you will build upon the Problem Scoping analysis you
prepared in your Module 3 SLP assignment by:
1. Developing three alternative solutions that address the problem definition and
criteria that you identified.
2. Comparing the pros and cons of those three alternatives.
3. Selecting the best alternative.
4. Developing a logical argument to support your choice.
You will apply these same analytic skills throughout your
BSBA program, and they will serve you very well in your
professional life.
Case Assignment
Use the Evaluate Alternative Solutions Template to complete your
case assignment.
Note: Developing alternative solutions is essentially a
brainstorming process. What can you do to solve the
problem? That is an alternative. Proposed alternatives
should be consistent with the problem(s) that you identified
in your Module 3 SLP assignment.
Developing a list of good alternatives involves creativity and
avoiding preconceived attitudes (knee-jerk solutions) and
assumptions. Guidelines for alternative development
include:
1. DON'T SETTLE FOR YOUR FIRST IDEA!
2. Good designers try to generate as many possible solutions as they can before
choosing one that they feel is the best. This creative process of developing ideas
is called ideation.
3. Methods of ideation include:
a. Examine existing solutions
b. Conduct brainstorming sessions. Remember the first rule of
brainstorming – every idea is a viable one.
c.
Develop as many alternatives as possible. When you are done, try to
categorize your alternatives. Then develop three alternatives.
d. Sketching and doodling to create pictures of possible solutions
Assignment Expectations
This assignment needs to be completed in paragraph format
using full sentences. Insert the decision table you made into
your Word document. Use this linked tutorial demonstrating
techniques to Insert Tables into Word Documents.
In addition to following the guidelines above, your
assignment must follow these formatting requirements:
1. Center the title, your name, and date on a separate page. Use Times New
Roman, 14 point). Bold the title only
2. Set Left and Right margins at 1 inch
3. Number the pages
4. Include a References section using the guidelines from the Trident University
Writing Style Guide (Mullen, Timothy. 2014. Trident University Writing Guide.
Accessed on June 20, 2016 at https://mytlc.trident.edu/index.php). Include this
site as a reference in addition to any of the background readings that you draw
upon to develop your alternative solutions document.
5. Upload your document as a Word .doc or .pdf into the Case drop box by the
module due date.
Assignment: Evaluate Alternative Solutions
Name:
Problem Statement: (one paragraph)
• From Module 3 SLP, incorporating any feedback that you received from your professor
Alternative #1
• Describe your first proposed alternative solution in one or two paragraphs.
• Describe how it relates to the constraints and criteria you identified in your problem scoping
document in an additional one or two paragraphs.
Alternative #2
• Describe your second proposed alternative solution in one or two paragraphs.
• Describe how it relates to the constraints and criteria you identified in your problem scoping
document in an additional one or two paragraphs.
Alternative #3
• Describe your third proposed alternative solution in one or two paragraphs.
• Describe how it relates to the constraints and criteria you identified in your problem scoping
document in an additional one or two paragraphs.
Compare the Three Alternatives
• Using Word or Excel tools, create a table to compare the pros and cons of each alternative in
relation to the criteria you identified in your problem scoping document, e.g.:
Alternatives
Alternative #1
Alternative #2
Alternative #3
Criteria
Criterion B
Criterion A
Pro:
Pro:
Con:
Con:
Pro:
Pro:
Con:
Con:
Pro:
Pro:
Con:
Con:
Note: Criterion is singular, Criteria is plural.
Criterion C
Pro:
Con:
Pro:
Con:
Pro:
Con:
Select the Best Alternative
• Based on your comparative analysis of the pros and cons of each alternative in relation to the
criteria, identify the best alternative, and explain why you believe it is the best alternative based
on your analysis in a paragraph.
Conclusion
• Add a closing paragraph in which you briefly summarize the problem you were trying to solve,
what you did, the solution you propose, and why and how it will help to resolve that problem.
PERFOMANCE MANAGEMENT
1
Performance Management
By: Jordan Williams
13th May 2018
PERFOMANCE MANAGEMENT
2
Several problems can be deduced from Brent’s department in regards to the poor
performance of his teams. In analyzing why the team is portraying poor results, we can establish
that the main issues affecting his teams regard team cohesion and ability to work together. The
main teams that Brent analyzed were his best team and his worst team. The best team was team
two and the worst team being team nine. The two teams both had differences in the how they
worked and achieved productivity. The main issues that concerned team nine included the poor
relation between members which highly affected the way they worked and led to poor
performance.
This cases study portrays several potential constraints that affect this department. When
we analyze team nine which is the worst team we can establish one of the issues of concern to be
the age gap. Team nine has members who come from different generations which bring about
differences in how things are done. The issue of age gap has led the group to divide itself into
two groups which include the geeks and the technophobes. The two groups both have different
ways by which they approach and solve issues, and the major differences between the two
groups bring about conflicts. The technophobes have an established way of handling issues while
the geeks have newer ways of dealing with similar problems. Each of the groups believes that
their methods are the best; hence they cannot agree on what approaches should be applied to a
particular task. This, therefore, means there is a lack of effective conflict resolution methods.
The other major issues affecting the two groups in team nine is the issue of technology.
The geeks are well versed with the technological aspects in this department while the
technophobes are still behind on these issues due to generational differences. For this reason, the
technophobes disapprove of the use of technology in solving and handling tasks in the
department. They are more comfortable with maintaining the conventional ways of handling
things. The geeks, on the other hand, feel that the technophobes have been passed by time as
their ways have no place in the digital world of this era. For this reason, we can establish that
conflict here is mainly due to the issue of adapting to change.
Another constraint reflected in this case study includes is the issue of communication. We
have established that team nine has poor communication systems as they are always arguing in
loud voices and there is no channel for airing out their grievances in the team. We also establish
that when Brent investigated their grievances, the team members did not use the proper channel
of using their leader to convey their grievances rather went to the department head directly. This
shows that this team has no clear definition of a communication model or has no respect for it.
Both of the two groups do not see eye to eye hence they cannot communicate effectively which
is very serious as tasks cannot be completed effectively without proper communication. We can,
therefore, establish communication as and team leadership as an issue of concern.
Team nine also presents the issue of work procedure. Due to the differences in the two
groups of the team each team has their own work procedures. The geeks are known to be
notorious as they show up late for work and leave early. They are however very sharp at carrying
out their duties due to their proficiency in technology. The technophobes, on the other hand, have
more conventional procedures of work such as their preference of face to face or voice to voice
communication that they disregard things like leaving a voicemail. They show up early to work
and are willing to put in more effort. These two different work procedures cannot thrive together
on the same team. The main issue here is, therefore, the fact there is no particular work schedule
and procedure developed for the team. The other issue of concern was portrayed by the vocal
PERFOMANCE MANAGEMENT
3
majority. The vocal majority have been seen to put too much pressure on the new members of
the department. They view the geeks as wanting to change everything fast and having
unorthodox work ethics and poor interpersonal skills. Team two as the best team also presents
the issue of poor individual performance as they work well together but cannot reflect the same
performance on individual levels.
In establishing the criteria for dealing with these issues we can begin with handling the
issue of technological differences in the two different groups. Most of the issues in the team nine
have been caused by the fact that the two teams geeks and technophobes are from different
technological eras. Technology plays a major role in organizations and has been widely adopted
to enhance efficiency and increase productivity. For this reason, therefore, the technophobes
have to catch up with the rest of the world. This can be done by establishing training workshops
for all of the employees in the department. These training workshops will educate and re-educate
everyone on the use of the relevant technologies at the workplace. This will give the
technophobes skills to handle technology like their counterparts which will reduce conflicts
regarding technology. This will, in turn, handle the issue of adopting change. When employees
have the relevant knowledge, they reduce their resistance to change (Phillips, 2012).
This training will also be useful in solving the issue regarding work procedures. With
technological education, both of these teams are in a better position to sit down and evaluate the
best work processes and procedures that bring about the best results. Once they have established
these processes, they can implement them. When both teams agree on work processes, they are
able to work cohesively, faster and more efficiently. The issue of conflict resolution is very
important in team nine and the department in general. The team has to be educated on the
different conflict resolution processes that they can approach for different issues such as
completion, collaboration, and compromising (Behfar, 2008).
Communication is a major issue in team nine. The team members do not have the proper
interpersonal skill and have not established proper communication channels. They argue openly
and have no process for communication passing down. The issue of communication can be
handled by having training on proper communication skills since members especially the geeks
are accused of poor interpersonal skills. The team has not established proper communication
channels which seem to be a leadership failure. The team leader opts to establish proper channels
for communication and airing out grievances (Smart, 2000). A general department bonding event
should be held in order to have all teams interact so that the vocal majority can interact and stop
being judgmental about the others and learn to relate well. It is also important that Brent figures
out how to shuffle different teams so that team members can learn to work better individually as
well as in a team setting.
The stakeholders involved in this case study are team leaders. Team leaders such as
Brandon who are having trouble leading their team need help in formulating leadership
strategies. The geeks and the technophobes are also stakeholders in this case. These two have the
most conflict issues in the department. The vocal majority are also stakeholders as they present
cohesion issues with the minority teams. The best team ‘team two’ is also a stakeholder in this
case as they have work procedures that can be emulated and are also faced with the issue of lack
of individual performance ability. Brent as the department head is also a stakeholder in this case
as he is the overall overseer of all teams.
PERFOMANCE MANAGEMENT
In establishing how the processes of collecting information we can establish that the use
of questionnaires and surveys would be appropriate for team members. The use of interviews
would apply best to all team leaders as they are fewer. They know the issues that face them as
leaders and as a team.
4
PERFOMANCE MANAGEMENT
5
References
Behfar, K. J., Peterson, R. S., Mannix, E. A., &Trochin, W. M. (2008). The critical roleof
conflict resolution in teams: a close look at the links between conflict type, sonclict
management strategies, and team outcome. Journal of Applied Psychology, 93 (1), 170.
Philips, J. J. (2012). Return on investment in training and performance improvement programs.
Routledge.
Smart, K. L., & Barnum, C. (2000). Communication in cross-functional teams: An introduction
to this special issue. Technical Communication, 47(1), 19-21.
Trident University. (2018). Trident University International Writing Style Guide.
Case: Performance Management
Brent Q. Gardner Brent Gardner is having a bad day in the middle of a bad month in the midst of a
crummy year in what looks like the wrong career choice altogether. Today the news came down that all
midlevel managers and below will need to reapply for their jobs. Of course, they will change all the job
titles and shuffle the responsibilities, but no one is fooled. The big guys found yet another way to
downsize without the appearance of being a pack of corporate serial killers. In earlier times, with better
staff performance, this kind of hazing wouldn’t have worried him in the least. Brent always hits or
exceeds his numbers as a source of pride and with an eye toward survival. He knows that in corporate
politics, if you can’t razzle dazzle your way up the ladder at Alpha Beta Surety, great productivity and
profitability numbers are the next best thing. It takes hard work to get them, but while some rest on
their laurels, Brent rests on his numbers. But the numbers aren’t working for him lately. Recent
shakeouts in the insurance business have promoted him to what he fears is his level of incompetence.
He is now in charge of a subrogation unit – the group that parses out who owes whom what in liability
settlements – of one hundred people; ten teams of ten apiece. And most of them are failing to make
their goals. By any measure, Brent’s department is in trouble. Productivity is down; claims paid are up;
customers are angry; subrogation units from other companies say his teams are easy marks – they
hardly ever fight a counterclaim; department morale is in the cellar; and turnover is high. Quotas are
low, lower than ever, and they still don’t hit their numbers. Nothing is working for Brent. He is 48 years
old and as of today, looks like he is due for a career change. He has a month to turn things around, and
panic is the calmest feeling in his emotional spectrum. There isn’t any point to scheduling meetings with
all the teams until he figures out what the problem is, so Brent has been to see the resident organization
development specialist. She suggested he make a list of what each team did well and find ways to
encourage his people to do more of the same. No way will Brent have time for all that fluffy, touchy
feely analysis and he certainly can’t turn things around in 30 days without tackling problems instead of
mouthing platitudes and playing with woo-woo panaceas. But he decides to do at least part of what she
suggested: he will jot down the characteristics of both his best and his worst teams and see if the
contrast will clear anything up in his own mind. Team two is his gem. They do everything right and are a
joy to deal with, so much so that many of them have become Brent’s friends over the years. Matter of
fact, Linda the team leader, named Brent godfather to her son when he was born 12 years ago. The
team members are mostly energetic and focused, and they know the value of friendly competition. They
work together like the Chicago Bulls in their heyday. The team has its top performers, but no one has
any illusions they could do as well alone as a team. They are willing to work hard and put in extra hours
when necessary. In fact, he sometimes worries they work too much, but with the lousy productivity of
the other teams, he appreciates the extra effort. Politically, this group is sharp. They know how to look
good in front of upper management and how to make him look good, too. They network with other
teams well, both inside and outside the department and they still can handle the competition. Most of
them belong to the same downtown gym, and they often get together after workouts. If he could put
this team on the copy machine, he would make nine copies, and his job would be saved. On the other
hand, every time Brent looks at a team nine, he is reminded of a cat fight. They are notorious for their
knock down drag out, shouting over the cubicles like it’s the trading floor at the stock exchange. It is
worse when they are silent. That means they are beyond fighting and aren’t even talking; they are
pouting. That also means they aren’t working, at least not productively. Everything team two does right
team nine screws up. He can’t take them out in public, and they don’t play well with other teams.
Sometimes he thinks team nine’s high turnover is a blessing, a way to get rid of the troublemakers, but it
never seems to work out that way. There is always more than enough trouble on the team and enough
troublemakers, and with the burgeoning labor shortage, the pickings in the labor market are getting
leaner. On paper at least, most of team nine’s members are salvageable. They are bright, enthusiastic
workers he personally likes. They are constantly requesting transfers to another team, and though he
feels sorry for them, he can’t justify the move. Team nine’s battles concern technology, interpersonal
communication, hours, and work assignments. A couple of members are highly adept internet users
with no patience for the ‘dinosaurs’. Of course, it doesn’t help that the extreme technogeeks are the
same ones who show up late for work, leave early, and won’t work overtime. They are notorious for not
following directions, which grates on the nerves of some members of the team more than others and
sometimes on his nerves as well. Their teammates complain that the technogeeks don’t listen,
exhibiting such behavior as typing email messages while another team mate is trying to have a heart to
heart conversation with them. The geeks have a point, especially about procedures. Some members of
team nine are such sticklers for details and doing things by the book that it drives Brent and the rest of
the team nuts. These same folks are so enamored with face to face, or at least voice to voice, contact
that they refuse to leave or return voice mail messages. The upshot, Brent believes, is that they are
missing a lot of opportunities to get things done efficiently. When it comes to the internet, forget about
it. The technophobes only do what they are told, and they rarely come up with new approaches. They
see technology as a way of hiding from confrontation and favor taking on the enemy one to one, hot
and heavy. Their touchstone seems to be, “We’ve always done it this way.” The good news: They always
show up on time and are willing to go the extra mile. Then there is the rest of the team - the vocal
majority. Generally good individual performers, they are extremely judgmental and intolerant of the
other two, often warring, contingents – the technogeeks and the technophobes. Their complaints,
brought directly to Brent instead of to Devon, their team leader, echo Brent’s own frustrations. They are
hardest on the newest members of the team. They accuse them of a poor work ethic, loathsome
interpersonal skills, and an unjustified ‘What’s in it for me?” attitude. Those in the vocal majority
complain that the technogeeks want to change everything faster than anyone could adapt to and that
the technophobes don’t want to change at all. The vocal majority knows change has to occur, and they
believe they know exactly how to accomplish it, if only the other two sides would just listen. To get
another spin on things, Brent sets up a meeting with Linda and Devon, the leaders of teams two and
nine, respectively. As he walks through his assessment of the two teams, Linda preens and gloats –
subtly, of course. Devon erupts all over the room: “Of course those guys do it ‘right’ all the time. They’re
Boomers. You’re a boomer. It all fits. If I was a Boomer, I could be just like all of you, and everything
would be great. But I’m not a Boomer, and I don’t want to be, even if it means losing my job. You’re all
absorbed in yourselves and your work and your way of doing things. It sucks. I’ve got news for you. I’m
not managing people like Linda’s.” A 200 watt light bulb suddenly sears the inside of Brent’s head. It is
true: nearly all of the members of team two are in their forties. A few are older, but they are good
soldiers who generally do what they are told and have been around Alpha Beta for a while. On the other
hand, team nine is a virtual menagerie of generations. By and large, the technophobes are the elders on
the team, and, of course, the geeks are the young ones. Then there is the vocal majority – solidly
Boomers, all five of them. Team nine, Brent realizes, may well be a microcosm of the problems on most
of his other teams. Luckily, most of the others aren’t as vociferous, contentious, and just plain
obstreperous. If he can help Devon’s team, he’s sure he can turn the whole department around. What
would you do in Brent’s shoes?
Purchase answer to see full
attachment