Apex Engineering: Credible Engineering Vision & Strategy Implementation Essay.

You need to produce an engineering strategy that will support growth in effectiveness and efficiency of the engineering function, to achieve the MD’s goals.

You will need to produce a presentation that analyses the current situation and formulates a proposal to instigate change, building on current strengths. The presentation should include:

Develop a credible engineering vision & strategy for engineering. State how this will be implemented.
Identify key stakeholders for the engineering function and how they should interface with engineering.
Consider options for a new work structure to meet CEO’s objectives, including outsourcing, task automation and changed work patterns.
Review of team structure and roles, taking consideration of education, experience, capabilities and personality. Propose a future team structure that best delivers the objectives.

Proposed personal development plan for all team members, including yourself.
Suggest some meaningful targets and metrics to effectively manage groups and individuals to achieve objectives.
Define a knowledge management strategy for the engineering function to capture current best practice, develop staff and provide a basis for legislative documentation.

Plan a change management process to affect the changes proposed above, utilizing Kotter’s 8 Steps.

SWOT analysis of Apex Engineering

Introduction:

The presentation mentions a credible engineering vision & strategy for engineering and the manner in which it shall be implemented.

The key stakeholders for the engineering function have been identified along with the manner in which they should interface with engineering.

The best options for a new work structure to meet CEO’s objectives have been identifies and outsourcing has been chosen to be the best option.

A review of team structure and roles, taking consideration of education, experience, capabilities and personality has been mentioned along with a proposal for a future team structure that best delivers the objectives.

The personal development plan for all team members has been properly mentioned.

Some meaningful targets and metrics to effectively manage groups and individuals to achieve objectives have also been mentioned.

A proper knowledge management strategy for the engineering function has also been developed

A proper change management process to affect the changes has been developed utilizing Kotter’s 8 Steps.

This slide introduces the organization. Apex Engineering is a small- scale manufacturing organization that produces custom formed cranes and hoists for the marine business. As of late, worldwide competition has expanded, with Apex losing a few requests from long term settled clients. This depends on cost and development, two territories that Apex is considered to have lost ground as of late.

Slide: SWOT analysis of Apex Engineering

This slide shows the strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats of Apex Engineering. The present circumstance of the organization was broke down through a SWOT examination; this investigation expects to distinguish the inside and outer components that influence the organization's improvement. Subsequent to understanding the SWOT examination, the accompanying targets were established for the plan division:

• Lessen configuration costs by 20% throughout the following 24 months
• Plan more inventive products
• Extend its operations to South Asia

Slide: Engineering Mission and vision

This slide mentions the Engineering mission and vision of Apex Engineering. The mission of the organization shall be to offer the best quality products and services to the customers and to maintain the quality in the long term. The slide shows the vision and methodology that should be executed. It brings together the whole workforce by giving them a shared objective that joins the approaching change. The vision for building comprises of executing a change activity which will re-sort out the designing office while diminishing expenses and expanding inspiration in the work environment.

Slide: Strategy for engineering

This slide mentions the strategy for engineering. Doing this gives an unmistakable and centred bearing in permitting APEX Engineering to push ahead, it is clear and straightforward, and it speaks to a doable proposition. This proposition considers the interests of the organization enter partners. It will likewise affect the providers, contenders, neighbourhood economy, and groups. Having the capacity to chop the expenses around 20% through outsourcing, travel cost lessening and nearby wholesaler contract this will enable the organization's notoriety to remain too keeping a diminishment in deals.

Engineering Mission and Vision

The slide mentions the key stakeholders of Apex Engineering.

Stakeholders Inside in Apex Engineering involves managers, managing director and the employees of the organization, who shall be directly affected by the changes in the organization. External stakeholders of Apex Engineering involves competitors, customers, banks, suppliers, shareholders, society and the government, who are indirectly affected by the business operations of Apex Engineering.

Slide: Company expenses

This slide graphically shows the major and minor expenses of Apex Engineering. The graph represents that a majority of the expenses incurred by the company involve employer costs, which accounts to 60% of the total costs incurred. The travel costs incurred are 16% of the total costs incurred and the office overhead is 10% of the total costs incurred. Therefore, the main objective of the organization shall be to curb the costs incurred in employing. The organization is required to devise a suitable plan for controlling its expenses by restructuring the organization.

Implementation of the changes in terms of business decision, international expansion and structure of the organization by reconstructing the flat organizational structure, downsizing and recruiting employees from overseas team will help Apex’s Engineering in curbing the cost by 20%. Initially, cost estimation was developed by considering the changing process and aiming towards reducing the cost by 20%. Thus, the cost minimization plan highlight the implementation of the changes will help in reducing cost by 20% in terms of travel costs, consumables and overhead costs. However, Apex Engineering did not reduce the costs in terms of CAD and specialist software, as the company wants to promote innovation.

This slide shows why it is necessary to implement change. Any business in the present quick moving condition that is searching for the pace of progress to ease back is probably going to be distressfully baffled. Indeed, organizations should grasp change. Change is imperative for any association on the grounds that, without change, organizations would likely lose their focused edge and neglect to address the issues of what most plan to be a developing base of steadfast clients

Slide: Importance of change

This slide explains the importance of change in an organization. Change that results from the reception of new technology is regular in many associations and keeping in mind that it can be problematic to start with, eventually the change tends to build efficiency and administration As the world evolves, customer needs change and grow, creating new demand for new types of products and services and opening up new areas of opportunity for companies to meet those needs.

Strategy for Engineering

Slide: Keys to successful change

This slide shows the major factors that serve as a key to successful change. Before undertaking any change, a business needs to have a clear and valid reason and mission for the change process. The most important factor in changing anything within a business, small or large, is to communicate the change, and its many factors, to the key stakeholders within the organisation – staff, first and foremost, but also outside stakeholders like shareholders and consumers.

Slide: Outsourcing

This slide shows the alternative option that can help the organization in reducing its expenses and enhancing its business operations.

Alternative 1: Hiring Local Engineers inside Asia

Alternative 2: Completely shutting down inside the UK and beginning up in Asia

Alternative 3: Shifting and moving the Headquarter of the organization from UK to ASIA

This slide shows the existing organizational structure of Apex Engineering that helps in determining the necessary changes to be made. It is necessary to determine the present team structure and roles of the employees in order to ascertain the changes that are required to be implemented in order to improve the efficiency.  

Slide: Proposed team structure and roles

This slide mentions the changes that shall be made in the organizational structure of Apex Engineering. The new structure proposed for the Engineering Department of Apex Engineering will have the shape appeared in the slide. The new revised team structure shall enable the organization to improve its efficiency and successfully operate its business in South Asia.

 Slide: Proposed personal development plan

This slide shows the personal development plan for the employees of Apex Engineering.  Sam shall emphasize more upon his leadership skills as he is to become the manager of the Engineering Department. Jean Marc shall emphasize upon leadership skills and management skills. Clive shall emphasize upon developing his confidence as he lacks confidence. Harry shall emphasize upon improving his ambition as he lacks the ambition to excel in his career. Ruth shall emphasize upon improving her motivation as she lacks the motivation to work harder. Clare shall also emphasize upon improving her motivation as well as her ambition. Darleen shall emphasize upon improving her level of confidence. The other two designers, who shall be hired in the South Asia team, shall be provided proper training for developing their communication skills and participation in the team.

Slide: Morale Theory & Attitude towards Change

This slide focuses on the Morale theory that shows the attitudes towards change that is important. This is to understand the changes the employees are going through when change is being implemented all over the business. The first half of the transition is always the hardest because staff are either supportive of the change or they are not. They are on a type of emotional rollercoaster as adapting to change is quite hard if senior management are not being supportive of the change. Since a successful change initiative requires management to be supportive, the “inner contradiction and crisis” phases of the graph can be addressed.

Company Expenses

This slide mentions the following:

Consumer satisfaction: The objective of this KPI is to gauge the nature of the item and administration offered to the clients. It will be estimated by reviews made to the clients noting few inquiries that will give a last outcome on a scale of 0 to 10.

 No deadline miss: This KPI will quantify the culmination time of the work by utilizing the level of the activities completed on time in contrast with the aggregate number of tasks done.

Cost incurred by the organization in connection to the product value sold to the client: The objective of this KPI is to gauge the cost made by the designing division to run each extend. It is estimated by the normal level of the cost in contrast with the normal venture value sold to the clients.

Product Development: This KPI is utilized to gauge advancement by tallying the quantity of new highlights created by the division every year.

Slide: Knowledge management strategy

This slide mentions that the information inside an organization is one of its best resources; accordingly, through this evolving procedure, we expected to discover systems that will empower us to hold and upgrade the learning among our workers. Thus, two sorts of information administration methodologies will be connected to expand the imagination, good and effectiveness in the outline office: codification and personalization.  

Slide: Implementation theories

This slide mentions John Kotter's change model. John Kotter's change model includes eight steps, including: establish a sense of urgency, create a guiding coalition, develop a vision and strategy, communicate the change vision, empower broad-based action, generate short-term wins, consolidate gains to produce more change and anchor change in the organizational culture. The change brought in Apex Engineering shall be linked with the Kotter’s change model in order to ensure a successful change management.

This slide mentions the Lewis’s model. It is known as Unfreeze – Change – Refreeze, which refers to the three-stage process of change that he describes. For Lewin, the process of change entails creating the perception that a change is needed, then moving toward the new, desired level of behavior and finally, solidifying that new behavior as the norm (Cummings, Bridgman and Brown 2016).

Slide: Requirement for change

This slide mentions the requirement of change in Apex Engineering. Change has become necessary in Apex Engineering as the annual costs of the organization have increased, which has become a major issue for the organization. The organization is required to emphasize upon lowering its expenses in order to ensure its profitability. In order to remain successful in the long- run, it is necessary for the organization to expand its businesses in areas, which are yet not explored. In order to remain competitive in nature, it is necessary for the organization to ensure innovation in its products and business methods. These factors have made it necessary for the organization to bring certain changes.

Slide: Objectives of apex engineering

This slide mentions the objectives of Apex Engineering while aligning it with Kotter’s change model. To achieve our ultimate objective, it is critical that we concoct a building system that will empower the development of APEX Engineering while successfully accomplishing a noteworthy cost decrease of 20% throughout the following 24 months. Through the span of 24 months, we should have met all our key goals above to effectively actualize a change activity – following Kotter's 8 step model.

 Slide: Stakeholder map

This slide depicts the stakeholder map. For the recognizable proof of the key partners, a network was produced to deal with the connection between partners. The building procedure of this lattice was acknowledged in two sections namely stakeholder conceptualization and influencing partners. Despite the fact that the key partners have been distinguished, the change procedure and conditions may change, so the power and impact of the present partners may change as well. In this manner, it is imperative to audit this network in a few events to know whether it should be changed.

This slide shows the month wise model for change of Apex Engineering. Initially, the organization shall clearly define the changes required and the managers who shall be responsible for successfully implementing those changes. Next, the organization shall communicate the changes and the vision with the other organizational members. The organization shall fire Rajiv and Bernard and start saving while justifying their actions. The new office in South Asia shall be set up with Jean Marc as the manager. The organization shall identify the issues faced in South Asia and attempt to find a proper solution to those issues. Two new designers shall be hired from the local area in order to reduce the costs incurred. The changes shall be monitored by both Jean Marc and Sam. Lastly, the results shall be presented.