Reference no: EM132876840

BSBLDR803 Develop and cultivate collaborative partnerships and relationships

Assessment Task 2

Cultivate partnerships

Task summary
You are required to write a report on a proposed partnership between two case study organisations. Youare then required to meet with the senior management of both organisations to get their input, approval and support for your report and the partnership.

Assessment Task 2 Instructions

Carefully read the following:

Grow Management Consultants is a consultancy company specialising in leadership development services. These services include:
• Mentoring training
• Coaching
• Management consultation
• Management program evaluation
• Development of cutting-edge tools, resources and expert advice
• Sharing best and next practices
• Leading organisations through the process of creating a leadership culture

The company has a CEO, a General Manager (newly appointed), an Operations Manager, five Principal Consultants, twelve trainers and a small HR team. A new Strategic Plan was recently developed to guide the organisation over the next three years. One of the key objectives of the Strategic Plan is for Grow Management Consultants to become established as a learning organisation.

At a recent Management Team workshop, it was suggested that Grow Management Consultants could form a partnership with an established Registered Training Organisation. It was thought that, if they work together with an RTO that offers mostly business and management courses, Grow Management Consultants' trainers could attend courses that the RTO runs, and the RTO's students could benefit from Grow Management Consultants' business connections for practicums and office-based training.

After some investigation and discussions, King Edward VII College was found to be the perfect partner. Not only is its campus in the same suburb as Grow Management Consultants' head office, but it offers a range of courses in management, marketing, human resources and international business. It currently has around 500 students enrolled across all its courses. Courses are offered at all levels from Certificate II to Graduate Diploma.

The College currently employs 24 management and staff that include the CEO, an Operations Manager (you), a Marketing Manager and Marketing Assistant, office staff and approximately 12 trainers. The College's management has discussed the partnership offer and are very supportive of it. It is considered to be a win-win proposition for both organisations.

You are the newly appointed General Manager of Grow Management Consultants and the CEO has given you the task of leading the new partnership, ensuring that it is accepted and supported by all employees and customers.

Complete the following activities:

1. Write a partnership briefing report.
As one of the first undertakings of the partnership discussion, you are required to write a draft briefing report on the proposed partnership.
Begin by reviewing the following company documents:
• College Strategic Plan
• Consultants Strategic Business Plan

This version of the document will be a draft only. You will ensure that the final version of this document is a collaborative effort by involving colleagues working at both organisations to give their input into its development.

This draft version is your opportunity to demonstrate your knowledge of best practice in this area by writing a report that could be used to guide an ideal partnership between the two organisations.

Your briefing report should include the following:
• The expected outcomes from the partnership
• How consultation and collaboration between the two organisations will be achieved. You will need to research models for effective consultation and collaboration within partnerships and describe those that could be relevant for the case study situation.
• Communication solutions
• Processes to foster a positive culture that embraces collaboration
• Activities that will occur and the performance standards that they are expected to achieve. Performance standards should be clear and quantifiable.
• Indicators and feedback processes that can be used to evaluate the impact of the partnership on the health of the work environment in both organisations.

Your briefing report should also include an evaluation of the cost effectiveness of the proposed partnership. Both organisations are keen to establish a partnership that is financially attractive for everyone involved. They have established that, wherever possible, no money will be paid from one organisation to the other for services provided, but each should provide an equivalent value in services to the other.
The values that have been given to the services that have already been discussed are:
Your briefing report should outline how the work activities in the chart can be allocated in a cost effective and equitable manner. You should give clear, quantifiable performance standards that can be agreed to by both organisations.

Use the Briefing Report Template to guide your work.

2. Send an email to Senior Management of both organisations (your assessor).
The text of the email should be in grammatically correct English, written in an appropriate (polite, business-like) style.

It should introduce and summarise the contents of the attachment and seek their feedback.

Ask them when it would be possible for you all to meet to discuss your report.

Attach your Draft Briefing Report to the email.

3. Meet with the Senior Management of both organisations.
This meeting is an important opportunity for you to generate trust, confidence and support from the other Senior Managers. Their commitment to the partnership will be a key factor in how the partnership is accepted by both organisations.

Prior to the meeting, you should also research and use at least two influencing strategies that you think could be effective at the meeting.

As you are spearheading the partnership management, you are required to demonstrate a high standard of conduct during the meeting. Your performance during the meeting will be assessed, as will your ability to establish and cultivate positive relationships with all those present.

Begin by outlining both organisations' mission, purpose, values, objectives and strategies, drawing parallels between the two organisations' objectives.

Discuss each section of your briefing report with the meeting attendees, making sure that decisions about the wording or contents of each section are made by the whole group before moving on to the next. Take notes on these.

During the meeting, you are required to demonstrate effective communication skills including:
• Speaking clearly and concisely
• Using non-verbal communication to assist with understanding
• Asking questions to identify required information
• Responding to questions as required
• Using active listening techniques to confirm understanding

When the meeting has been concluded, ask the participants about your performance.

You should be able to name at least two influencing strategies that you used during the meeting. Ask the participants whether they felt that your strategies were successful.

4. Revise the Partnership Briefing report.
Following the meeting, revise the briefing report to reflect the input from the meeting's participants.

Save this version of the document as Revised Briefing report.

5. Send an email to Senior Management of both organisations (your assessor).
The text of the email should be in grammatically correct English, written in an appropriate (polite, business-like) style.

It should introduce and summarise the contents of the attachment and seek their feedback.

Ask them when it would be possible for you all to meet to discuss your report.

Attach your Revised Briefing Report to the email.

Attachment:- Assessment Task 2.rar