Project 2 (150 points): Organizational Re-Design and Culture Change
• Concepts: Research Methods, Training, Organizations and Organizational Change,
Attitudes and Behavior, Employee Motivation, and Leadership.
• Write this report using APA style. Be sure to address each component of the assignment
and include a rationale for the decisions made in each section.
• Please label your project by section and organize your paper using those sections.
• Submit your write-up as a single Word or PDF file through Canvas assignments.
Scenario: Acme-Bolt Organization is working to develop a more innovative and creative
organizational culture with the goal of bringing cutting edge products and technology to
customers. However, the organization faces several challenges to this goal which include a
hierarchical organizational structure, senior organizational leadership with the tendency to
reward “company” thinking (i.e, thinking that doesn’t challenge the status quo), and a corporate
culture that is tortoise-like – slow, steady, and bureaucratic. Employees have learned to avoid
risks and to guard against change. You will use the information provided below about AcmeBolt Corporation, along with your knowledge of Research Methods, Training, Organizations and
Organizational Change, Employee Attitudes & Behavior, Employee Motivation, and Leadership
to make recommendations to Acme-Bolt as outlined in Sections 1-6 of these instructions.
Material from lectures and the textbook particularly on organizational theory, organizational
culture, organizational change, employee motivation, leadership, and training should help to
guide your decision-making.
Acme-Bolt Organizational Chart
CEO
VP Finance
Finance
Exec
Finance
Manager
Account
Manager
Employee
VP
Marketing
Marketing
Exec
Marketing
Manager
Account
Manager
Employee Employee Employee Employee
VP
Production
Production
Exec
Production
Manager
Account
Manager
VP
Research
Research
Exec
Research
Manager
Researcher
1
Research 2
Assistant
VP Human
Resources
HR Exec
HR
Informatics
HR Support
VP Sales
Sales Exec
L1
Sales Exec
L2
Account
Manager
Employee Employee Employee Employee
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INSTRUCTIONS: Your paper will consist of your responses to each section below. Most
sections can be answered in a paragraph or two. Be sure to provide a rationale for decisions that
you make. The rationale should be supported by the course content. Be sure that your
recommendations do not violate Title VII, the Americans with Disabilities Act, the Age
Discrimination and Employment Act, or other legislation addressed in the course lectures. Please
organize your paper into the six sections below, using the title of each section as a subheading in
the paper.
As you work through each section of the project, please be sure to provide specific justifications
for the decisions that you make in each section. What guided your decision-making? What
principles, theories, or techniques did you adhere to? You must use course content (lecture or
textbook) to justify your decisions.
Section 1. Consider the Current Organizational Structure. Is the existing
organizational structure depicted in the organizational chart a structure that is likely to
promote innovation and creativity? Why or why not? Is there a different structure that
you would recommend to Acme-Bolt Corporation that may be more effective at
supporting employee creativity and corporate innovation? Provide a recommendation to
Acme-Bolt regarding organizational structure as well as the rationale behind that
recommendation.
Section 2. Determine how Acme-Bolt’s Culture Should Change to Support their
Goals of Creativity and Innovation. Describe an organizational culture that aligns with
the corporation’s major goals. Determine at least 4 core elements of the new culture (e.g.,
Be Bold; Collaborate) and provide a rationale as to why those elements align with AcmeBolt’s goals. Sketch a plan using at least two different organizational events (e.g., award
ceremonies, orientations, stories, activities) to introduce this new culture to employees.
Section 3. Develop a Plan for Organizational Change. Based on the culture described
in Section 2, consider the different leadership theories. Which leadership theories are
likely to be the most useful in bringing about organizational change? What can leaders at
Acme-Bolt do to support change? Be sure to include a clear rationale as to why specific
leadership theories and behaviors align with corporate goals. Be as specific as possible in
this section.
Section 4. Consider Employee Motivation. Determine what methods you will use to
motivate and reward employees to accept change. Describe at least four reasons why
employees resist change and sketch a plan to address that resistance by using motivation
theories (e.g., goal setting, reinforcement theory, expectancy theory).
Section 5. Develop a Plan to Assess Employee Attitudes and Behaviors. Discuss how
you plan to evaluate how employees are adjusting to the change. What types of attitudes
and behaviors will you measure? Will you focus on attitudes, such as organizational
commitment and job satisfaction, or on behaviors (e.g., organizational citizenship
behaviors, organizational delinquency) or some combination of attitudes and behaviors?
Be sure to consider the practicality of your measurement plan – are the variables that
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you’ve selected ones that can be easily and inexpensively measured? Do they make sense
based on the corporation’s stated objectives?
Section 6. Propose a Study to Assess the Effectiveness of Culture Change. Consider
the different research designs that you learned at the beginning of the semester as well as
the different types of learning that was covered in the Training section. Choose a design
that would be effective and practical in the evaluation of change (i.e., the degree to which
change occurred, if change was effective)? What variables (e.g., employee attitudes and
behaviors, customer satisfaction, productivity, product quality, profit) would you focus
on in the assessment of that change? When would you measure those variables? Be sure
to describe strengths and weaknesses of the design that you selected.
