Discussion
For this week's discussions, post your response to the questions below. For full credit, provide a substantative discussion with support from class readings.
1. From the perspective of your being a PM, discuss the potential impact of "acknowledging people on your team." How could it affect the person, the team, and/or the workplace? Include a professional example, if you one.
2. How is argumentation similar to, and different from, a case study analysis?
As always, respond to at least 2 classmates and to questions in your discussion thread.The topics for the Communications Management Paper and the Conflict Management Paper represent real-world issues that affect today's project manager and project teams. Project leaders and teams must learn how to communicate effectively/manage team communications and group conflicts to ensure effective group performance and ultimately, project success.
Planning for your individual assignment
Each student will apply appropriate planning techniques to manage the work of the individual writing assignments. This planning will not be complex or involve a lot of effort, but each student needs to be able to manage the demands of both group work and the individual assignments within the constraint of limited resources and time.
Purpose of the individual writing assignments
These individual assignments are a learning process in the following ways:
o learning how to compose academic reports/papers.
o improving your writing skills.
o learning how to apply class material to real life challenges related to communication and conflict management in a global work environment.
o exercise in individual problem analysis and use of critical thinking skills.
Assignment - required sections and content
The individual assignment response will contain these sections/content and will adhere to APA style and format.
Title Page
Table of Contents
Executive Summary
Identification of the Problem
o Use the problems assigned for each paper (see assigned cases below).
o This section introduces the case (one paragraph) and clearly identifies the problems that will be analyzed in the paper (one to two paragraphs).
o Do not insert your analysis of the project in this section.
o Keep this section brief, use the rest of the paper for analysis and recommendations.
Analysis of the Situation
Situation Analysis (SA): Part of a response to a case study is to explain the problems and the mechanisms that caused the problems. This should be the largest section of your paper and should contain a substantial number of citations to class readings and external resources to support your analysis. You are encouraged to search out additional scholarly sources as evidence to support your analysis, but you should refer to the course materials first. The SA states the facts; however, this is just not a rewording of the case; it is an interpretation or "analysis" of the case situation using what was learned in the course readings. Make sure your paper has a logical flow. Make clear links between the identified problems, the analysis of these problems, and the solutions proposed.
SA section should consider the following:
o What mechanisms/management theories/topics studied in this class are relevant to the problems? How can they be used to analyze the mechanisms/causes of the problems?
o Use of appropriate theories and class readings to analyze the problem(s) that were identified; look for the most relevant and important material to support your analysis of a given problem.
o Sufficiently and thoroughly analyze each of the problems described in your problem identification section.
o Present examples found in the case that supports your argument.
o Support your analysis by citing and briefly explaining relevant class readings.
SA section should NOT:
o Be an overview or description of the case.
o Repeat substantial amounts of case details in your paper. You do want to mention case topics/issues relevant to a point you intend to make, but this should be concise.
Recommendations
This section includes your team's recommendations (i.e. to senior management) for resolving the issues (leadership/communications) in the case. This section should include recommendations that:
o flow logically from your analysis
o are appropriate for the situation
o address each problem covered in your analysis
When required (see APA), cite assigned readings to support your recommendations. This section should also explain how each recommendation could be implemented, and the expected outcomes if implemented. It may be appropriate that want to present a "solution" already implemented in the case study as a recommendation.
If you find problem analysis creeping into this section, other than statements needed to support a recommendation, move the information to the SA section.
In order to prepare a logical response to the case study, consider the flow and consistency of your response. When describing your problems in the Problem Identification section, use this same sequence for the Situation Analysis and Recommendations section. Do not discuss new problems in the Situation Analysis and Recommendations section that were not identified in the Problem Identification section.
Case Topic- Leadership/Communications in Complex Projects
o Title: Leadership implications in complex projects: The Boeing Dreamliner and Jim McNerney
o This case is based on Shenhar, A.J., V. Holzmann, B. Melamed& Y. Zhao. (2016). The challenge of innovation in highly complex projects: What can we learn from Boeing's Dreamliner experience? Project Management Journal, Vol. 47, No. 2; 62-78.
o Points possible: 12
o Assignment type: Individual Assignment
o Due: Week 4
o Submit the final written assignment using the link provided in the Assignment Folder by the end of Week 4.
o The purpose of this case study is to examine leadership and communications within a complex project environment. Student will identify key problem areas in leadership and communications within a project context and prepare recommendations for addressing the problem areas.
o Problem areas that you should consider - select three from this list - do not include others.
o
o Planning project communications
o Stakeholder identification and analysis
o Stakeholder communications
Research Topic - Conflict management style influence on decision-making
Assignment - required sections and content
Title Page
Table of Contents
Literature Review
o Literature Review. Each student will conduct a search/review of the available/relevant literature to examine the effect that conflict management styles have on a group's decision-making. This review of the literature will be summarized and reported in the paper. The literature review must contain at least eight (8) sources outside the assigned readings (you may also use readings listed in the course but not required).
Discussion
o Address the following in your response to this assignment:
o Define and discuss conflict management styles - focusing on managing conflicts within a group situation.
o Identify and discuss at least three (3) difference conflict management styles used within groups.
o Define and discuss decision-making. Do not elaborate on the higher-level topic of problem-solving (decision-making is a process within problem-solving).
Findings/Conclusions
o From your review and discussion/analysis of the literature, how does conflict management styles influence or affect a group's decision-making? Be specific in your response. If you find in the literature that conflict management styles influence group decision-making in a positive way, then explain how group conflict management styles enhance the effectiveness of group decision making. If you find an alternate point of view in the literature, then explain the alternate positions in your findings.
Format guidelines
o Font: Times New Roman 12
o Line Spacing: Double line spacing; do not use an extra space between paragraphs or between sections
o Paragraphs: Indent (5 spaces) first line of each new paragraph
o Page Margins: 1 inch margins top/bottom/sides
o Citations and References: References are included as the last page of a paper and are to be in APA format (see Chapter 7 in your APA Manual). Citations to the references are included in the paper and are to be in APA format (see Chapter 6 in your APA Manual).
o Page Limit: The response to the case and research topic will be limited to 10 pages. The 10-page limit includes the Title and References page (8 pages total for the body of the paper).
Attachment:- Communications Management Paper.rar