Discussion:
ORGANIZATIONAL ANALYSIS EXERCISE
Introduction
This project is a way to understand two attributes of an organization. In groups of 3-6 students, you are to visit an organization of your choice. It can be a restaurant, bar, night-club, grocery store, clothing store, a campus department, pizza place, coffee house, or anything else. You are to interview at least three (3) employees, using the questions pertaining to the organization's mission and its culture. These questions are below in each attribute. This exercise is to hone your critical thinking skills.
Basic Organizational Attributes
1. Organizational Mission. Every organization has a purpose (a mission) or it would not exist. What is the mission and objectives of your organization? Does it have a mission statement? If so, what is it? If not, why? Does your organization have a short-term (1 yr), intermediate-term (1-3 yrs), and a long-term (3-5 yrs) strategic plan? How does your organization measure results for each strategic time period? Does your organization have a performance management system? (Note: performance management and performance appraisal are different. Performance management examines goal achievement at every organizational level [employee, group, & organization], while performance appraisal concentrates solely on employee performance.)
2. Culture. Like individuals, organizations also have personalities that differentiate one from another. Culture includes internal and external perceptions of an organization (its reputation). Internally, how do employees view the way they are treated by man agent? Are they treated fairly and ethically? Externally, how does the public view the organization? Is it a place where people want to work? From the public's eye, is management socially responsible and ethical? Why or why not? What type of leadership does the organization have? How are decisions made? Are employees empowered?
Deliverable: A Report according to the criteria below:
The report must include the following: A cover page, introduction, sections (a) and (b) below, and a conclusion. It must be 5 to 6 double spaced pages, 12 pt, Times New Roman font, with a 1" border. Put the names of group members on the title page and the organization you chose.
(a) Synthesis of Two Organizational Attributes. Use the questions related to the attributes to guide you in writing your analysis/synthesis. For each attribute, write your analysis/synthesis in paragraph form. Moreover, integrate concepts in your text. (Note: you will have to search you text or the internet to understand concepts listed above) State concept, page number and/or website, and how it relates to your analysis/synthesis.) Do not write your paper in a "question and answer" format. That is, do not write the questions below and employee answers to them. You will not get credit.
(b) Overall Lessons Learned. Describe what you learned from this exercise. Give suggestions on how the organization may improve based on your knowledge from the text, class lectures, etc.