (in an interview) last June 2015, the company’s smartphone unit will turn profitable in the short term (Rathinavel, 2015). BlackBerry Limited has many customers even before the advent of iPhones and Android, thus innovating will only make the company attract even more billions of customers.
Gap analysis
Based on all the data gathered, it is feasible to say that BlackBerry Limited is indeed a company who had reached its peak at some point in time. The SWOT analysis in the above shows the strengths that the company can muster in the competition field. However, despite the good record of BlackBerry Limited, we cannot deny the gaps in the strategies of the enterprise. One thing is the failure of the company to innovate in time with the fast-paced development of its competing companies. With the advent of iPhone and Android, BlackBerry has lost its fame in the technology market. The problem here may not be the marketing strategy of the company but in the workers.
As a solution to this, the company should hire more reliable and credible workers so as to step back again to the world of technological competition. Moreover, it will be of advantage to the company itself and its employees if they will initiate training. Differentiation by skill, knowledge, and motivation of the workforce, takes on increasing importance as organizations strive to compete in the worldwide economy (Aguinis & Kraiger, 2009). Hill and Lent (as cited in Aguinis and Kraiger, 2009) mentioned that training-related changes are believed to improve job-related performance and other positive changes such as the acquisition of new skills.
In addition to this, BlackBerry Limited might also want to consider outsourcing employees or engineers that will help improve the declining status of the company. Outsourcing is said to be a common practice in both private and public organizations (Kremic, Tukel, & Rom, 2006). Kremic, Tukel, and Rom also revealed that most organizations nowadays are perhaps already using outsourcing as a function to perform efficiently. The benefit of outsourcing to the company is the additional knowledge that outsourced employees can offer. Moreover, outsourcing enables the company to learn new insights, improve strategy, and look at things from a different perspective.
Another solution to the challenges that BlackBerry Limited is facing is to initiate partnerships with other big companies. With the work connections that their present CEO has, doing this strategy is plausible. Partnering and making ties with businesses, both local and abroad, will enable BlackBerry Limited to expand its scope of activities, consumers, and resources. Such ties can also be a leeway for BlackBerry Limited to improve their innovative efforts and technological advancement.
Cost-Benefit Analysis
Solutions/Initiatives
Key Steps to Implement
Cost Benefit (est. cost, expected benefit, time to realize)
Impact (which part of business)
1.
Trainings
Initiating training for all employees
US$ 3,000
Improve the knowledge, skills, and abilities of employees, improvement of innovative efforts and technological advancement
1 -2 weeks, twice to thrice a year
Human Resource, Employee production
2.
Recruitment
Recruiting credible and trained employees
US$ 3,000
Increased productivity, efficient and innovative workers.
2-3 months
Labor force, operations
3.
Outsourcing
Hiring employees from outside the organization
US$ 10,000
More insights and innovative ideas, more skilled, additional workforce
Strategic planning
4.
Partnership with other Companies
Making ties with businesses, both local and abroad
US$ 100,000
Business, consumer, and resource expansion, improvement of innovative efforts and technological advancement
Strategic planning, operations
Table 3. Cost-Benefit Analysis
The table above shows the cost benefit analysis of the measures above in addressing the present condition of BlackBerry Limited. Note that training, recruitment, outsourcing, and partnership with other companies are real solutions for the current situation that BlackBerry Limited is encountering. The whole plan will take a more than a hundred thousand US dollars to implement. We can also note that despite the significant sum that improving BlackBerry Limited entails, the benefits still outweigh the costs.
Industry feedback
At the height of Blackberry popularity, there are about 80 million users which include high ramming government officials and celebrities. There have been significant changes and improvements that the company is implementing over the past years. Its sustainability in the industry could be attributed to the continued patronage of its loyal customers. BlackBerry could face its downturn, and the company is not yet out of the market.
Conclusion
BlackBerry is a technology innovative company which is undergoing a rough road since the emergence of iPhones and Android. Its current situation is not healthy based on statistics. If it continues to happen, the company will experience great losses that could lead to layoff in its workforce. The situation is not good for the sector and the industry itself because BlackBerry is a giant company. The company might need to re-engineer their processes and operations and conduct a thorough analysis of its current condition so it could withstand the challenges in the technological industry.
Business Competition and Technology Industry References
About BlackBerry. Ca.blackberry.com. Retrieved 4 June 2016, from
http://ca.blackberry.com/company.html
Aguinis, H., & Kraiger, K. (2009). Benefits of Training and Development for Individuals and Teams, Organizations and Society. Annual Review of Psychology.
BlackBerry timeline: A look back at the company history. (2013). Global News. Retrieved
4 June 2016, from http://globalnews.ca/news/860689/blackberry-timeline-a-look-back-at-the-tech-companys-history/
BlackBerry 10 aims to catch up the competition. (2013). Cbc.ca. Retrieved 4 June 2016, from
Gillette, F., Brady, D., & Winter, C. (2013). Retrieved from Bloomberg: http://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2013-12-05/the-rise-and-fall-of-blackberry-an-oral-history
History.Bloomberg.com. Retrieved 4 June 2016, from
Kremic, T., Tukel, O., & Rom, W. (2006). ‘Outsourcing decision support: a survey of the benefits, risks, and decision factors.’ Supply Chain Management: An International Journal, 11(6), 467-482.
McCann, J. (2013). Retrieved from Techradar: http://www.techradar.com/reviews/pc-mac/software/operating-systems/blackberry-10-1090522/review
McQuerrey, L. (2016). The Economy’s Effect on Small Businesses. Retrieved from Small Business: http://smallbusiness.chron.com/economys-effects-small-businesses-10269.html
Ommani, A. (2011). Strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats (SWOT analysis for farming) system businesses management: Case of wheat farmers of Shadervan District, Shoushtar Towship Iran. African Journal of Business Management, 5(22), 9448-9454.
PESTEL Analysis of the Macro-environment. (2011). In Foundations of Economics. Oxford University Press.
PESTLE Analysis: Strategy Skills. (2013). Retrieved from www.free-management-ebooks.com
Radio-Canada. (2013, January 29). BlackBerry 10 aims to catch up with the competition. Retrieved June 6, 2016, from http://www.cbc.ca/news/technology/blackberry-10-aims-to-catch-up-with-competition-1.1371481
Rathinavel, P. (2015). BlackBerry CEO John Chen Says Hardware Unit will Make Money Again. International Business Times. Retrieved from International Business Times.
Sturgeon, J. (2013). ‘BlackBerry cuts a third of workforce; faces a billion-dollar loss.’ Global
News. Retrieved 4 June 2016, from http://globalnews.ca/news/854194/blackberry-to-cut-4500-jobs-expects-major-q2-loss/
1. Introduction
2. Choose an organization of your choice and develop an overview of a plan for a project.
The project could be a new device, service, program, or etc.
Utilize examples from your text or examples online that meet your specific needs in developing the Communication Plan for the Project that will substantively explain, and analyze the positive contributions to the success of the project. Include design, structure, communication channel methods, assigned roles, leadership, groups, teams, and control measures. include the concepts from operations and project management that you have learned so far.
As an example, processes, projects, flowcharting, effectiveness efficiency, critical path, quality management, quality control, and the project management life-cycle.
Providing customers with the highest quality products remains one of Samsung’s major objectives. Accordingly, the company consistently develops new devices to meet customer needs. Following the success of the A-Series smart phones in the market, the company intends to inject more innovation into developing a more sophisticated gadget for technology lovers. The new Smartphone, dubbed Samsung Galaxy A10, is expected to hit the market in November 2017. Its sleek design and attractive specifications which include a super AMOLED 5.5” touch screen, gorilla glass screen protection, Android 6.0 Marshmallow, 16 Megapixel camera, 40 GB internal memory and up to 200GB expandable memory, make the A10 the next Samsung gem.
This plan details information regarding the project including its definition, goals and objectives, roles and responsibilities, project management approach, project timeline, budget and the communications plan.
Background Information
The smart phone market has been advancing at a significant rate and this has created major competition in the industry. This means that companies must be more vigilant when it comes to innovation in order to remain relevant among smart phone users. Samsung has been a smart phone market leader and it is imperative that this position is maintained through continuously developing new models to tap the ever growing demand for modern technology. While the company has produced numerous phone models, the Galaxy A series has been a great success, since the introduction of the Samsung Galaxy Alpha in 2014. The A series has since advanced, with the latest mode being the Galaxy A9. Given the rapid growth in the industry and changing client demands, Samsung must maintain the momentum by producing better phones, to ensure that it maintains its competitive advantage. The A10 comes with the latest Android, greater feel and bigger memory and is therefore bound to achieve this objective
Project Approach
The project will be implemented in phases as follows:
Phase I: Market research and analysis
Phase II: Software design
Phase III: Agreement on Android contract
Phase IV: Development
Phase V: Phone testing
Phase VI: Phone rollout
GOALS AND OBJECTIVES
This project aims at achieving the following:
Develop a smart phone that appeals to modern mobile users
Enhance user experience through better technology, software and phone interaction
Provide a phone with greater storage capacity
Provide a long-lasting smart phone through strong materials such as metal casing and glass protection
Compete effectively with similar brands in the market
PROJECT SCOPE
Scope Statement
This project encompasses the production of the Samsung Galaxy A10, a smart phone that is meant to give the user greater capabilities through more advanced technology and phone capabilities. The project which is will last for a period of six months is expected to produce an exceptional smart phone to meet the needs of technologically savvy users. The new device will possess the following characteristics: super AMOLED 5.5” touch screen, 4G internet capability, dual sim capability, gorilla glass screen protection, Snapdragon 800 processor, Android 6.0 Marshmallow, 16 Megapixel camera, 40 GB internal memory and up to 200GB expandable memory, data saving mode, inbuilt battery, proximity and fingerprint sensor, Wi-Fi, Bluetooth and Hotspot connectivity. In achieving this, a group of 10 engineers and developers will be involved in developing the phone. The project aims at achieving the set goals and objectives with a budget provision of $25,000; with $5,000 being for research and $20,000 for execution.
Project approach and implementation
To ensure that the Samsung Galaxy A10 phone is availed to the market by January 2017, the following activities will be implemented. The activities represent phases within the project, with each having its own set of deliverables.
Market research and analysis: This is the first phase of the project and it will involve performing a background research on the competitive environment, technology and customer expectations on smart phones. This is important because it helps in establishing the feasibility of the project and whether it will provide any returns for the company (Shenar & Dvir, 2013). It will also give insights on possible considerations when designing the device by evaluating customer responses and competitor plans.
Software design: This marks the beginning of the production process and will involve developing the phone’s software. This includes ensuring that it compatible with Android in order to give users a seamless experience.
Agreement on Android contract: Android is the operating system provider for A10 and a license from the company is thereby required. This will involve negotiation with the Google, Android provider, to come up with an agreement on the license.
Development: This phase represents the actual phone development and involves actual production of the phone. During this phase, procurement processes, input material supply and manufacturing of the smart phone will take place. The various processes involved are divided among the team members to ensure that the phone is of the greatest quality possible (Shenar & Dvir, 2013).
The flow chart for production of the phone is shown as below
Phone testing: To ensure that the product delivered to the customer is fault-free, testing prior to delivery is necessary. In this regard, Samsung will distribute 100 handsets to selected customers and engage them on a feedback program. The customers who will use the phone for one month will provide feedback based on their experiences; including any device flaws and improvement that should be done on the phone.
Phone rollout: This is the final stage in the project and will involve rolling out the phone in the market. This process will be marketing-intensive; with the objective of making the phone known to users.
Roles and responsibilities
Role
Responsibilities
Participant(s)
Samsung Management
§ Decision making and funds approval
§ Project guidance
§ Project approval
Jong-Kyun Shin (CEO and Head, IT & Mobile Communications)
Project Committee
§ Approve funding
§ Direct resource allocation
§ Conflict resolution
§ Provide directions to project manager
§ Review performance milestones
Insert Names
Jong-Kyun Shin (CEO)
Sang-Hoon Lee (CFO)
Smith Park (Member)
Song Lee (Member)
John Adams (Member)
Lynn Ming (Member)
Project Manager
§ Manage project according to specifications, goals and objectives
§ Team lead
§ Link between project and project committee
§ Communicate project to participants
§ Communicate guidance from project committee
§ Supervise consultants
§ Supervise suppliers and vendors
§ Provide project direction including acquisition of resources
§ Problem resolution
§ Budget execution
§ Approve budgets
§ Sign and spearhead contracts
Steve McDonald
Project participants (Researchers, Engineers and developers)
§ Conduct market and technology research
§ Understand user needs
§ Communicate with project manager on project goals
§ Review project goals and deliverables
§ Develop product
§ Participate in teams and perform according to stakeholder expectations
§ Provide recommendations based on knowledge
§ Identify barriers to project achievement and communicate the same
§ Assure product quality
§ Identify potential issues and offer recommendations
To be identified
PROJECT SCHEDULE/TIMELINE
Considered one of the major aspects of successful project management, the schedule provides a list of activities to be achieved by the project and the set time required in implementation (Lapoint & Haggard, 2015). A well developed schedule will ensure that the project is completed within the given time period.
Market research
June 2016
Phone technology research
June-August 2016
Patents and licenses
August 2016
Project execution
August-November 2016
Trials and testing
December –January 2016
Roll-out
January 2016
PROJECT BUDGET/COSTS
The budget forms the third component in project planning and management and is an important resource in ensuring that the project is done to completion (Brüggen & Luft 2016). In order for the budget to be effective it must accommodate possible risk by providing an emergency fund (Brüggen & Luft 2016). The budget is presented as follows:
INCOME
Internal Sources
$20,000
Bank funding for research
$5,000
EXPENDITURE
Research
Technology research
$3,500
Market research
$1,500
Input material
$5,000
Licenses (Legal and Android)
$1,200
Development
$7,000
Staff
$1,000
Meetings (Stationery, conferencing charges, meals and refreshments
$1,400
Marketing
$900
Launch
$1,800
Miscellaneous
$500
Contingency funds
$1,200
RISK ASSESSMENT
Risk assessment in the project plan seeks to identify and prioritize the potential risks and thus develop a mitigation approach relative to these risks (Fabricius & Büttgen, 2015). According to Maley (2012), risk assessment is a continuous process because issues keep emerging as the project continues to be implemented. In this regard, continuous assessment will be undertaken and possible approaches to mitigation discussed between the implementers and project manager.
Risk
Impact
Risk Level (High, Medium, Low)
Probability
Possible mitigation
Obsolete technology resulting from newer developments
This would impact phone and project returns
H: Technology changes is rapid and the rate of smart phone development is high
Very likely
Constant research to determine possible changes; project may need to be overhauled to accommodate new technology
Failure to meet timeline
Delay in launch; Loss of customers and revenue
M: The timeline set considers all factors to ensure completion; Huddles however may occur
Likely
Adhere to set timelines; ensure constant update of project progress
Budget constraints and new budget items
Quality and completion time
M: The budget considers all budget items necessary; new budget items may result from unforeseen costs
Likely
Provide a contingent budget plan; adhere to budget to the greatest extent possible
Inadequate knowledge and skills
Quality, completion time, achievement of project goals
L: Project implementers are selected based on possession of excellent knowledge and skills
Unlikely
Ensure implementers are qualified; provide training
Customer rejection of device
Poor returns from the project
H: Customer bargaining power in the industry is very high
Very likely
Ensure quality product; keep up with technology advancement; offer affordable price; extensive marketing before launch
COMMUNICATIONS PLAN
Communicating the project plan forms an important aspect and should be given major priority, to ensure that all members participating in the project execution are informed about the project expectations.
Communication objectives
This communications plan achieves the following objectives:
Provide clear information on project execution
Ensure that all stakeholders have the required information on the project, processes, roles, budget and other issues
Maintain correspondence between stakeholders
Ensure stakeholders are updated on project progress
Promote accountability among project implementers
Audience and key messages
This communication plan targets the following individuals as its audience:
Samsung Management: Key messages include project impact, project progress, budget requirements, information gathered from research.
Project Committee: The committee will expect information on project progress and execution, budget requirements, issues and challenges, new ideas and changes to project execution, resources required.
Project Manager: The manager acts as a link between the management and committee and implementers. Key messages include feedback on progress, feedback on budget and resource requests, project functions approval, project milestones and achievements, issues and challenges, new ideas and information from research.
Project participants (Researchers, Engineers and developers): Project execution guidelines, budget and resource allocation, timelines, response to queries and solutions to identified challenges.
Any other relevant individual: Key messages as deemed relevant
Communication methodology
To ensure effective communication, this project will utilize a variety of communication approaches including: face-to-face communication, meetings, email, video conferencing, memos and reports as suggested by Bourne (2016). A combination of these channels will ensure that information is effectively delivered to the intended audience in a correct and coherent manner (Maley, 2012). The following communication modes will characterize the project.
Email communication on progress and new developments: This will be a constant form of communication and will ensure that the management effectively communicates any expectations, approval information and other details related to the project. The executing team will also be expected to provide constant updates on the project progress and other information such as challenges encountered and possible solutions.
Monthly status reports: To promote accountability and efficiency, the team will be expected to develop monthly reports indicating their progress and next steps. The monthly report will be sent to the manager for review before being shared with the committee and senior management.
Bi-weekly project status meetings: These meetings are aimed at updating progress and providing implementers with an opportunity to share experiences and issues encountered in the process of project execution. It is also a chance for the management to communicate new and emerging project components and make plans for the future.
Project manager monthly feedback: After the monthly status reports have been shared, the project manager will give feedback on the progress based on his input and that of the committee and senior management. This will inform future performance and offer recommendations for improvement.
These approaches do not limit communication and any member of the project may pass vital information at any point during the project execution.
CONCLUSION
This project plan effectively outlines the project plan to be used in the development of the Galaxy Samsung A10 smart phone. The plan details the objectives of the project, the scope of work, timelines, budget and communication plan to ensure successful implementation. Adhering to the plan will ensure that the new phone is completed by the launch date and within the intended quality.
REFERENCES
Borkowski, P. (2015). A Framework for Risk Analysis In Infrastructure Projects. Research
Papers Of The Wroclaw University Of Economics / Prace Naukowe Uniwersytetu Ekonomicznego We Wroclawiu, (401), 69-82. doi:10.15611/pn.2015.401.06. Retrieved from eds.b.ebscohost.com/ehost/pdfviewer/pdfviewer?sid=a10cb05e-b553-445d-8a13-aaf3d78d390c%40sessionmgr106&vid=15&hid=127
Bourne, L. (2016). Stakeholder Relationship Management: A Maturity Model for Organisational Implementation.
Boca Raton, FL: CRC Press.
Brüggen, A., & Luft, J. L. (2016). Cost Estimates, Cost Overruns, and Project Continuation
Decisions. Accounting Review, 91(3), 793-810. doi:10.2308/accr-51202. Retrieved from eds.b.ebscohost.com/ehost/pdfviewer/pdfviewer?sid=a10cb05e-b553-445d-8a13-aaf3d78d390c%40sessionmgr106&vid=10&hid=127
Fabricius, G., & Büttgen, M. (2015). Project managers’ overconfidence: how is risk reflected in
anticipated project success?. Business Research, 8(2), 239-263. doi:10.1007/s40685-015-0022-3. Retrieved from eds.b.ebscohost.com/ehost/pdfviewer/pdfviewer?vid=7&sid=a10cb05e-b553-445d-8a13-aaf3d78d390c%40sessionmgr106&hid=127
Lapoint, P. A., & Haggard, C. R. (2015). Design Prototypes Inc. Project Management (C): When Management Decides To Shorten A Project Schedule. Journal of the International Academy for
Case Studies, 21(4), 75-82. Retrieved from eds.b.ebscohost.com/ehost/pdfviewer/pdfviewer?sid=a10cb05e-b553-445d-8a13-aaf3d78d390c%40sessionmgr106&vid=11&hid=127
Maley, C. H. (2012). Project Management Concepts, Methods, and Techniques. Boca Raton, FL:
CRC Press.
Shenar, A. J., & Dvir, D. (2013). Reinventing Project Management: The Diamond Approach to
Successful Growth and Innovation. Boston, MA: Harvard Business Press.
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Assignment requested deadline May 24 by 10pm. Please read below for information concerning assignment. Support responses with examples and use APA formatting in the paper. You may access the school’s website by logging into:
Please note that when you log into the website you must click launch class, and on the next screen click syllabus to view this week’s readings (week 2) and Academic Resources to access the school’s library.
Interoffice Memo
The following memo is from an exasperated manager to her staff. Obviously, this manager does not have the time to clean up her writing or another set of eyes to review her written material before mailing it.
From: Albertina Sindaha, Operations Manager
To: All Employees
Subject: Cleanup!
Message
You were all supposed to clean up your work areas last Friday, but that didn’t happen. A few people cleaned their desks, but no one pitched in to clean the common areas.
So we’re going to try again. As you know, we don’t have a big enough custodial budget anymore. Everyone must clean up himself. This Friday I want to see action in the copy machine area, things like emptying waste baskets and you should organize paper and toner supplies. The lunch room is a disaster area. You must do something about the counters, the refrigerator, the sinks, and the coffee machine. And any food left in the refrigerator on Friday afternoon should be thrown out because it stinks by Monday. Finally, the office supply shelves should be straightened.
If you can’t do a better job this Friday, I will have to make a cleaning schedule. Which I don’t want to do. But you may force me to.
Using the South University Online Library or the Internet, research on the basics of interoffice memos. Based on your readings and understanding, create a 2- to 4-page Microsoft Word document that includes:
• An explanation on the effectiveness of the memo with respect to its tone.
• An analysis on the potential barriers to the successful communication of its intended message.
• A revised memo with improved structure using polite and firm tone consistently.
Support your responses with examples.
Cite any sources in APA format.
SAMPLE ANSWER
Interoffice Memo
In the context of office communication, greater emphasis is placed on communication that is not only effective, but whose tone and content is considerate of other peoples’ feelings. Communication presents a platform where not only words are considered, but also the intentions and emotions behind the message or information. The tone of the message presents an important aspect of the message. It is imperative that barriers that may affect the communication’s ability to portray the correct message are avoided. In the case of an interoffice memo, all of the qualities mentioned therein above should be adhered to.
Tone and memo efficiency
The memo by Ms Sindaha is an example of unprofessional communication that is not fit for business communication. The tone used portrays someone who is bitter or one who looks down upon her juniors. A reader receiving such a memo can feel the high level of intimidation in which Ms Sindaha writes the memo. When the tone is bitter, there is an aspect of emotions involved which will affect the receivers of the memo. According to Hamilton (2013), office communication must show consideration for others and targeted people should not feel threatened or intimidated by such communication. This can be demonstrated in the last paragraph where she threatens to develop a schedule if the employees do not act. The sender should use a polite tone and desist from ‘shouting’ and issuing orders and threats. In the event that this occurs, the communication efficiency is likely to be affected as attitudes become imminent in response to the use poor tone.
Starting the subject with an exclamation mark presents a poor approach by the operations manager. The subject of the memo begins with discourteous tone ‘Cleanup!’ which to a great extent affects its effectiveness. Secondly, the memo has an informal tone which can be considered as negative (Hamilton, 2013). The closing remarks are not positive and include threats and the body of the memo is a long series of complaints and feels like a ‘rant’. The informality of the tone coupled with the negative mood created renders the message of the memo ineffective. The lack of positivity will not motivate employees to perform their best in solving the problem. For this reason, the communication can as well as be considered as ineffective. Furthermore, the memo fails to go straight to the point instead of a long explanation of the problem (Guffey, & Loewy, 2012).
Potential barriers to successful communication of memo’s intended message
The memo sent by Ms Sindaha presents various factors that hinder successful exchanges in the office. The message is likely to face a wall of unwanted emotions. As noted earlier, the message needs to be composed with consideration to the feelings of the receivers. For example, in the last paragraph, the manager uses a threat as opposed to using a polite conclusion to encourage receivers to act the memo. The informality of the memo is a barrier to successful communication. Although the message will be received, it will not have the intended impact (Guffey, & Loewy, 2012).
Ms Sindaha does not pay attention to grammar, sentence structure, and punctuations which make it difficult to read the memo. She also mixes up ideas and this ends up confusing the reader or making them lose interest. According to Hamilton (2013), for office communication to be effective in delivering the intended message, it must be well structured and free of grammatical mistakes. In the second paragraph, Ms Sindaha says that everyone must clean up himself. While this was aimed at portraying that everyone should clean after himself, it tends to say that people should clean themselves. Such mistakes jeopardize the effectiveness of internal communication. The discourteous tone or rather the bitter tone used is a major threat to communication effectiveness.
Revised memo with improved structure
From: Albertina Sindaha, Operations Manager
To: All Employees
Subject: Office Clean up
Date:
Message
As you all know, the custodial budget has reduced sigificantly and the company is no longer capable of providing cleaning services. This means that everyone is now responsible for maintaining cleanliness within the organization. This is to inform and remind all the employees on the expected clean-up of the offices and work areas. Areas of significant concern include the printer area, the lunch room, counters, refrigerator, sinks, and the coffee machine area.
I would like to request everyone to cooperate to ensure that the company environment remains as clean as it was when cleaning services were available. Let us all adhere to maintaining cleanliness to the areas outside the offices. Due to the inconveniences caused, a cleaning schedule may need to be developed and supplied to every employee in the departments.
I look forward to a clean office environment through your continued cooperation.
References
Guffey, M. E., & Loewy, D. (2012). Essentials of business communication. Boston: Cengage Learning.
Hamilton, C. (2013). Communicating for results: A guide for business and the professions. Boston: Cengage Learning.
White, C. et al (2010). Internal communication, information satisfaction, and sense of community: The effect of personal influence.Journal of Public Relations Research, 22(1), 65-84.
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The aim of the practical was essentially to explore the intentions that underlie the responses that a listener gives to a speaker/individual with a problem. The five categories of underlying intentions included Evaluative (E); Interpretive (I); Supportive (S); Probing (P); and Understanding (U). An Interpretive (I) response showed that the listener intended to teach and inform the speaker what his or her problem meant. An Evaluative (E) response implied that the listener had actually made a judgment of relative appropriateness, goodness or effectiveness to the problem of the speaker. A Supportive (S) problem implied that the intention of the listener was to reassure the sender and lessen his or her intensity of feeling. A Probing (P) response suggested that the intention of the listener was to look for additional information, question the speaker, and rouse more discussion. Lastly, an Understanding (U) response suggested that the intent of the listener was basically to ask the sender whether the listener rightly comprehends what the sender is saying.
Marks Section 1
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2. The materials used.
A number of sheets were used to complete this practical.
1. Sheet A – this material provided a clear description of the categories of intentions; that is, the 5 intentions underlying the responses – evaluative (E), interpretive (I), supportive (S), probing (P) and understanding (U) – are explained succinctly and clearly in one or two sentences.
2. Questionnaire – this material contained the problems of the speakers/senders which the listener was to give responses to.
3. Sheet C – this material was the answer sheet.
4. Sheet D – this material provided the scoring key for identifying the intent of a response to a speaker’s problem. In essence, this scoring key was used to score the kind of response that I personally gave for every item.
Marks Section 2
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3. The procedure followed in the practical.
In completing the practical, the following procedure was followed: Firstly, Sheet A which discusses the 5 basic intents underlying the responses to the problems presented in the questionnaire was studied exhaustively. Then, I went through the questionnaire and classified the responses to each problem described therein in accordance with the 5 categories of intentions. Each of the 12 statements of a problem described in the questionnaire was read out. Each of the statements was essentially an expression by a person – that is, a girl or a boy – with regard to an aspect of the situation faced by this individual. A series of 5 likely responses followed every statement. I selected the response that best represented what I would personally say to the speaker. I identified the intent underlying each of the five alternative responses by marking U for understanding; P for probing; S for supportive; I for interpretive; and E for evaluative.
After I had completed Answer Sheet C, I used Sheet D, which was the scoring key, to score the kind of response which I personally gave for every item. I then joined 2 other students and we formed a group of three people. In this group, we scored the accuracy with which we correctly identified the different response for every item. Next, we discussed every answer in the group until every group member understood it. Lastly, I wrote down the outcome of the practical exercise. The class outcome was described and discussed in detail.
Marks Section 3
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4. The outcomes.
As a class, five groups were formed
Group
1
2
3
4
5
E
11
3
5
1
3
I
10
5
4
0
13
S
11
0
3
7
18
P
25
12
26
4
24
U
12
39
9
6
12
The table above shows the results from the 5 groups that were formed in class. The
– E
– I
– S
– P
– U
Is what each group in the class had
The data in the table above was generated by the class as a whole and it included the responses made to questions by group discussion generated when members of group shared their own data/results responses. Individually, I was able to learn about the different and at the same time very useful styles of listening and responding to problems that a speaker has. I also got to learn about the different circumstances or situations that each style of listening and responding is suitable for.
Marks Section 4
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5. Your personal comments on how this practical related to your own experience.
The practical related to my own experience since it allowed me to understand how I am going to be a counselor and the useful styles of listening and responding to problems of a counselee.
As a result of this practical exercise, I can effectively apply the useful styles in real life with a counselee depending on the problem of the counselee. For instance, I can utilize the Evaluative (E) style as a therapist or counselor to make a judgment of relative effectiveness, goodness or rightness of the problem of the counselee. When with a client with a different problem, I may utilize the Interpretive (I) style by providing a response to the client that demonstrates that my intent is to teach and notify the counselee what his or her problem means, or I may employ the Supportive (S) style and give the client a response which suggests that my intention in the counseling is to reassure the client, to calm the client, and lessen his or her intensity of feeling (Rogers, 1957). Equally important, the practical exercise has allowed me to understand how to use the Probing (P) style and give a response which shows that my intention as a counselor is to question the client and rouse more discussion along a particular line, as well as how to use Understanding (U) style and give responses that imply my intention is to find out how the client views the problem and how he or she actually feels about that problem.
Furthermore, the practical allowed me to realize that I am actually a probing person since I am always inclined to probing the counselee and seek additional information from them. In my future counseling experiences with clients, I will try to also employ the other styles rather than being a counselor who solely uses the probing technique during counseling sessions: I will also strive to be evaluative, interpretive, supportive and understanding. The practical also related to my own personal experience as it has allowed me to realize that although I talk to counselees a lot as a counselor, counseling in general should involve a lot more than merely talk. This is largely because the sort of verbal responses that a therapist makes are really crucial and could actually encumber or facilitate the counseling goals. In my own personal experience, I usually do not put much emphasis on my relationship as a counselor with the client, and I do not always ensure it is a high quality relationship. The practical exercise has allowed me to realize that the client-counselor relationship can affect the outcomes of therapy very much. It has actually made me to reconsider my relationship with counselees and in the future I will ensure that I build a good and positive relationship with clients to ensure that successful therapy/counseling takes place.
Marks Section 5
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6. Relevance of practical in a counseling/psychotherapy context. (Use theory from the lectures, textbooks, and practical to comment here)
The practical exercise is relevant in psychotherapy/counseling context since it highlights some of the helpful aspects of verbal responses that a counselor or psychotherapist can make. Generally, counselors and psychotherapists engage in various forms of communication with their clients for instance behavioral, experiential, non-verbal and verbal forms of communication (Wittmer & Myrick, 1974). Counseling psychotherapy sessions involve more than simply talking considering that the type of verbal responses that a therapist makes is very important and can actually impede or help their therapy/counseling goals. Using the different styles of listening and responding – giving feedback – to problems as demonstrated in the practical exercise is crucial in any psychotherapy or counseling sessions. Evaluative feedback, according to Rogers (1957), makes judgment regarding the other person, and evaluates goodness or worth. Judging an individual and their actions are two very different things. A therapist uses the evaluative style when the client asks the therapist to share a professional judgment regarding the correctness of a behavior or process. It is used when the counselor has to provide positive feedback on the accuracy, correctness or appropriateness of a performance, function, belief or behavior of the client (Rockland, 2013).
During counseling session, the understanding response style should be used when the counselor intends to express regard for the client’s feelings and thoughts; when therapist wants to convey compassion, empathy and respect; intends to develop the therapeutic relationship; is unsure regarding how to respond but intends to say ‘I am with you’; or intends to confirm understanding or prompt the client to expound (Jannati et al., 2012). Rogers (1957) talked about the instinctive inclination for human beings to desire to be understood. Understanding feedback is used to communicate empathy as well as sympathy for the source of the message. Understanding response allows the client and counselor/therapist to develop a positive relationship which is key to successful counseling or psychotherapy.
The supportive response style is used by a therapist/counselor whenever the client needs agreement or support; is in need of comfort and reassurance; when the situation is very emotional and client needs a measure of hope and acknowledgment of the difficulty; and when the client is really trying hard and needs some encouragement (Cooper, 2010). Supportive feedback is used by the counselor to communicate encouragement in responding to a client’s message.
A therapist/counselor uses probing response style when he or she intends to convey interest in the situation of the client; needs/wants to know more regarding a problem or circumstance which the counselee is describing; and when counselor wants clarity regarding particular details of a client’s problem – that is, extra information or answers to the when, how often, where, what and who questions (Pearson & Bulsara, 2016). Probing feedback is essentially used to communicate targeted requests for particular information. Equally important, interpretive feedback is important as it is suitable whenever the counselor intends to make an unsure supposition with regard to the state of a client basing upon some behaviors just observed; intends to explain a situation basing upon an occupational therapy knowledge base; or when a client asks for a cause or meaning of an occupational problem or experience (Rogers, 1957). During any counseling or therapy conversation, the therapist/counselor might not be totally certain that he/she heard the speaker correctly, and therefore it is usually a great idea to repeat or paraphrase what the listener has heard as a method of asking for clarification or confirmation. Moreover, the listener might comprehend what the client stated, but restate the major points to communicate attention (Wittmer & Myrick, 1974). On the whole, interpretive feedback asks for clarification or confirmation of the message, and the counselor will mainly convey it in the form of a question.
The 5 response styles are useful facilitative responses and are effective in establishing helpful relationship during a counseling session. Knowing each of the 5 dissimilar counselor responses could help a counselor to notice any lopsidedness in the way in which he or she responds to the client. It also helps the counselor to assess the type of responses or response that is most appropriate (Wittmer & Myrick, 1974).
References
Cooper, M. (2010). The challenge of counseling and psychotherapy research. Counseling & Psychotherapy Research, 10(3), 183-191. doi:10.1080/14733140903518420
Jannati, Y., Khaki, N., Sangtarashani, E. O., Peyrovi, H., Amiri & Nojadeh, N. (2012). The effect of supportive counseling program on the academic performance of nursing and midwifery students. Contemporary Nurse, 43(1), 113-20.
Pearson, M. R., & Bulsara, C. (2016). Therapists’ experiences of alliance formation in short-term counseling. European Journal Of Psychotherapy & Counseling, 18(1), 75-92. doi:10.1080/13642537.2015.1131729
Rockland, L. (2013). A review of supportive psychotherapy. Hospital and Community Psychiatry, 44(11), 1053-1060.
Rogers, C. (1957). The necessary and sufficient conditions of therapeutic personality change. Journal of Consulting Psychology, 21(2), 95-103.
Winston, A., Pinker, H., McCullough, L. (2012). A review of supportive psychotherapy. Hospital and Community Psychiatry, 37(11), 1105-114.
Wittmer, J. & Myrick, R.D. (1974). Facilitative Teaching: Theory and Practice. Pacific Palisades California: Goodyear Publishing Company, Inc. ISBN: 0-87620-287-3. Pp. 51-82.
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Writing an Efficient Business Complaint Letter
Support responses with examples and use APA formatting in the paper. You may access the school’s website by logging into https://mycampus.southuniversity.edu/portal/server.pt
Writing an Efficient Business Complaint Letter
As the Vice President of Rochester Preferred Travel, you are upset with Premier Promos.
Premier is a catalog company that provides imprinted promotional products for companies. Your travel service was looking for something special to offer in promoting its cruise ship travel packages. Premier offered free samples of its promotional merchandise, under its “No Surprise” policy.
You asked yourself, “What can we lose?” and on January 11, you placed a telephone order for a number of samples. These included:
•An insulated lunch sack
•A portable power strip in a zippered case
•A square-ended barrel bag with a fanny pack
•A deluxe canvas attaché case
•Two colors of garment-dyed sweatshirts
All items were supposed to be free. But it seemed odd to you when they asked for your company’s credit card number. This was because Premier had promised to bill you only if you decided to keep these sample items.
When the items arrived, you were not pleased. You returned them all on January 21. You have a postal receipt showing the return. However, your February credit card statement showed a charge of $258.20 for the sample items. You called Premier in February and spoke to Virginia, who assured you that a credit would be made on your next statement. However, your March statement showed no credit. You called again and received a similar promise. It’s now April and no credit has been made. You realize that this situation is now too complicated for another telephone call, and you decide to write and demand action.
Using the South University Online Library or the Internet, research ways of writing an efficient, positively phrased complaint letter.
Based on your research and understanding of the scenario, create a 1- to 2-page document in Microsoft Word, that includes the following:
•Draft of an original complaint letter addressed to, Ms. Arletta Sandusky, Customer Services, Premier Promos, 2445 Bermiss Road, Valdosta, GA 31602.
Your letter should include the following parameters:
•All the essential parts of a business letter.
•The opening and closing of the letter must demonstrate originality.
•It must have positively phrased content.
Support your responses with examples.
Cite any sources in APA format.
Writing an Efficient Business Complaint Letter Sample Answer
ROCHESTER PREFERRED TRAVEL
Rochester, NY
May 17, 2016
Ms. Arletta Sandusky
Customer Services, Premier Promos
2445 Bermiss Road, Valdosta, GA 31602
RE: REFUND ON CREDIT CARD BILL CHARGED FOR FREE SAMPLES
Dear Ms. Sandusky,
Rochester Preferred Travel appreciates your interest in working with us, to promote our cruise ship travel packages (Guffey and Loewy, 2015). However, your company seems to have erroneously billed Rochester for returned samples and attempts to recover the money have not been successful.
When Premier Promos offered free promotional merchandise samples under the “No Surprise” policy, the agreement was that the company would only bill our company if the samples were accepted. Our company considered this a good offer because it has been used by other companies such BuildDirect, which offer their products as samples or free trials and require customers to return them if they do not suit their needs or pay for them if they like them (Booth, 2016).
The samples, which were received on January 11, consisted of:
1 Insulated lunch sack
1 The portable power strip in a zippered case
1 Square-ended barrel bag with a fanny pack
1 Deluxe canvas Attaché Case
2 Colors of garment-dyed sweatshirts
However, the items did not meet our requirements and were hence returned on January 21. In February, Rochester’s credit card statement showed that $258.20 had been deducted for the samples.
Since then, I have called your company twice and Virginia assured me that the error would be rectified. Our statements for March and April have not reflected this change, hence the need to bring this to your attention. A perturbing fact in this deal is that Premier asked for our credit card number, despite the fact that these were free samples. This concern is an example of what customers are going through, where companies advertise products as free samples but the customer gets charged for it (Boone and Kurtz, 2014). We, therefore, hope that this is not a similar case.
On behalf of Rochester Preferred Travel, I would like to request you to address the matter by writing to us with a promise to credit the money before the end of May. We are confident that a company of your caliber will effectively resolve this issue (Guffey and Loewy, 2015)
Yours Sincerely,
………Name……………..
Vice President, Rochester Preferred Travel
Writing an Efficient Business Complaint Letter References
Boone, L. E., & Kurtz, D. L. (2014). Contemporary Marketing, Update. London: Cengage
Learning.
Guffey, M. E., & Loewy, D. (2015). Business Communication: Process and Product, 8th Ed.
Hampshire: Cengage Learning
Spring, T. (2012). The Truth about FREE TRIALS. PC World, 30(10), 79-85. Retrieved
From eds.b.ebscohost.com/ehost/pdfviewer/pdfviewer?sid=5ceabc41-257b-4245-8a3f-37fe3a466748%40sessionmgr104&vid=1&hid=114
As a consultant hired by the Hotel Escargot management team, you have been asked to collect data on the three main areas of focus (check-in, check-out, and hotel offerings) and graph the data to identify any issue occurrences. Use the hotel information provided here (in Learning Materials.) Collect the data, create graphs and/or tables, and describe any work measurement and time study analysis you would do. Then, from this analysis, select one main area of focus and create a fishbone diagram that captures all potential root causes. Provide a brief analysis of descriptive text on the identified items. Also describe how work sampling and time study assist in analysis. The team wants to see all of your charts, diagrams, and analysis summary.
The submission must be in APA format, Double Spaced using a 12Pt. Times New Roman. The minimum length is 5 Body Pages plus the Cover Page, Abstract, and Reference Page (8 total pages.)
The submission must include a minimum of four references and in text citation
SAMPLE ANSWER
Hotel Escargot Preliminary Time Study
Name
Institution
Hotel Escargot Preliminary Time Study
Introduction
Setting service standards that enhance customer satisfaction plays an imperative role in enhancing company performance. Accordingly, performing time studies and work measurement can help organizations to develop standards that ensure that customer service is enhanced. Hotel Escargot provides various services as part of its operations including check-in, check-out, valet parking, restaurant services and room service among others. Major disparities however exist in terms of time taken to provide each service. In order to improve on this, the company must strive to achieve a considerable level of uniformity; and thus standardize their services. This paper aims at exploring work measurement and time study analysis for Hotel Escargot; and consequently develop a fishbone diagram illustrating the root causes in one of the service identified.
Graphs and Analysis
Based on the data, the following graphs indicate the Hotel’s performance based on different measures that were considered.
The check-in time takes between 1-15 minutes. This may be influenced by different factors including speed of the customer care representative, client queries and time taken to confirm client details. The need for standardization of this service is apparent since it marks the beginning of a customer’s experience at the hotel (Lyle, 2012). Accordingly, this is an area in which work measurement and a time study analysis can be conducted to determine root causes of service time variation; and thus improve customer experiences.
The graph on completion of room service requests shows major disparity between times needed to complete the requests. The graph oscillates considerably and it can therefore be established that there is a significant level of inconsistency in offering this service. While the service may be completed within two minutes in some instances, there are situations in which it takes 35 minutes. In this regard, there is need to conduct work measurement and time study analysis to establish factors that may be affecting the provision of this service.
Check out times vary significantly and while it may take as little as one minute to check out, there are several instances where guest spend 20 minutes at check-out. This is an illustration that there is need to perform a time study analysis to determine factors that may be affecting service performance during check-out.
The time taken to serve at the bar differs based on the order made and this can explain the fluctuation of the graph. The restaurant/bar waiting time is a service area that would be considered for work measurement and time study analysis. Waiting time at restaurant and bars influences customer satisfaction to a great extent and it should therefore be as standardized as possible.
This graph indicates that depending on the type of maintenance to be done, it may take between one minute and 739 minutes. The huge difference can be explained by varying difficulty in different maintenance tasks, availability of staff and material to complete the services. This however warrants a work measurement and time study analysis to determine the underlying causes of the differences in performance.
Valet parking at the hotel appears to be the most stable service among those studied in this report. The service takes between one minute and five minutes most times, with six minutes having been recorded only once. This shows that the service is to a great extend standardized, although it could be improved further through work measurement and time study analysis.
Analysis and fish-bone diagram
Maintenance request completion times appear to be the most affected service area and is therefore the focus of the analysis. The fish-bone diagram of the root causes is illustrated below.
Machine/equipment
The above fish-bone diagram represents the various factors contributing to delays in maintenance request completion (Lyle, 2012). The nature of the task including complexity, urgency and history of the problem may determine how long the maintenance would cost. The second factor is people, which portrays that the availability of individuals with the right skill set to address the maintenance problem is of great significance in determining performance. The same applies for machines and equipment, which must be available for the maintenance work to be completed.
The fourth factor based on the above diagram is the process and policy; which to a significant level influences the speed at which the activity is executed. The method, which entails the approach towards diagnosis and the maintenance action, determines whether the activity will be successfully completed. Poor diagnosis for example could mean that the job may have to be repeated several times, thus influencing the time taken achieve the set objective. Finally, the environment may influence ability of workers to perform the maintenance works. In the event of power outage, the work may need to be postponed, thus causing delays.
Work sampling and time study play an important role in analysis. Work sampling helps in identification of work condition characteristics and task elements involved in performing a particular activity (Lyle, 2012). This is important in analysis as it assures that there is a clear understanding of what those involved are expected to achieve and what it takes to perform the activities. This way, it is easier to identify where possible challenges could lie in the process (Blay, et al, 2014).
Through work sampling and time study, it is possible to identify the exact amount of time required to perform specific tasks. This not only helps in establishing worker and machine delays but also establish the percentage of time in which an individual is not working and develop ways of promoting efficiency to ensure they are fully utilized. An example would be the amount of time required between submitting a request for material and the provision of the same by the procurement department. As the worker waits for the procurement to be made, it means that they will not be working. To reduce such time wastage, the company may need to revise their procurement policies to hasten the process (Josephson and Björkman, 2013).
Work sampling also promotes analysis by identifying activities that are performed by more than one worker, such that it is possible to determine factors that affect performance in such situations (Malakooti, 2013). It is apparent that where multiple workers are involved, the various characteristics affecting them could impact the overall outcome of the process.
Conclusion
Work measurement and time study are effective in determining factors influencing service delivery speed; and thus used in standardizing activities to reduce delays. This way, it is possible to improve service delivery and hence promote customer satisfaction. The fish-bone diagram illustrates areas of possible improvement, which the company can examine to improve efficiency.
References
Blay, N., Duffield, C. M., Gallagher, R., & Roche, M. (2014). Methodological integrative review
of the work sampling technique used in nursing workload research. Journal of Advanced Nursing, 70(11), 2434-2449. doi:10.1111/jan.12466 Retrieved from eds.a.ebscohost.com/ehost/pdfviewer/pdfviewer?sid=db6a7dfe-e7de-4d98-883c-72c461cd5182%40sessionmgr4001&vid=1&hid=4102
Josephson, P., & Björkman, L. (2013). Why do work sampling studies in construction? The case
of plumbing work in Scandinavia. Engineering Construction & Architectural Management (09699988), 20(6), 589-603. doi:10.1108/ECAM-12-2011-0108 Retrieved from eds.a.ebscohost.com/ehost/detail/detail?sid=e3039b50-6c2f-46c5-9a31-813f174dfedf%40sessionmgr4004&vid=0&hid=4102&bdata=JnNpdGU9ZWhvc3QtbGl2ZQ%3d%3d#AN=90682135&db=bth
Lyle, B. (2012). Work Sampling for Modern Management. Whitefish, MY: Literary Licensing,
LLC.
Malakooti, B. (2013). Operations and Production Systems with Multiple Objectives Wiley Series
in Systems Engineering and Management. Hoboken, NJ: John Wiley & Sons.
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