The management of change in an organization is often led by an internal or external change consultant who leads change from a project perspective with a phased approach that includes the project definition, a diagnosis of the situation, recommendations for a solution, a plan for implementing the recommendations, and the actual implementation of the plan.
You will prepare 2 consulting proposals based on the cases from the textbook assigned in Modules/Weeks 1–3 (Consulting Proposal 1) and Modules/Weeks 4–6 (Consulting Proposal 2). Each proposal must be 1000–1500 words and include at least the following 5 sections:
1. Definition of project
2. Diagnosis of current situation
3. Recommendations
4. Implementation plan
5. Summary
A sample/template for the proposals is provided in the Assignment Instructions folder. Each proposal must include a title and reference page formatted according to current APA requirements. You must use a minimum of 4 scholarly peer-reviewed sources plus the text. Write the proposal as if you are addressing the CEO or organizational leadership as identified in the selected case study. The overall narrative in the proposal must include significant emphasis on diagnosing the problems in the business with recommendations for relevant change. These recommendations must be supported with specific examples or sources.
For example:
• If the organization needs to change its recruitment strategy or perhaps offer new products, what specific types of change are involved?
• Will the employees be affected? If so, what type of employees?
• How should the recommended changes be implemented?
• Are there drivers of the change that will determine the success of the change initiative? If so, what are they?
Keep in mind that the proposal is an overview of the current situation, needed changes, and recommendations; therefore, it is important to refrain from providing too much detail. However, the proposal must contain enough information for the CEO to select a course of action. Because the person receiving your proposal is the CEO, there is no need to re-state information in the case study as he/she should already be aware of the current situation.
You are encouraged to integrate information from any of the Reading & Study materials or your own experience. These prompts are provided to support your analysis and critical thinking as you read the cases and to give you some structure if you select one of these for your proposal assignments.
Consulting Proposal 1 Questions for Consideration:
Use the following case for Consulting Proposal 1.
Case The Plane Will Not Move!
– What was the problem McDonnell Douglas was having with the C-17?
– What was the thinking that allowed the issue to persist?
– Describe the three main priorities of Koz, the new plant manager.
– How did the employees of MD originally view his priorities? How was this reflected in terms of production?
– What did Koz do to illustrate and amplify his vision for his priorities?
– What was the eventual result of Koz’s “nutty idea?”
– What factors do you believe led to a successful transformation?
– Is the approach of Koz sustainable at that plant, transferable across the company, and is the change management of Koz reproducible in other leaders. If so, explain why and how to move forward with it. If not, explain why and suggest a different approach going forward.
Consulting Proposal 2 Questions for Consideration:
Use the following case for Consulting Proposal 2.
Case Change Agent in Waiting:
– What are the key characteristics of government organizations, like the Housing Development Board of Singapore, and not-for-profits which help explain the content for this case?
– What is the change challenge for HDB and for Tan as she returns to her former employer?
– How do you evaluate her action plan? What are its strengths? What are your concerns?
– What would you suggest to improve her plan?
– What does it take to drive change from a lower to middle management position and in a government context?
Consulting Proposal 1 is due by 11:59 p.m. (ET) on Sunday of Module/Week 3. Consulting Proposal 2 is due by 11:59 p.m. (ET) on Sunday of Module/Week 6.
Once this assessment has been completed, a comprehensive plan for managing change must be developed which should include input from all affected stakeholders. This plan should outline specific goals and objectives along with strategies for achieving them, a timeline for implementation, resources needed to carry out tasks associated with the project, roles and responsibilities of key players involved in each stage of execution, and measures for evaluating progress towards completion (Cameron & Green 2015). In addition to this top-down approach there should also be open channels of communication between management and staff so that feedback can be collected during each phase of implementation.
The final step involves the actual deployment of changes within the organization which requires close monitoring by those in charge while encouraging employee participation throughout the process (Cameron & Green 2015). Change management consultants can provide valuable support here as they are often better equipped at understanding how certain changes may impact various teams internally while helping ensure buy-in from employees who may otherwise resist such initiatives.
Pascal’s Triangle was named after Blaise Pascal. Pascal’s triangle starts with the number 1 and goes down the scale. When you start with one, add more numbers in a triangular shape, like a pyramid of some sort. All the numbers on the surrounding right and left sides of the triangle are one. The insides of the triangle are then filled out by finding the sum of the two numbers above it to its left and right (Hosch, 2009, Pierce, 2014). The formula for Pascal’s Triangle is usually written in a form “n choose k” which looks like this: (Pierce, 2014). Pascal’s Triangle is also a never ending triangle of equilaterals (Coolman, 2015). The triangle is symmetric to the other side, with means if you divide the triangle in half, the numbers on the left are the exact same numbers on the right (Pierce, 2014). To find the numbers inside of Pascal’s Triangle, you can use the following formula: nCr = n-1Cr-1 + n-1Cr. Another formula that can be used for Pascal’s Triangle is the binomial formula.
What is the Binomial Theorem?
The binomial theorem is used to find coefficients of each row by using the formula (a+b)n. Binomial means adding two together. According to Rod Pierce, binomial theorem is “what happens when you multiply a binomial by itself… many times.” (2014.) Another way of finding a solution is using binomial distribution, which is like playing a game of heads and tails. The formula for binomial distribution is: .
The binomial formula is (a+b)n. The more complex version would be:
As you can see, the binomial formula equals the “n chooses k” formula (Pierce, 2014). Binomial Distribution has to do with Pascal’s Triangle in the sense that when the nth row (from (a + b)n) is divided by 2n, that nth row becomes the binomial distribution.
Coin Tosses in Relation to Binomial Theorem
When tossing a coin, there are two possible results, head or tails. There is a ½ chance of getting heads and a ½ chance of getting tails. In the event that we flip two coins, there are four (three) conceivable results. We may get two heads, or two tails, or one head and one tail (x2). The possibility of getting two heads is one out of four, or ¼. The shot of getting two tails is ¼. The shot of getting one head and one tail is two out of four, or ½ (Spencer, 1989). As shown in the table below, the toss would represent the row in Pascal’s Triangle.
The heads and tails method for row one is like flipping two coins and getting two results. The first row is organized, 1, for getting a tails, another 1 for getting heads, and 2 for the number of coins, as explained earlier gets the order of the first row, 1 2 1.
~ Heads/Tails Chart/Diagram
Other Patterns in Pascal’s Triangle
The coin toss might be one pattern, but there are others. Some others are the “horizontal sums” (Pierce, 2014). The horizontal sums pattern is adding up the numbers in each row and getting their sums. If you keep doing this, you see the pattern where the sum doubles at each row (Pierce, 2014).
Another pattern is the “exponents of 11” pattern (Pierce, 2014). In this pattern, first, you raise 11 to 0 (110), then you raise it to the numbers after 0 (for example, 110, 111, 112, 113…). The way this relates to Pascal’s Triangle is that 110 = 1, and the number in the first row in Pascal’s Triangle is 1. 111 = 11, and the numbers in the second row are 1, 1. 112 = 121, and the numbers in the third row are 1, 2, 1. This goes on so on and