Case: A Nonprofit Organization with an Overly Controlling Chief Executive Officer
Services for the Lost is a $15 million nonprofit organization. Their charter is to serve a segment of the community that experiences serious and persistent mental illness. They were founded by a group of parents whose children were diagnosed with schizophrenia and bipolar disorder. The parents felt that they had nowhere to go to find services for their children, so they formed a 501(c)(3) and founded Services for the Lost.
The organization is funded primarily by medical assistance and county funding. It started with one staff member and three social workers and has grown over the past 20 years to a $15 million budget, with 32 social workers and a support staff of over 90. It serves over 400 clients a year and owns and operates two drop-in centers. It leases over 60 apartments for its clients. It currently employs two full-time psychiatrists and four nurses who offer medical consultation and general health care.
When founded, the organization was a collection of people who simply wanted to help. With the amazing growth of their programs, the organization was forced to hire an executive director (ED) who led the organization for over 12 years. After an interim ED was appointed for almost a year, a permanent ED, Julie, was hired approximately 14 months ago.
When Julie was hired, things looked optimistic. She had a great deal of experience with administrating government-funded programs and had a resume rich with examples of success and growth experience. She also received "glowing" reviews from her staff.
In the past 3 months, however, her behavior has become more and more controlling. Her staff is complaining about being micromanaged, and major decisions are being delayed because she wants to be involved in any "major" decision. Her funding sources are starting to question the organization's effectiveness because the organization cannot seem to meet the demands of its clients. And the organization is having trouble justifying its costs to their county funders. The consulting firm/practitioner's assignment will be to develop a process to intervene with the organization at the ED level. The practitioner's engagement is being funded by the Board of Directors, who feel the situation has moved beyond its ability to intervene. The directors will replace the ED if they have to, but they would like to modify her behavior and keep her on staff.
Final Project GuidelinesConsultation Strategy Action Plan To achieve a successful project experience and outcome for this course, you will create an original consultation strategy and action plan that brings together key concepts and methods to diagnose and address problems or issues identified in a specific case study. To do this, you will first select one of four case studies as the focus of your consultation model. For your Final Project, you incorporate insights from this course in an examination of a case study using as a basis topics related to consulting for organizational change profiled in Weeks 2 through 11. Submit the Final Project in the form of a 10- to 14-page paper. After reading the full case studies, select one to be the focus of your Final Project. After you identify a specific case study for your project focus, your Final Project will include the following sections:
Section 1: Consultation Strategy Identify which case study you selected by number. Then, develop a consultation strategy to address the problems and/or issues identified in the case study. Include in your strategy the following:
- A description of your company or individual consulting skills that indicate that you are a good fit for the organization (e.g., practitioner traits and characteristics, areas of expertise, experience)
- The strategies you would use to approach the organization in order to present the company and/or individual consulting skills
- A sample contract that you develop that will clarify the consultation process based on a needs assessment
Section 2: Intervention Action Plan Include in your plan the following:
- A description and rationale of assessment tools you will use to determine/diagnose the issues
- The identification of interventions for change that you will implement based on your assessment(s) and why you chose these interventions
- A step-by-step implementation action plan that includes milestones and timelines
- A description of ethical dilemmas that could arise during the consultation and strategies to address the dilemmas
- The steps you will take to determine the effectiveness of interventions (i.e., evaluate the success of the interventions). You will support your consultation strategy and action plan with evidence-based research from readings from this course and additional theoretical, empirical, and professional literature.
Final Project: Consultation Strategy Action Plan
In order to synthesize your learning and provide you with practical experience, you will create an original consultation strategy and action plan that brings together key concepts and methods to diagnose and address problems or issues identified in a specific case study.
For your Final Project, you incorporate knowledge and insights gained from this course and use it to analyze a case study related to consulting for organizational change.
You will support your consultation strategy and action plan with evidence-based research from readings from this course and additional theoretical, empirical, and professional literature.
References To use
- Brown, D. R. (2011). An experiential approach to organization development (8th ed.). Upper Saddle River, NJ: Pearson Prentice Hall. (I am attaching for this chapter to my request)
o Chapter 16, "Challenge and the Future for Organizations" (pp. 420-444)
Kaiser, R. B., &Curphy, G. (2013). Leadership development: The failure of an industry and the opportunity for consulting psychologists.Consulting Psychology Journal: Practice and Research, 65(4), 294-302.
Retrieved from the Walden Library databases.
Lefkowitz, J. (2010). Industrial-organizational psychology's recurring identity crises: It's a values issue!Industrial and Organizational Psychology: Perspectives on Science and Practice, 3(3), 293-299.
Industrial-organizational psychology's recurring identity crises: It's a values issue! byLefkowitz, J. in Industrial and Organizational Psychology, 3(3), 293-299.
Copyright 2010 by Cambridge University Press. Used with permission of Cambridge University Press via the Copyright Clearance Center.
Lowman, R. L. (2013). What have we learned? Where are we headed? Consulting Psychology Journal: Practice and Research, 65(4), 325-328.
Retrieved from the Walden Library databases.
Silzer, R., &Cober, R. (n.d.). Practice perspectives: The future of I-O psychology practice, part I: Future directions for I-O practice. Retrieved from https://www.siop.org/tip/oct10/10silzer.aspx
Society for Industrial and Organizational Psychology. (n.d.). You can help build better organizations by becoming an industrial-organizational psychologist. Retrieved fromhttps://www.siop.org/visibilitybrochure/studentbrochure.aspx
Sperry, L. (2013). Executive coaching and leadership assessment: Past, present, and future. Consulting Psychology Journal: Practice and Research, 65(4), 284-288.
Retrieved from the Walden Library databases.
Winsborough, D., & Chamorro-Premuzic, T. (2013). Consulting psychology in the digital era: Current trends and future directions. Consulting Psychology Journal: Practice and Research, 65(4), 319-324.
Retrieved from the Walden Library databases.