Questions:
While established practices in organizations can seem useful, they are often suboptimal. Building on this observation, your team is tasked with identifying a potentially outdated or inefficient practice, system,or approach within an organization in which one (or more) of your team members is currently working. Insofar as possible, you should make a case, using concepts discussed in the course, for why this established practice is undesirable. You will then design a new practice that could be substituted in place of the old one. Your new practice should be creative and should challenge conventional wisdom.
As organizations become more global, it is increasingly important to succinctly and clearly present your ideas over video conference platforms. Because unconventional initiatives often meet organizational resistance, you will need to consider how to present your proposed new practice in a manner most likely to persuade top executives in the focal organization to adopt the practice your team proposes. As such, your presentation should exhibit concepts rooted in the principles of influence and motivation covered in this course. As you select a practice you believe needs to be improved or eliminated, bear in mind that the most advantageous practice for you to focus on transforming is not necessarily the most obvious one or the one people in your organization typically complain about.
Concepts:
Perception, change blindness, Attribution biases, dual process theories of information Processing, Anchoring, expertise, recall ability, overconfidence, Decision making, Group decision making, intrinsic and extrinsic motivation, fairness, expectancy theory, meaningful work, Creativity & innovation, Necessity and Creativity, Domain Expertise.
Your performance on this assignment will be evaluated based on the following criteria:
1.) Selection of appropriate organizational practice. Do you describe the focal organizational practice clearly? Do you offer sufficient evidence that this practice is indeed inefficient and in need of replacement or revision? Do you discuss relevant course material where appropriate?
2.) Clarity and feasibility of recommended new practice. Is the replacement practice you are advocating clear and feasible? To what extent have you integrated course material and descriptive information about your focal organization to create a persuasive argument?
3.) Creativity of recommended new practice. Is the replacement practice novel and interesting? Is it counternormative?
4.) Use of motivation and influence tactics to persuade. Does your presentation utilize influence tactics and motivational strategies covered in the course that may lead the executive board at your organization to adopt the recommended practice?
5.) Salience of concepts in your presentation. Are the course concepts and persuasion-related strategies identified in your viewer’s guide evident in your presentation? Are they utilized effectively?
6.) Overall coherence. Is your presentation well organized, professional in appearance, and effectively delivered? Considered as a whole, does the presentation make sense?
7.) Length. Is your viewer’s guide 3-5 double spaced pages or less?
