LDR 615 Organizational Development and Change

The course will explore behavioral forces and relationships that impact a firm’s effectiveness and change. It will also cover topics like application skills and the study of intervention strategy.

Topic 1: Forces Driving Organizational Development

Class Introductions

In this first assignment, students should write a short post introducing themselves to peers and identify potential exciting or challenging parts of the course.

Topic 1 DQ 1

The assessment will describe the relevance of firm development in contemporary firms. It will further explain how firm development helps in preparation for change.

Topic 1 DQ 2

In this paper, students will identify environmental forces that affect firm development in their field. In addition, they will identify steps that successful firms focus on when responding to change. Markedly, they will explain if they have encountered forces of change in their firm and how they impacted them.

Topic 2: Creating a Vision for Change

Change Initiative: Creating Vision

The assignment will evaluate existing forces that drive change in the student’s industry. Students should assume a leadership role and assess how their firm responds to change forces and areas of improvement. Lastly, they will develop a vision that inspires this change.

The minimum word count should be 1250 words.

Topic 2 DQ 1

The paper will discuss the relevance of vision in facilitating change in a firm. Then, it will explain the correlation between a successful change initiative and the leadership role. Further, it will describe a vision seen by a student and how it inspired successful change. It will finally explain how the vision influenced people’s habits toward the change initiative.

Topic 2 DQ 2

Students will refer to the textbook; people are more motivated when “they are shown a truth that influences their feelings” than they are by analyzing and discussing the statement’s relevance for firms that are growing and responding to changes. Then, they will identify the leader’s responsibility to honor stakeholders’ concerns.

Topic 3: Change Models

Topic 3 DQ 1

The paper should compare and contrast two varying change models. Further, it will identify the ideal leadership approach for implementing the chosen model and why.

Topic 3 DQ 2

The assignment will differentiate between incremental and disruptive change. Then, it will explain how disruptive change impacts a firm.

Topic 4: Strategies for Implementing Change

Change Initiative: Develop a Change Model

Students will create a change model that aligns with their field and firm culture. The model should implement a strategic procedure to help a firm navigate change.

Topic 4 DQ 1

The paper should discuss the relevance of a guiding team and change agent. It should also identify the purpose of each and the traits that make them successful.

Topic 4 DQ 2

The assignment should discuss two strategies that can be utilized to lead change. Further, it should explain how the strategy grows stakeholder support while creating momentum for change to work. In addition, it should explain the relevance of a vocal critic in the change guiding team.

Topic 5: Communicating for Effective Change

Topic 5 DQ 1

The paper will explain how successful communication is utilized in the change process to relay the vision to stakeholders. It will further explain possible reasons for the failure of the change process.

Topic 5 DQ 2

The assessment will explain the relevance of frequent and effective communication in the change process. It will then describe an example where communication played a vital role in the change process. Finally, it will explain how the communication impacted different stakeholders during change.

Topic 6: Dealing with Change Dynamics

Contemporary Organization Evaluation

Students will select a firm that has recently responded to a significant change and write a 1250-1500-word paper discussing how the firm is responding to change.

Topic 6 DQ 1

The paper will identify the types of obstacles leaders get from stakeholders when navigating change in a firm. It will also identify strategies that leaders can utilize to address the obstacles.

Topic 6 DQ 2

The assignment will describe an ethical dilemma a student experienced as a change leader navigating change dynamics. Then, it will explain how the dilemma was resolved. Markedly, it will outline a guideline that a change leader can follow when encountering a similar dilemma.

Topic 7: Evaluating Change Initiatives

Topic 7 DQ 1

The paper should discuss the relevance of identifying and acknowledging milestones during change. It should identify types of short-term wins that are deemed meaningful and why.

Topic 7 DQ 2

The assignment will explain what firms can utilize to verify measurable and objective success. It will also identify what the organization uses to measure its success.

Topic 8: Leading Continuous Change and Establishing Permanent Change

Benchmark – Change Initiative: Implementation, Evaluation, and Sustainability

The paper will evaluate the performance of the student’s firm. It will also identify an area that could benefit from change initiation in the firm. Then, it will propose an approach to deal with the change initiative. Some topics covered in the paper include a discussion of the firm issue, a description of internal and external driving forces, an evaluation of stakeholders involved, a clarification of the student’s role, and a discussion on required change agents. Students will also be required to use their change models to improve strategies. Also, they will identify potential change barriers and methods that can be used to ascertain the level of success in change development. The paper should also propose strategies that anchor or support continuous change. The last prompt is for students to establish how their change plan will fit the firm’s vision and mission while addressing identified stakeholder concerns.

The paper should be 1500-1750 words.

It should also refer to the assignment rubric and APA writing guidelines.

Topic 8 DQ 1

Students will refer to a firm in their industry. Then, they will begin by describing the essential systems that can be used to foster continuous change without employee burnout or quality compromise. Also, it will describe three factors that should be considered when ensuring changes are embedded in the firm’s culture.

Topic 8 DQ 2

Students will explain their reaction to change in their history. Lastly, they will identify personal tools they implement to aid in navigating change.