Reference no: EM132362584

Assessment 1

Using the following information as a starting point, conduct further research to find out what could be done to provide communication to all stakeholders. This research will be based on topics (channels of communication; technology & social media communication principles; group decision making and stakeholders) covered in class during weeks 5 and 7 and applying the report writing skills covered in week 4.

Assessment Description

You are working for an organisation that would like to do a ‘stakeholder analysis report' so they can improve their communication processes both internally to staff and externally to other organisations and customer groups.

The organisation has provided a generalised guideline of the key stakeholder groups they want you to include in your report. Your role is to research and complete a report on the different needs of each of the stakeholders and make a recommendation on what communication strategies might work best for each group.

• First the organisation has a number of different suppliers they work with and they want to be able to make sure the quality of the products they are providing are competitive and meet the needs of the customers they serve. This group need updates on processes and compliance standards the organisation expects of them.

• Secondly the organisation has a large team of employees with many different roles. Some are based in the office dealing with customers face to face, while many are a sales and service team who travel to the clients and work with them in a variety of locations. The employees need to be aware of the latest promotions and discounts on offer as well as training to keep them up to date on the latest products.

• Thirdly the customers vary from individual people to small businesses. Some of these require frequent updates while others only need contact a couple of times a year. This group needs to be updated on promotions, technical support and product training.

All three groups have different needs when it comes to the type of information and how they receive information. Analyse these needs in relation to the theory (refer to readings 5.1 and 7.1 in the portal to assist with this) and make one communication strategy recommendation for each group (Three recommendations in total).

Assessment Instructions

The assessment is to be presented in a Report Format using headings and requires the following sections:
• Cover page
• Table of contents
• Introduction (100 words) - state simply the purpose of the report and the structure it will follow
• Overview of the communication needs of each group (200 words) - in your own words a general description of the needs of each stakeholder group and what type of communication channels or tools you may need to consider.
• Communication Models / Theories (300 words) - your own research on what communication models or theories help you understand and support your recommendations (think about what information you learned in weeks 5 and 7; then refer to the weekly readings for those weeks).
• Conclusion (100 words) - a summary of the key information you identified in your report
• Recommendations (300 words) - Identify a total of 3 strategies the organisation could implement to ensure efficient communication with each of the groups concerned.
• Reference List five

Reading 5.1 Grant, A, Meadows, J.H, (eds.) 2018, Communication Technology Update and Fundamentals, 16th edn.,Routledge, New York, NY, pp. 279 - 303.
Reading 7.1 Lehman, C, DuFrene, D & Walker, R 2016, BCOM business communication, 7th edn.,Cengage Leaning, Boston, MA.

Assessment 2

Your Task
Your project case study is posted in the assessment 1 section of the student portal. We will use this case study for all assessments, and it will be discussed and analysed to the weekly content in every class. Projects normally have a start and end date and you will work on your change management project for 12 weeks. When working on a project it is quite normal to have to complete progression reports reflecting on some of your experiences and the challenges you have faced. In this report you need to outline the successes and challenges you experienced (this will be based on your feedback from the tasks in assessment 1 and experiences you had during the class workshops); this will include the relevant theories that you applied and how these theories assisted you in developing positive outcomes for the Company.

Assessment Description

The assessment is to be presented in a Report Format using headings and requires the following sections:
• Cover page
• Table of contents
• Introduction (150 words) - a synopsis of the situation, identifying the key challenges
• Assessment 1:
o Give an overview of the research (200 words) - research of the literature in the topic area.
o Analysis - (200 words) critical evaluation of the literature and explain how you applied it to the challenges.
o Summary - (150 words) what worked and what you would you do next time to achieve better outcomes.
• In class activities (300 words) - Based on weeks 1 to 8, what activities did you find help develop a better understanding or resonated with you. What theory has helped your understanding the most and explain why and how this has changed the way you might manage change in the future.
• Conclusion and outcomes (200 words) - a summary of the key theory discussed and why it has influenced you. Summarise your goals and outcomes to improve in the future.
• Reference List five

Please refer to the marking criteria as a guideline to help you complete the report.
From 2,3,5, and 7 week reading materials
Reading 2.1 Collins, D 1999, Organizational change sociological perspectives, Routledge, London, pp. 1-8.
Reading 2.2 Burke, WW &Noumair, DA 2015, ‘What is organization development?'Organization development a process of learning and changing, 3 rdedn. Pearson Education Inc., Upper Saddle River, New Jersey, pp. 1-16.
Reading 3.1 Carnall, C & By, RT 2014, Managing change in organizations, 6 rdedn. Pearson Education Limited, Harlow, UK, pp. 195-225 & 279-285.
Reading 5.1 Shields, J.L 2006, ‘Organization and culture change' in Enterprise transformation understanding and enabling fundamental change, eds W Rouse, John Wiley & Sons Inc., Hoboken, New Jersey, pp. 331-358.
Reading 7.1 Hayes, J 2010, ‘Restructuring for strategic gain: mergers and acquisitions' The theory and practice of change management, 3 rdedn., Palgrave Macmillan, New York, NY, pp. 394-406.

Word Count: 1200 Words (+/- 10%)