Order Description

Final assignment

Task
The aim of this activity is to improve your understanding of how organisational theory informs and has relevance to management practice. The scenario and your

instructions are as follows:

A ‘real-life’ case organisation will be introduced early in the course (more details will be provided in an ongoing manner on the course myuni site).

You will conduct an organisational audit/analysis based on your analysis of the information provided and by applying relevant OB theories, models and analytical

techniques. This analysis will enable you to diagnose a key organisational challenge/problem that you can then address, presenting a small number of specific

recommendations to management.

You will need to attend the relevant presentations and regularly check MyUni for additional information and to confirm key dates. Please note, the case study

introduction and the question and answer sessions WILL NOT BE RECORDED. It is essential that you attend these sessions in person. As this is a real-life ‘live case’

all milestones/dates (except the final submission deadlines) are subject to change.

Groups of 3-4 people will work as a project team to complete this task. Your tutor will organise membership of the teams in your tutorials. The project team will be

responsible for the following:

You must analyse the available evidence about the case organisation relate to the following questions/terms of reference to address in your assignment

Explore how theories and models of team work could contribute to an understanding of and improvement of the case organisation’s project teams…

Find out what relevant research has already been carried out on this topic area by undertaking a literature search. Your search should concentrate on journal articles

from quality sources. A good place to start would be the electronic library (there are a number of useful e-databases such as EBSCO) or Google Scholar. Each team

should collect a minimum of 5 (quality) sources (ie refereed journal articles, conference papers or research monographs (research books or theses). (Wikipedia or

unrefereed internet sources are NOT to be considered sources of strong academic validity. Similarly, basic OB textbooks, although providing some useful introductory

material, should not be seen as key, up-to-date research sources; such textbooks and other relevant materials can be used as references, but WILL NOT be counted

towards your 5 quality sources).

Assessment details (submission etc)

Present your findings as a short research report. The following outline is an example of a suitable structure for your report:

•    Title of the report: this should be a concise description of your report (no more than 10 words).
•    Table of contents: list all major sections with page numbers.
•    Introduction: set the scene for the reader by explaining the context (include introduction to the organisation, the key theory(ies), the purpose of your report

and how you intend to present your findings i.e. a brief structure of the report. Make sure you clearly state the organisational ‘problem’ that you investigate (this

should be based on your understanding of the case context – drawn from information provided by the organisation in presentations, Q&A panel discussion and

documentation). Because of this content, it is normal practice for this to be the last part of the report that you right (ideally at the same time as the executive

summary).
•    Literature review: Identify existing research and theory relevant to your organisational problem. You should evaluate such literature and show its relevance,

importance and usefulness to your report. This section should be around 500 – 600 words and should be comprehensively supported by appropriate referencing.
•    Analysis and Discussion: present your analysis in a format that will be interesting and easy to understand. If appropriate you can use tables, graphs and

analytical diagrams. Explain and interpret your ideas by comparing the case situation with existing research and using appropriate models/theories to help explain this

(from your literature review).
•    Conclusion and recommendations: write a short summary of your findings (one paragraph) as well as some concise and practical recommendations for how your

manager might use these findings to deal with the problem of employee motivation (these may be written as dot points). The recommendations should be clear and specific

with careful justification (please refer to relevant organisational practices from your reading to help explain and justify your recommendations.
•    Supplementary material (not included in your total word count)
­    Executive summary: provide a brief overview (approximately 150 words) which summarizes the purpose of the research, how it was conducted, your key findings and

recommendations.
­    Reference list: please make sure that your list follows the Harvard Referencing style
­    Appendices: additional material not required in the body of your report. DO NOT include key material, evidence or analysis in your appendices; you must be able

to provide a full account of your work in the main body of the report.
Please note the following important requirements:
•    The report should be in Times New Roman 12 font with 1.5 spacing. Overall presentation should reflect an appropriate business format and observance of Harvard

referencing style.
•    Unreferenced reports, or those that do not include a minimum of 5 refereed references, will receive a grade of 50% or less.
•    You should attach a fully completed Individual Assignment Cover Sheet to the front of your assignment.
•    The title page of your report should list the names of your team members
•    You should provide a word count at the end of your report

Assessment criteria for reports:
1.    Problem identification/clear and appropriate report aim
2.    Critique and application of relevant theories
3.    Analysis of organisational evidence
4.    Recommendations for management