Management Plan for Integrating New Employees

In this project, you will create a management plan that explains how you plan to integrate new employees from an acquired company into your team. You must determine how to lead the team effectively using theory and best practices. As a future leader in your field, you will need to be able to foster a positive and united team environment.

In this project, you will master the following competency:

• Evaluate theories and practices related to leading teams in varying contexts

You are the manager of the research and development team at Large Technology Company (LTC). Recently, LTC acquired Small Technology Company (STC). There is a lot of pressure to ensure the merger of the companies’ teams is successful.

The board of directors asked you to describe the company’s transition strategy. You need to develop a management plan to present to the board. It should explain how you will lead the newly formed team. You must be able to show the board the recommendations and your reasoning.

You currently manage a team of four employees at LTC. The team members have similar demographics and professional experience.

After the merger, you will have six new team members from STC. Your new team members have diverse demographic makeup, varying levels of professional experience, and different work styles. STC employees operated with autonomy. They were responsible for their own work, rather than being held accountable to a manager. In addition, they were responsible for dividing up tasks among themselves. They could complete various tasks required at their company, allowing them to step into different roles as necessary.

At your company, all employees work at the LTC headquarters. At STC, three of your new team members worked remotely. They will continue to do so after the merger. LTC will need to consider new strategies for collaborating effectively with these remote employees.

You need to develop a management plan for the board that describes the company’s transition strategy.

To do this, download and fill out the Management Plan document, which you can find in the “What to Submit” section.

Before starting part one, read the Employee Personas document,  Review the characteristics of each person on the team and consider the makeup of the team. Then, complete part one by thinking about how the characteristics of individuals and team will impact group dynamics, behavior, and performance.

As you complete part two, consider how you will lead your new team. To provide useful guidance in your plan, ground your recommendations in theory and examples. Think about how each theory supports your leadership, cohesive team dynamics, and group behavior performance.

Competency

For part three, choose an appropriate technology to facilitate teamwork. First, evaluate two technologies, considering how they support your leadership of the team. Then, provide examples of how your chosen technology could be used to lead the team. Finish part three by explaining how the theory you chose supports your choice of technology.

Which characteristics of the individuals and team will impact group dynamics?

 

How will these characteristics positively and negatively impact the group’s behavior and performance?

Use the following table to evaluate how specific theories support your leadership of the team. You will select two theories to evaluate, and then use your evaluation to select a theory that you find most appropriate. For example, you might evaluate how systems theory and McGregor’s Theory X and Theory Y would support your leadership of the team. Type your responses in the table provided. 

How does each theory support your leadership of the specific team?

What theory best helps you lead the team? How does it support cohesive team dynamics? How will it positively impact group behavior and performance?

How will the theory you chose help you lead the team in various situations? For example, how might you use this theory in a price-competitive environment, where team efficiency is critical to the company's profitability? Provide specific examples.

Use the following table to evaluate how specific technologies assist in facilitating effective teamwork and supporting the specific team dynamics. You will select two technologies to evaluate and then use your evaluation to select a technology that you find most appropriate. For example, you might evaluate how a video conferencing tool would support the team. Type your responses in the table provided. 

   

Select the best technology to help you lead the team. Then, explain why you made this choice. How will the technology that you chose support teamwork and positively impact group behavior and performance?

Provide examples of how the selected technology may be used to lead the team in various situations. For example, how will the technology support remote employees?

How does the theory you chose support your choice of technology?

Current Large Technology Corporation Employees  

Frank: Frank enjoys thinking at a high level and does a great job conceptualizing, but he does not enjoying getting in the weeds and producing at a granular level. While he does a great job generating bigger ideas, he has trouble putting his ideas into action. Frank has 25 years of professional experience in the field and has been with LTC for 12 years.  

Scenario

Allyson: Allyson is a collaborative employee who enjoys working with her peers. She thrives on brainstorming with her peers in meetings and is able to generate creative solutions to problems. She enjoys thinking outside of the box and experimenting with new ideas around processes and products. She becomes excited with opportunities to problem solve and at times has taken over meetings. Her current team has learned how to harness her energy and collaborate with Allyson, but this may be a challenge for her new peers. This is Allyson’s first job out of college, and she has been with the company for 5 years.  

Jerry: Jerry is a motivated and productive employee, and he’s highly curious and very energetic. Due to his high energy and constant curiosity, Jerry sometimes struggles with focusing his attention in meetings, and he sometimes finds himself needing to multitask on his computer during a meeting in order to pay attention. This behavior is sometimes viewed as offensive by others, but since the small team at LBC has worked together closely for an extended period of time, Jerry’s peers have learned how to effectively work with Jerry’s style. Jerry has 15 years of professional experience, and has been with LTC for 8 years.  

Sarah: Sarah enjoys analyzing data and information, and forming conclusions. She maintains a focus on ensuring her recommendations are grounded in facts, and thrives when she is able to conduct research before presenting solutions. Sarah is not as comfortable simply brainstorming, as she must understand the parameters and background before developing solutions. Sarah has 20 years of professional experience and has been with LTC for 10 years.  

Portia: Portia is a very ambitious employee and hopes to move up in the ranks in the company. She is eager to take on additional tasks and growth opportunities and is constantly involved in the various initiatives at the company. She has had some difficulties growing at SBC, as she is a remote employee, and she has found that the management was hesitant to promote her to a management position or provide her with a pay raise while not in the office. This has discouraged Portia, as she feels as though she is excelling in her role, but she is hopeful that with the acquisition, she will have additional doors opened. Portia has 15 years of professional experience and has been with STC for the past 2 years.  

Directions

Arjun: Arjun is a motivated employee who works best on his own. While he is successful collaborating with his team members, he much prefers to work on his own and complete the tasks, rather than relying on others to complete their designated pieces. He also likes to keep his own schedule, often coming in late and working late or not showing up to work on certain days but working on the weekend instead. With limited oversight from previous management, this has raised eyebrows. Arjun has 10 years of professional experience and has been with SBC for almost 1 year.

Violet: Violet completes her daily tasks in an acceptable manner and is happy with the status quo. She is not interested in taking on additional responsibilities or learning new tasks and does not have aspirations for promotion at the company. In the past, when approached about additional professional development opportunities or tasks, Violet has become confrontational and has expressed that her current role is all she can handle. While her previous manager has tried to assist her with time management and tried to create efficiencies in her work, Violet is not interested. Violet has 5 years of professional experience and has been with the company for the entirety of her professional career.  Jerome: Jerome is introverted and has trouble speaking up in meetings. He often feels as though his ideas go unheard and that others dismiss his involvement. He wants to ensure he feels valued by the team, and that he has a safe space to contribute, but this has been difficult for him, as he is a remote employee. This is Jerome’s first job out of college, and he has been with the company for just over 1 year.

Jin: Jin is outgoing and thrives when interacting with people, though at times her peers have found her confrontational. She is efficient and likes to take on projects, but she becomes easily bored and anxious when more discussion than action occurs. When engaged in a meeting or project, Jin excels and is a model employee. When disengaged, Jin tunes out and stops contributing to the team, and instead becomes a distraction. Jin is nearing retirement and has spent the last 3 years with STC. 

Carlos: Carlos thrives with set processes in place and has been quite anxious about the amount of change occurring with this merger. Carlos has limited professional experience and has been with the company for less than 1 year, so he is feeling lost and as though he is not part of a team. This has been increasingly difficult for Carlos, as he is a remote employee and does not always feel the sense of community that those in the office seem to exhibit. At times, the team forgets to include him on updates that others in the office received.