UMUC BMGT464 full course (all assignments +activties)

All learning activities
Week 1
Learning
Activity 1
You have been recently promoted to
the position of plant manager in a large Mexican operation owned by your
employer, a Fortune 500 company. After taking some time to assess the
situation, you have determined that the implementation of Kaizen continuous
improvement activities would substantially improve the quality and efficiency
of the operation. Pioneered by Toyota and widely adopted around the world by
numerous companies, this technique is based on having employees analyze their
own working situation and area, identify problems, and suggest changes. It has
been shown to be particularly effective and also results in increased employee
satisfaction.
After several attempt to implement
the techniques, you are becoming concerned that it is not being adopted as
readily and enthusiastically as you have seen elsewhere. You begin to suspect
some cultural issues and refer to Geert Hofstede’s web site for guidance:
.com/countries.html”>http://geert-hofstede.com/countries.html
Using this resource and the material
in your text, respond to the following questions:
1. What cultural
issues do you think exist that might impede the implementation in this plant?
2. How would you
address them in order to take advantage of the benefits of Kaizen?
Remember to make one initial post and
to respond to two of your classmates.
(Instructor’s note: This is an actual
scenario taken from the Instructor’s experience with a plant employing some
2,500 people, mostly women, in Mexico.
Learning
Activity 2
You are a manager employed by a
Fortune 500 company that has a reputation for highly ethical conduct and a
highly regarded ethical code. You have recently been transferred to your
company’s operations in Tianjin, China. While attending a meeting with a key
supplier, you are dismayed that the senior representative of the supplier has
brought a gift, an obviously expensive jade statue, to commemorate the signing
of a new contract. You are aware that gift giving is more the norm in China and
that refusing a gift can be highly insulting. Yet, you do not want to violate
your country’s ethical policies. How do you proceed? Do you employ your
company’s home country ethics, local ethical norms, or some combination?
Respond with one initial post and at
least two responses to your colleagues.
Week 2
Learning
Activity #1
This week’s schedule calls for you to access and complete two self
evaluations of your personality type – the Jung Typology and the Big Five
Personality Assessment. Complete these assessments, recording the results for
reference. Then, share the results and comment on how, based on the information
contained in this week’s readings, your personality is likely to impact your
work life and choice of work. Comment on whether you believe you are a good fit
for your current job, whether there are different professions or jobs which you
think you might be better suited for, and how you might consider changing your
situation if it seems called for.
Remember to make your initial post and then respond to at least
two of your colleagues.
Learning Activity #2
You are interviewing a candidate for a position of some
responsibility and access to significant amounts of both merchandise and money.
The applicant happens to be Japanese and is highly qualified with outstanding
references. You notice the individual is reluctant to look you in the eye when
responding to questions. What is your perception of this behavior? Should
you be concerned about hiring this individual for such a sensitive position?
What is the interviewee’s perception of this behavior and how does it differ
from yours? Remember to make your initial posting and to respond to two of your
colleagues.

Week 3
Learning
Activity #1
This week, we are spending much of our time discussing and
learning about motivating people. There is, however, a contrarian viewpoint
that says if you get the right people, they are self motivated. Jim Collins,
author of Good to Great holds this view. Watch the video below:
.jimcollins.com/media_topics/first-who.html#audio%3d96″>The Right
People are Self Motivated (Scroll down to the video with this
title)
Do you agree or disagree with Collins’ viewpoint? Make your case
in the discussion but be sure to use more than just your personal opinion and
experiences. Back up your reasoning my drawing on the theories and concepts in
this week’s readings.
Learning Activity #2
Based on the good work that he did in handling previous
multicultural issues, Frank Jones has promoted to the General Manager of his
company’s Tokyo operations. Performance in this operation has been just barely
acceptable and he would like to find a way to motivate higher levels of
performance. In a previous position in the New York operation, he implemented a
performance improvement motivation plan that included individual bonuses
individual recognition at an annual sales meeting and attendance at the
meeting, held at a post resort, for spouses of the top 10% of the force.
Frank has engaged you as an OB consultant and asked you to review
the plan and recommend modifications that would make it successful in Tokyo.
What do you tell him. Support your recommendations by referring to significant
motivational theories and concepts and to material identifying relevant
cultural dimensions of Japan.

Week 4
Learning Activity #1
Patrick
Lencioni’s book The
Five Dysfunctions of a Teamhas become a classic treatise on
best practices to use in creating and leading teams.
First, watch the short video below:

Next, refer to the PDF found at this link:
.tablegroup.com/imo/media/doc/the_five_dysfunctions.pdf”>The Five Dysfunctions of A Team
Learning Activity #2
Respond to both of the following questions, and respond to
three of your colleagues for each post. Make your initial post by creating a
new topic.
1.Referring
to the video and the PDF summary of the five dysfunctions, pick the dysfunction
that you believe to be the most significant and harmful and explain your
choice. Give an example of where you have seen this dysfunction in action in a
team in which you have participated or which you have observed.
2.Select
a team that you have been a member or leader of or have interacted with and
determine whether this “team” was a real team as described in the
material in the text or was actually a group that did not meet the tests of
being a team. Describe the factors that where present that led you to your conclusion.

Week 5
Learning Activity #1
Ethical leadership is a subject that scholars have debated for
years. Is all leadership, by definition, ethical or is it possible to have
unethical leadership?
Download the article from the link below
.regent.edu/acad/global/publications/sl_proceedings/2007/griffith.pdf”>http://www.regent.edu/acad/global/publications/sl_proceedings/2007/griffith.pdf
In it, I argue that ethical leadership is made up of two
components, an ethical leadership process and and ethical leadership objective.
Study the article and then respond to the following:
Pick a famous leader whom you believe is or was either ethical or
unethical. Argue your case in the discussion post using the criteria set forth
in the article above. Make sure you discuss both the leadership process
employed and the ethicality of the leader’s objectives.
Learning Activity #2
This week’s material covers the perils of groupthink,
overcommitment and avoidance of failure, and the concept of a premortem, an
analysis of potential failure scenarios before embarking upon a project or
activity. The following podcast touches on all of these topics and attempts to
make the case that failing early is good and avoiding failure at all cost is
unhealthy. In addition, it applies market based economics to the prediction of
failure in a novel way.

Premortems are becoming increasingly popular and, in fact,
a formal method for conducting them and prioritizing risks has been developed.
Failure Mode Effects Analysis was originally designed to allow engineers to
predict failures in complex systems and to prioritize the risks to allow them
to be reduced in an orderly and cost effective manner. It has now been widely
applied to other situations where a premortem makes sense, such as in the
management of complex projects. Read the short tutorial at the following link:
.moresteam.com/toolbox/fmea.cfm”>https://www.moresteam.com/toolbox/fmea.cfm
Then, identify a significant project or process where you are
employed and use the technique to conduct an FMEA. Use an Excel spreadsheet to
show the various failure modes, severities, and probability of detection and
their associated ranking numbers. Sort them into descending order of RPN, and
then propose actions that can be taken to remove or control each risk.

Week 6
Learning Activity #1
As the
text notes, the ability for an organization to change in order to meet changing
business environments and threats is key to its success. Click on the Resources
section of the classroom (at the top) then go to the library. In the search
function, enter the term Resource Rigidity. Read the first article that appears
in the search results Unbundling the Structure of Inertia: Resource vs. Routine
Rigidityby Clark Gilbert. The article theorizes that these
types of inertia are responsible for much of the inability of organizations to
change and uses the newspaper industry as an example.
Select another company which you believe has been unable to
effectively change to meet changing market requirements or threats. Apply the
concepts of the article to diagnose the inertia of the company, explaining how
you believe the resource and routine rigidity impacted the organization and how
you, as a leader would have overcome these issues.
Remember to respond to two of your colleagues’ posts.
Learning Activity #2
There are a variety of instruments that can be used to assess
and diagnose organizational culture. One of these uses what is called the
competing values framework.
Proceed to the website:
.ocai-online.com/products/ocai-one”>http://www.ocai-online.com/products/ocai-one
and follow the directions for registering and taking the
individual Organizational Culture Assessment Instrument. (Note: use your
personal email when registering and do not attempt to register and take the
assessment from a work computer or from behind a computer protected by a
firewall, it may result in issues. If you have trouble with the site, create
another free email address such as a gmail address, and register from that
site.
After you have completed the assessment, post your results,
including the diagram by cutting and pasting it into the discussion area or
including it as an attachment. Using the results, describe your organization’s
culture with special emphasis on the discrepancy between your preferred style
and the existing cultural style. Comment on how you believe the culture aids or
hinders the organization’s efforts with special attention to the ability to
change and innovate.
Remember to respond to two of your colleagues’ posts.

Week 7
Learning Activity #1
Stress is a pervasive and often destructive part of our working
lives as we deal with deadlines, balance our work and personal lives, and deal
with the today’s economic pressures. We often wonder if the level of stress in
our lives has increased or if we are just more aware of it. Professor Mark
Williams of Oxford University has studied this phenomenon and has some answers
for us.
Go to .bemindfulonline.com/”>http://www.bemindfulonline.com and view the video
in the upper right corner to hear Professor Williams’ thoughts. Then, go
to .co.uk/mbsr/test/”>http://bemindful.co.uk/mbsr/test/ for
the stress test.
After taking the test, create an original post to share your
stress level. In addition, drawing on the material in the text, identify the
top three stressors in your life and suggest several courses of action you can
take to reduce the level of stress affecting you. Remember to respond to at
least two of your colleagues.
Learning Activity #2
We are approaching the end of the course and your final project
is due in Week 8. so we are going to go a bit easy on this week’s learning
activities. In order to help you get started on your project, make an initial
posting identifying which of the organizations you intend to analyze. In
addition, include a brief proposed outline and a list of what you think are the
critical issues facing the organization from an OB perspective. You will be
doing additional research during the next two weeks, so you will not be held to
these items, but they should give you a headstart on the paper. Remember to
respond constructively to two of your peers, offering suggestions as to how
they might improve their analysis or offering additional items to
consider.

Week 8
We are wrapping up this week and I would like to have you spend
most of your time on the final project. Accordingly, we have only one activity
this week.
The organizational issues surrounding the Secret Service have
been widely reported and debated in the news and a new Acting Director has been
appointed. He is a former agent with eperience on the Presiential detail. He
has a very big challenge ahead of him, so let’s help him out.
After reading about what has been going on at the VA, put
yourself in the shoes of an OB consultant brought in to help the new Director.
Identify the top three OB issues that you believe must be immediately
addressed to improve the performance of the VA. Then, identify the actions you
would recommend to the Secretary in order to address these issues. Be sure you
draw on the concepts and theories form the course in formulating your response.Case Study 1InstructionsCase Study 1: Individual Level of AnalysisYou are to review and analyze a case study that describes the effect of individual characteristics and behavior (individual level of analysis) on organizational performance and effectiveness. You will also propose recommendations for change and improvement.The case, “Reach for the Stars—Developing Salespeople, Achieving Organizational Success,” describes critical observations and incidents concerning employee (manager and worker) characteristics and behavior, and their effects on employee and performance organizational effectiveness.You must do the following:Identify and analyze the critical incidents (problems, situations, issues, and consequences) in the case that influenced individual and organizational performance and effectiveness.Make appropriate recommendations to improve any problems, meet challenges, and take advantage of opportunities.The discussion and analysis should be based on concepts, theories, and research related to organizational behavior at the individual level, and therefore should address sources and topics covered in the readings and learning activities for Weeks 1-3 (i.e., individual ability, biographical, demographic, and cultural characteristics, personality and emotions, values and attitude, motivation, and perception). In addition to evidencing an understanding of material covered in resources assigned and examined in Weeks 1-3, you must use at least one additional reference.Your responses will include:identification and explanation of all relevant concepts and theories, using examples where appropriatean explanation of the specific characteristics, incidents and/or situations in the case that addresses the concepts or theoriesanalysis of the relevance of identifying and better understanding individual characteristicsanalysis of pros and cons of key incidents or situations (i.e., what are the drawbacks and/or positives associated with the situation as it related to individual performance and/or organizational productivity and effectiveness?)specific recommendations to address problems, challenges, and opportunities, and a proposed follow-up or evaluationRequired Formatting of Paper:This paper should be double-spaced, 12-point font, and between three to four pages in length excluding the title page and reference page.Title page with your name, the course name, the date, and the instructor’s name.Use at least one reference other than the course material.Use APA formatting for in-text citations and reference page. You are expected to paraphrase and not use quotes. Deductions will be taken when quotes are used and found to be unnecessary.Submit the paper in the Assignment Folder.Note: Professors may use the case below or select another case that focuses on OB at the individual level of analysis. This case was designed and developed for BMGT 464 from original and adapted sources..8181819915771px;=”” font-style:=”” normal;=”” font-variant:=”” font-weight:=”” letter-spacing:=”” line-height:=”” orphans:=”” auto;=”” text-align:=”” start;=”” text-indent:=”” 0px;=”” text-transform:=”” none;=”” white-space:=”” widows:=”” word-spacing:=”” -webkit-text-stroke-width:=”” 0px;”=””>Case Study 2, BMGT 464Going Global: What Does it Take to Make Cross-cultural Teams Successful?PetGourmand, a second generation, family-owned Memphis-based company with about 200 employees, develops, manufactures, and sells nutritious, gourmet food products for pets. PetGourmand is a low-tech, hands-on, bricks and mortar company with solid brand recognition, an impeccable reputation for high quality and ethical standards and processes, older work force (average employee age is late 40s), low staff turnover, impressive record of speedy state and federal new-product approvals, and solid working relationships with their veterinary and pet-owner customers. For the most part the company plays up the PetGourmand as a close “family,” although the organization’s structure is hierarchical with fairly rigid management divisions and reporting policies. Research, manufacturing, and sales and marketing operate in traditional fashion, with employees reporting to supervisors or mid-level managers. By the 1990s, sales and distribution grew from Tennessee into a regional market, establishing a competitive advantage throughout the US South. Then came the Great Recession. As customers lost jobs, and small business profits, such as veterinary practices dipped, the demand of “fancy cat food,” as one PetGourmand lab technician said, seemed to disappear overnight. By the time Bon Vivant Specialities contacted PetGourmand’s CEO about acquiring PetGourmand, the writing was on the wall.Bon Vivant Specialities (BVS) is a large Chinese-owned manufacturer and distributor of gourmet food and beverages, headquartered in Hong Kong. Manufacturing plants operate in main land China, and the company has additional offices in Europe and Australia. By acquiring the smaller, well-respected PetGourmand, BVS aims to diversify and expand its consumer base by including products tailor-made to meet market projections of a customer upsurge in healthy, gourmet pet foods and treats. Given the availability of telecommunications technology (software and hardware), and BVS’s current expertise and use of such technology, geography and location should not be an insurmountable issue. PetGourmand employees, on the other hand, are dispirited about the acquisition, and anxious about “working for foreigners,” downsizing, less face-to-face interaction, language differences, and more electronic systems put into place. To make matters worse, recent news media have printed stories about tainted pet food made by other companies in China. Employees fear loss of product quality and damage to PetGourmand’s reputation.BVS has told PetGourmand workers that—for now—most employees will be retained. However, all employees will be evaluated, and reassigned and integrated into BVS’s existing, and to-be-formed-as-needed, work teams, a key component of BVS’s flat, smoothly efficient organizational structure. BVS’s management staff, scientists, and sales professionals tend to be tech-savvy, culturally diverse, young-to-middle age (ages 25 to mid-forties), bi-lingual, ambitious, self-directed, accustomed to working remotely, and clearly focused on the company’s commercial success. BVS’s Harvard-educated CEO, Daniel Chinn, supports increasing the company’s competitive edge by “discovering and developing individual potential through group collaboration and team synergy,” and is known to be an enthusiastic supporter of job training and career growth beginning from his days as a brilliant, hard-driving MBA student. He’s eager to move forward on the integration of “PetGourmand’s greatest asset—it’s knowledge rich, experienced workers.”Group Research Project: Case Study 2–Group Level of AnalysisThis assignment is a group project. It will assess your and your study group’s knowledge of the effect of group behavior on organizational performance and effectiveness. It also will examine your critical thinking and writing skills within a collaborative team environment. Your team will be created under Study Groups, and where all collaboration will take place. You must read the case titled “Going Global: What Does it Take to Make Cross-cultural Teams Successful?”; identify and analyze key problems, challenges, and opportunities in the case; and make recommendations for solving the problems and challenges. Recommendations and analysis should address OB issues focusing on the group level of analysis, and should be based on information from Chapters 8-11 and portions of Chapters 12 (as designated in the Course Schedule), and two outside references.Instructions:Read assigned material for Weeks 4, and 5. Research relevant, credible, well founded outside materials to support analysis.Document and evaluate strategies or interventions that the organization could use to solve problems and enhance team performance and effectiveness.Propose and evaluate recommendations for ongoing improvements to organizational performance and success.Evaluate each of your fellow team members’ contribution and performance using a structure performance measure (use the attached peer evaluation form/rubric).Your group project case analysis report should use the following format:Summary of the case backgroundIdentification, analysis, and discussion of problems, challenges, and opportunitiesProposed recommendations and solutionsMake sure you thoroughly identify, explain, and analyze the key concepts, theories, issues, and problems in the case. Your analysis and recommendations should show mastery of the course subject and good critical thinking skills.DeliverableYour paper should be four typed, doubled-spaced pages in length.You should use appropriate APA-style citations and proper report writing style, including headings and subheadings.You are expected to paraphrase and not use quotes. Deductions will be taken when quotes are used and found to be unnecessary..8181819915771px;=”” font-style:=”” normal;=”” font-variant:=”” font-weight:=”” letter-spacing:=”” line-height:=”” orphans:=”” auto;=”” text-align:=”” start;=”” text-indent:=”” 0px;=”” text-transform:=”” none;=”” white-space:=”” widows:=”” word-spacing:=”” -webkit-text-stroke-width:=”” 0px;”=””>Final Project: Organizational Level of AnalysisYou are to research and analyze the organizational performance and effectiveness of one of the organizations listed below. You will also propose recommendations for change and improvement.GoogleTargetMicrosoftWal-MartFAAFDICThe specific tasks are outlined below:Interview, if available, organizational members, research the organization’s web sites, and use at least four other academic or highly respected business publications to gather information and research issues.Do a SWOT analysis on the organization.Document and evaluate strategies or interventions that the organization could use to enhance its performance and effectiveness.Propose and evaluate recommendations for improvements in the organization.The focus of the research will be on examining and analyzing OB issues at the organization-systems level. The report may address concepts, theories, and proposed solutions relating to effective human resource practices, leadership challenges, organization structural design and organization change, culture and development and their effect on organization and employee productivity, turnover, absence, satisfaction, citizenship, etc.DeliverableThe deliverable will be an eight-page, double-spaced report. The report must include a cover page and bibliography; follow APA guidelines for citation; and use one-inch margins and 10- or 12-point type. Four references other than the course material are required. You are expected to paraphrase and not use quotes. Deductions will be taken when quotes are used and found to be unnecessary.Grading Rubric for Organizational Level of AnalysisCriteriaExemplaryAccomplishedDevelopingBeginningMinimumBelow Standards64.83.62.41.20Formulated, wrote, interpreted, argued, and evaluated concepts/theories of organizational behavior that create an environment (work and organization design) that leads to high performanceFormulated, wrote, interpreted, argued, and evaluated at least three concepts/theories without relating to how they would create a high-performance environmentInterpreted, argued, and wrote at least three concepts/theories without relating to how they would create a high-performance environmentInterpreted, argued, and wrote at least two concepts/theories without relating to how they would create a high-performance environmentFormulated, argued, and wrote at least two concepts/theories without relating to how they would create a high-performance environmentFormulated at least one concept/theory without relating to how it would create a high-performance environmentDid not write concepts/theories of organizational behavior creating an environment of high performance64.83.62.41.20Analyzed, proposed, devised, and designed strategies, policies, and procedures relating to leadership challenges such as decision making, change, conflict resolution, and organizational commitment in an organization at every levelAnalyzed, proposed, devised, and designed at least three strategies, policies, and procedures relating to leadership challenges, with an example on a global levelAnalyzed, proposed, devised, and designed at least three strategies, polices, and procedures relating to leadership challenges, with an exampleProposed and devised at least two strategies, polices, and procedures relating to leadership challenges, without an exampleAnalyzed and proposed at least two strategies, polices, or procedures relating to leadership challengesAnalyzed at least one strategy, policy, or procedure relating to leadership challengesDid not analyze, propose, devise, or design strategies, polices, and procedures relating to leadership challenges64.83.62.41.20Analyzed, proposed, devised, and researchedtechniques relating to human resources policies and practices (personal selection, training and development, and performance evaluation)Analyzed, proposed, devised, researched, and evaluated at least three techniques relating to human resources on a local, national, and global levelAnalyzed, proposed, devised, and researched at least three techniques relating to human resources, without detailsProposed, devised, and researched at least two techniques relating to human resources without an example in a real-life organizationProposed, devised, and researched at least two techniques relating to human resourcesAnalyzed at least one technique relating to human resourcesDid not analyze, propose, devise, or research techniques relating to human resources64.83.62.41.20Analyzed and createdOB recommendations relating to developing a high-performing organizational cultureAnalyzed, debated, and evaluated the organizational culture to create OB recommendationsAnalyzed, debated, and evaluated the organizational culture to determine OB recommendationsDebated and evaluated the organizational culture to determine OB recommendationsAnalyzed and evaluated the organizational culture to determine OB recommendationsAnalyzed the organizational culture to determine OB recommendationsDid not analyze and create OB recommendations64.83.62.41.20Demonstrated use ofassignment instructions, mechanics, grammar, and appropriate reference citations/APA formatComposed, constructed, and formulated entire report without grammatical errors; followed all formatting and APA requirements and assignment instructions; demonstrated conciseness and excellence in writingFormulated report without grammatical errors; followed required instructions, format, and APA citation and reference requirementsConstructed report without grammatical errors, followed required format and assignment instructions, but did not fully meet reference requirementsComposed documents without grammatical errors, but did not use proper format, or reference for; requirements not fully metDescribed organizational content in writing with grammatical errors and did not follow assignment instructionsDid not use proper mechanics or APA format, or follow assignment instructions