MGT302 Organization and Teamwork Modules 1-4 Case Assignments

Module 1 – Case
Individual Differences in the Workplace
Assignment Overview
Managers often notice the relationship between attitudes and job performance. Have you ever
heard someone say, “With that go-get ’em attitude, she will set new sales records!” or “His
attitude is so poor, he never produces quality work.” However, managers seldom realize that they
can affect an employee’s work attitudes (such as job satisfaction and commitment), which in turn
can affect job outcomes such as turnover, absenteeism, and productivity.
In this first Case Assignment, you will be viewing two clips from the movie “Office Space.”
These videos demonstrate work attitudes, factors that can shape those attitudes, and the end
effect on work behavior. As you watch the clips, make some notes about examples you see that
give you some clues about the different characters and:
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Job satisfaction
Attitudes toward management
Attitudes toward co-workers
Organizational Commitment
Work environment and conditions (such as physical surroundings)
View the following two movie clips from the movie Office Space:
Case Assignment
Read the following article from the Trident University Library:
Riordan, C. (2013) The power of “thank you”: 3 steps to a culture of gratitude. HR Specialist,
11(17),7.
Hint: Just copy and paste the title of the article into the Library Access search box on the Trident
University Portal page. Do not include the author’s name or publication; the article title is all
you need.
After reading the above article, background material, and reviewing your notes on the videos,
consider the following questions:
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How would you characterize the general work environment at Initech?
What are Peter’s attitudes about working at Initech? What are the likely causes of those
attitudes?
How does he feel about his supervisors?
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Do his co-workers show similar attitudes?
What do you predict would be the effect of these attitudes on job commitment,
absenteeism, and turnover? Why?
Now, write a 3- to 4-page paper discussing the film clips and the above questions. A good way to
organize your paper would be to divide it into the following sections:
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Introduction that briefly describes the situation at Initech. (one paragraph)
The Environment at Initech (including supervision style and physical environment)
The observed job attitudes of Peter and his co-workers
The likely outcomes of those attitudes
Conclusion that makes one recommendation for a change that Lumbergh could make that
would improve job satisfaction among employees at Initech.
Be sure to support your arguments with references to the background readings and use specific
examples from the clips to illustrate your main points.
Upload your assignment to the Case 1 Dropbox. Be sure to review your TurnItIn Originality
report. If the score is over 20%, you may be copying too much material from the internet or other
sources and you will need to contact your professor and arrange to revise and resubmit the paper.
Assignment Expectations
The Case papers in this course will be evaluated using the criteria as stated in the Case rubric.
The following is a review of the rubric criteria:
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Assignment-Driven: Does the paper fully address all aspects of the assignment? Is the
assignment addressed accurately and precisely using sound logic? Does the paper meet
minimum length requirements?
Critical Thinking: Does the paper demonstrate graduate-level analysis, in which
information derived from multiple sources, expert opinions, and assumptions has been
critically evaluated and synthesized in the formulation of a logical set of conclusions?
Does the paper address the topic with sufficient depth of discussion and analysis?
Business Writing: Is the essay logical, well organized and well written? Are the
grammar, spelling, and vocabulary appropriate for graduate-level work? Are section
headings included? Are paraphrasing and synthesis of concepts the primary means of
responding, or is justification/support instead conveyed through excessive use of direct
quotations?
Effective Use of Information: Does the submission demonstrate that the student has
read, understood, and can apply the background materials for the module? If required, has
the student demonstrated effective research, as evidenced by student’s use of relevant and
quality sources? Do additional sources used provide strong support for conclusions
drawn, and do they help in shaping the overall paper?
Citing Sources: Does the student demonstrate understanding of APA Style of
referencing, by inclusion of proper citations (for paraphrased text and direct quotations)
as appropriate? Have all sources (e.g., references used from the Background page, the
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assignment readings, and outside research) been included, and are these properly cited?
Have all sources cited in the paper been included on the References page?
Timeliness: Has the assignment been submitted to TLC (Trident’s learning management
system) on or before the module’s due date?
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Module 2 – Case
Workplace Motivation
Assignment Overview
As in some of the assignments in this course, you will draw upon your personal experience for
this Module 2 Case assignment. For the assignment, you will consider the topic of
telecommuting and motivation. You will prepare a blog entry that discusses your own experience
and applies the background material to the prospect of becoming a telecommuter.
For an overview of some important current issues in telecommuting and working remotely please
read:
Peck, E. (2015, March 18) Proof that working from Home is Here to Stay: Even Yahoo Still
Does It. Retrieved from http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2015/03/18/the-future-is-happeningnow-ok_n_6887998.html
Case Assignment
In the background materials, you read about some very traditional theories of motivation such as
Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs and Herzberg’s Two-Factor Theory. There is sometimes a
challenge in applying these theories.
Begin with some personal reflection. Consider a time at work when you felt highly motivated.
Apply Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs and Herzberg’s Two-Factor Theory to your situation. Think
about what motivates you personally. Can you apply Maslow’s and Herzberg’s theories to
yourself? For this assignment, you will discuss these ideas in a hypothetical situation in which
you are offered the opportunity to work remotely, that is, telecommute to your job.
For this Module 2 Case Assignment, you will prepare a blog entry with the title:
My company has offered me a chance to work remotely. Should I telecommute? How
can I stay motivated working from home? If I decide to work from home, what can my
company do to help me stay highly motivated?
Your blog entry should discuss the following:
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What motivates you?
How do Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs and Herzberg’s Two-Factor Theory explain your
own and other employees’ motivation?
How can employees remain highly motivated when telecommuting? What can they do to
motivate themselves? What can the company do to motivate telecommuting employees?
Will you become a telecommuter? Why or why not?
Your blog entry should be the equivalent of a four- to five-page paper. Also, be sure to use intext citations and a reference list. For administrative purposes, please add a title page so that your
assignment can be readily identified.
Assignment Expectations
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Be sure to address the questions presented directly.
Stay focused on the precise assignment questions; do not go off on tangents or devote a
lot of space to summarizing general background materials
Use reliable and credible sources as your references. If you find articles on the internet,
make sure they are from a credible source.
Reference your sources of information with both a bibliography and in-text citations. See
the Student Guide to Writing a High-Quality Academic Paper, including pages 13-14 on
in-text citations. Another resource is the “Writing Style Guide,” which is found under
“My Resources” in the TLC portal.
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Module 3 – Case
Groups and Teams at Work
Assignment Overview
This Module 3 Case Assignment has two functions. First, it helps you develop and demonstrate
your understanding of the topics in Module 3. Second, it will help to assess the development of
your written communications skills. This Case will be graded using a special Written
Communications Rubric, which you should review before you begin writing the assignment.
Case Assignment
For this assignment, you will engage in a roleplay, placing yourself in the role of Management
Consultant. Your deliverable will be a PowerPoint Presentation. You will draw on the
background material and your analysis of a scenario presented in a memo to prepare your
presentation.
Background: You work for a management consulting firm, Capital Consultants (CC). Your firm
has been hired to advise Leading Edge Fashions, a small high-end house with a celebrity
clientele. You have received the following memo from the head of CC.
To:
From: Vivian von der Bach, President and Senior Consultant
I am assigning you to our newest client, Leading Edge Fashions. As you may know, this wellknown fashion house has experienced problems since the death of its chief designer, Sir Francis
Green.
In the two years since Sir Francis’s death, the CEO of Leading Edge, M. Etienne Roget, has
delegated artistic control to a committee of experienced designers chosen from within the
company. The results have been far from what was hoped. In the first year, the committee could
not decide on a theme for Spring. As a result, that season’s collection was a confused mess that
one critic referred to as “the remnants of a Hollywood garage sale.” In the second year, the
committee tried to avoid making the same mistake and settled on a theme after meeting for only
one hour. The “Game of Thrones” collection was another disaster, with such inappropriate items
as a bronze helmet and a bearskin cape.
M. Roget has been searching the world for a chief designer to fill the void created with Sir
Francis’s death. He has been unsuccessful to date. Further, he fears that disbanding the
committee would be seen by its members as a vote of no confidence and would lead to mass
resignations.
Your job is to join the committee as a co-chair and advise it on organizational matters, especially
as relates to the team’s development. Obviously, you should not try to advise the committee on
fashion—CC has no expertise in that area. Your task will be to guide the committee in its
deliberations and to help a small group of experienced, opinionated designers achieve good
results on Leading Edge Fashion’s Winter collection for next year.
Before you join the committee, M. Roget would like to have some idea of what you will be
looking for and what you may be able to accomplish. To that end, you should prepare a
PowerPoint presentation in which you present what may have happened to the committee,
namely what may have “gone wrong” in the past two years and what you could do to keep it
from happening again.
Your PowerPoint presentation should be professional with a recommended length of 8 to 12
slides. Please use the notes section of the slides to explain your slide content in detail. Be sure to
include citations in the body of the presentation as well as a “references” slide.
Congratulations on being selected for this important project. I am looking forward to reviewing
your presentation.
Assignment Expectations
1. Be sure to include a Title Slide and References Slide in your PowerPoint presentation of
8 to 12 slides. Be sure to use the notes sections to explain your slides.
2. Study the Written Communications Rubric. Review it before, during, and after preparing
your presentation.
3. Demonstrate your knowledge and understanding of the materials cited on the Background
page. Supplement these with at least two relevant sources you locate from the Trident
Online Library or from the Web.
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Module 4 – Case
Organizational Culture and Diversity
Assignment Overview
Southwest Airlines and Koch Industries are both known for their distinctive organizational
cultures, and both have been highly successful and profitable companies. Southwest Airlines is
known as a “fun” place to work, where socialization and humor in the workplace are strongly
encouraged. Koch Industries, on the other hand, has a culture defined by the principles of
“market-based management,” where performance and revenue growth is emphasized.
Do some background reading on the cultures behind Southwest Airlines and Koch
Industries. Here are some articles and video to get you started on your research that will give you
some background about the cultures at these two organizations:
Klein, D. (2011). Creating cultures that lead to success: Lincoln Electric, Southwest Airlines, and
SAS Institute. Organizational Dynamics 41(1), 35-39 [Available in Science Direct. Note: you
only have to read the middle portion of the article concerning Southwest Airlines and not the
whole article]
Bird, A. (Mar. 13, 2011). Southwest: Corporate culture combines work, play. The Post and
Courier. [ProQuest]
Whatley, H. (2013). Principles and dimensions of market-based management. Independent
Journal of Management & Production, 4(1), 126-135. [ProQuest]
Dissecting the Kochtopus. (Jun. 7, 2014). The Economist, 411, 76. [ProQuest]
WorkatWorkTV. (2010) Successful Organizational Cultures. Retrieved at

Case Assignment
Prepare a 4- to 5-page (not including title page and references) critique per the following
format:
Title Page. Be sure to include the relevant information (e.g., Name, Class, Professor,
Assignment, Date) on this title page.
Introduction. Discuss the topic of the paper and how you will approach it. It is best to write this
section after you have written the rest of the paper.
The Culture of Southwest Airlines. Describe the key elements of the culture of Southwest
Airlines and explain why these cultural elements are essential to Southwest Airlines’ success. Be
sure to apply the background material.
The Culture of Koch Industries. Describe the key elements of the culture of Koch Industries
and explain why these cultural elements are essential to Koch Industries’ success. Be sure to
apply the background material.
Koch Industries Should Not Purchase Southwest Airlines. Make an argument that Koch
Industries should not purchase Southwest Airlines. Discuss the specific differences between the
cultures of Southwest Airlines and Koch Industries in support of this position. Be sure to use the
background material to support your argument.
Conclusion. Discuss the key points in your analysis that demonstrate the importance of
understanding that organizational cultures are not easily changed and why culture should be a
primary consideration when organizations contemplate merger.
Reference List: List all references that you have cited in the paper using APA or other standard
formatting. References include materials from the required background readings as well as any
outside Internet or library sources you used in researching and writing your paper.
Assignment Expectations
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Answer the assignment questions directly.
Stay focused on the precise assignment question and the assertions to critique; do not go
off on tangents or devote a lot of space to summarizing general background materials.
Use reliable and credible sources as your references. Articles published in established
newspapers or business journals/magazines are preferred. If you find articles on the
internet, make sure they are from a credible source.
Reference your sources of information with both a bibliography and in-text citations. See
the Student Guide to Writing a High-Quality Academic Paper, including pages 13-14 on
in-text citations. Another resource is the “Writing Style Guide, which is found under “My
Resources” in the TLC portal.
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