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Organizational Assessment
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Objectives:
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project. The purpose of this assignment is to: |
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Practice applying various theories and concepts
from the readings to a real public or nonprofit organization;
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Analyze the
organization's structure and processes; and, |
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Meet and network with
practicing pubic administrators. |
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Directions
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The
objectives of this assignment are to apply the theories and concepts
from the readings to better understand how a public or nonprofit
organization operates. I encourage you to also consider using the
assignment as an opportunity to network with professionals in an area
where you work or wish to seek employment. Each student must select a
public or nonprofit organization with at least 10 employees to analyze
for this assignment.
There is no
geographic limit in terms of its physical location, however,
it cannot be affiliated with UNCW. You cannot
be a past or present employee of the organization. You have to
interview at least 3 employees, at least one of whom should be an
organizational leader or manager and one should be an
entry level staff person.
Be sure to list these individuals in the report and include their formal
job descriptions if possible. You will also need to collect and review
various documents such as the organizational chart, policy & procedures
manuals, annual reports, budget documents, etc. Accordingly,
organizations with good websites will facilitate your assessment.
Overall, your objective is to collect data that allow you to provide the
following information in your final report: |
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Describe the
organization's mission and its goals and objectives? How is
managing this public or nonprofit organization "different" than it
would be in the private sector? |
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Describe the political
environment that the organization operates within. How do
"politics" influence the management of the organization? What
influence do organizations at other levels of government have on its
operations? Where does it get its resources (e.g., budget) from?
What constraints does this create in terms of its ability to
accomplish the mission? |
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What appears to be their
theory of organizational effectiveness? Be sure to apply the
competing values framework used in the Tompkins reading and discuss
the approaches to coordinating, motivating, and controlling
employees. |
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Describe the structure of
the organization in terms of 6 factors described in the reserve
reading (i.e., formalization, work specialization,
departmentalization, chain of command, span of control,
centralization/decentralization) and include an organizational chart |
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Describe the culture of
the organization. While promotional materials and the people you
interview may be a useful source of information
(e.g., rites, rituals, legends, sagas,
etc.),
be sure to be a careful observer while visiting the organization
(e.g.,
artifacts, physical setting, symbols, and perhaps even a
ritual).
You may be surprised how
much you can learn by simply observing if you put your mind to it.
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Describe what motivates
the three people you interviewed? What theories best explain their
motivation and job satisfaction? What techniques does the
organization take to try and motivate the employees? What theories
support these techniques or raise questions about their
effectiveness? |
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Describe the
characteristics of the highest ranking person you interview that
make them an effective leader? What characteristics make them an
effective manager? How do they perceive the difference between
leading and managing? What is their leadership style? Are they
more transactional or transformational in their approach? What is
your assessment of their effectiveness as a leader and a manager? |
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Describe any of the best
practices from the readings that you feel are being demonstrated by
the organization? Alternatively, what appear to be areas for needed
improvement to enhance organizational effectiveness? |
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Conclude the report by
reflecting on what you learned from this assignment. What surprised
you the most? What surprised you the least? Is this the type of
organization you could see yourself working in in the future? Why
or why not? |
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| When providing this
information, be sure to specifically link your discussion to the
theories and concepts from the readings and lecture notes and to include
references as needed. |
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Writing
Assignment
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Each group should prepare
a report that describes the organization and applies
each set of concepts described above. Your report should be about 15
double-spaced pages with 12 point font and 1 inch margins.
Be sure to include appropriate tables and figures to
support your analysis (e.g., organizational chart).
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