Posted: February 28th, 2023

HRMT440DBR3DB5

TWO PART ASSIGNMENT

Part1:**Write Two-100 word replies to the two (2) individual discussion responses ** Use APA 6 formatting and citation standards.  Should be 2 different posts. Each post is numbered and has a name. The primary post(s) are provided as an attached file.  Assignment Details: To help you with your discussion, please consider the following questions:  

• What clarification do you need regarding the posting?  
• What differences or similarities do you see between your posting and other classmates’ postings?  
• What additional questions do you have after reading the posting?  
• What item you found to be compelling and enlightening.

PART 2.Use APA 6 formatting and citation standards: (Attached is course assignments for reference) Review and reflect on the knowledge you have gained from this course. Based on your review and reflection, write at least 3 paragraphs on the following:

• What were the most compelling topics learned in this course?
• How did participating in discussions help your understanding of the subject matter?
• Did you have an opportunity to attend or listen to the weekly Live Chats? How did attending or listening to the Live Chats help in your understanding of the material and weekly deliverables?
• Is anything still unclear that could be clarified?
• What approaches could have yielded additional valuable information?
• The main post should include at least 1 reference to research sources, and all sources should be cited using APA format.

HRMT440DBR3

1. Initial Question: The VP of HR reviewed the executive summary and decided that your recommendation was a strong course of action for the change process. In her discussions with Leroy, she mentioned that it would be good to have you participate in a focus group to discuss your experiences with the change process. She was interested in discovering some best practices for change and felt that your experiences would be very valuable to Red Carpet’s approach to change. To guide the discussion, she recommended addressing a few points that should be covered in the focus group. Leroy will gather the results of the focus group and share it with the VP of HR.

Review the Red Carpet scenario for this course and with your classmates; discuss the following questions that will provide insight into your own change experiences:

· Describe a successful change from your own experiences and why it worked well.

· Describe an unsuccessful change from your own experiences and why it did not achieve its intended objectives.

·

From your own experiences, what do you think Red Carpet should do to make the change successful?

Primary Post:

Organizational Change

A successful change from my own experiences was introducing a new software system within my formerly employed organization. The software is designed to streamline and automate specific processes and make it easier for employees to access essential data. The change was successful because thorough training was provided to employees before its implementation, ensuring they could use the new software effectively. Additionally, there was strong leadership support for the change and incentives for employees to adopt the new system. The training component was crucial to the success of this change, as it ensured that employees had the knowledge they needed to use the software to its full potential.

Furthermore, the leadership team was involved in every step of the process, ensuring that the change was managed correctly and communicated to all organization members. Finally, incentives were provided to encourage employees to learn and use the new software, which helped to motivate them to embrace the change. Overall, this change was successful due to the comprehensive approach taken by the organization, from the initial planning stages to the implementation and management of the new software. By taking these steps, the organization was able to ensure that all members of the organization embraced the change and that everyone benefited from the new system.

I experienced an unsuccessful change when my organization attempted to implement an employee performance tracking system. The change failed because the organization was required to fully consider the effort required to transition to the new system. Employees needed more training on how to use the new system and the expectations for how the system should be used needed to be communicated. Additionally, the organization had yet to plan for ongoing support and maintenance, so the system quickly became outdated and unreliable.

To make the change successful, Red Carpet should start with a comprehensive assessment of its current organizational structure and culture to identify the areas that need to be addressed. They should then work with stakeholders to develop a comprehensive strategy for managing the change process. Additionally, they should ensure that clear goals and objectives are established, adequate resources are available to ensure success, and that communication is open and transparent (Lewis, 2019). Training should also be provided to ensure employees understand how to use the new system, and support should be available to address any issues arising during the transition. Finally, the organization should regularly review and evaluate the progress of the change and make the necessary adjustments as needed.

#1 Sean

A Successful Change From My Own Experiences and Why it Worked Well

One successful change process from my own experiences was an acquisition when the organization I worked with acquired another one in the industry. The change was successful since the team that led the project was efficient. The change coalition leading the acquisition process set a clear and valid vision and mission for the change process. Measurable, realistic, and achievable change goals were additional factors that contributed to a successful change management process. Also, the change leadership team created an urgency across the organization and involved all the people affected by the change process to overcome resistance. As part of creating urgency, the change process had a clear vision that communicated to all involved parties what the end of the process looked like. The solid direction made employees accept and embrace the change.

An Unsuccessful Change From My Experiences and Why it Failed to Achieve its Intended Objectives

I once experienced an unsuccessful change process involving rebranding. The rebranding entailed changing the packaging, logo design, new color pallet, and marketing campaigns of the company’s product. The entire process was successful, considering the company launched the product with new features. However, consumers did not identify with the commodities on the shelves, which led to a loss in revenue. This change process was unsuccessful since the company failed to consult with customer representatives to determine customers’ preferences. The purpose of rebranding is to appeal to customer perceptions. Marketing and extensive advertisement after rebranding are vital in creating product awareness. Thus, also, the company failed to engage in product advertisement and marketing to familiarize customers with the new brand image.

What Red Carpet Should Do to Make the Change Successful

Besides creating and communicating a clear change vision, Red Carpet should anticipate resistance and develop strategies to alleviate resistance from stakeholders. Coziness with the status quo is compelling. Shifting into an unfamiliar future state causes anxiety, fear, and stress. Thus, change coalitions and change management teams should work to address and mitigate resistance. The team should spend time before launching the project to explore the likely resistance sources. Being proactive during the initial project stages and specific about the sources of resistance allows a project team to act on the knowledge before the resistance affects project outcomes. Resistance management is unsuccessful when it only addresses the manifestations (McCabe, 2020). The signs of resistance are visible and frequently unsubtle, such as grumbling, skipping important meetings, failing to provide needed information or resources, or even refusing to embrace a change to a procedure or conduct. Concentrating on these signs, despite being more obvious, will not provide any benefits. Change agents should investigate the root of the reluctance to be effective. It is necessary to pinpoint the causal factors of rebellion to manage resistance effectively.

The organization should work with a change management model to facilitate successful change. The advantages of change management are possibly numerous. It encourages a seamless transition from the previous era to the new one. It offers organizations a set of rules to adhere to assist staff members and the organization in adjusting to change. Adapting to considerable change can be challenging for the organization and its personnel. A change management model explains and makes a process understandable (Cameron & Green, 2019). It establishes a change-related intention that encourages individuals to think about their part in the procedure and makes them responsible for their transformation. Consequently, utilizing change management models is probably what separates success from failure.

#2 Kaitlyn

Describe a successful change from your own experiences and why it worked well.

In my current occupation I had previously worked about three years ago and then was a stay at home mama for a few years until my little could go to school. In the meantime I picked up school and now am back to work at previous occupation which is a shift lead at our local Dairy Queen. When I worked there before I was just a team member and had only been working there for a bout seven to eight months before birth. I learned a lot in that time though so I was able to put it to good use once I returned and within a month and a half made me a shift lead and now are talking about an assistant manager position because I have also been implementing what I have learned in school to what I do at work. Our employees were slow and unwilling to do any extra tasks when I first got back and now after about 5 months of consistent reminders, better developmental routines and more beneficial organizational goals to follow have really sparked our business back up to top 25 fast food restaurants to dine-in or take out in Minnesota, our employees have become more willing to do more tasks and our customer appreciation has gone up sixty percent. Just by holding a couple informational meetings talking about customer service and how to handle situations and the quality of our products we serve to our fans, adding in the organizations extra training videos and more 1:1 interaction with each employee to help them better understand how to do their job to benefit the business and customers better.

Describe an unsuccessful change from your own experiences and why it did not achieve its intended objectives.

Along with the successful changes you always have the upsetting or negative changes, along with me returning to work and putting forth my managerial efforts it has caused a lot of controversy with the employees and current assistant manager and there for about the first two weeks our team members would not communicate anything, they would not do any of the orders correctly, and just would do strange things out of spite of things being changed from what they are use to. This in turn took a toll on our DQ fans and business went downhill. We had significant number of bad reviews and even more call-in complaints. This in turn is what really started the changing phases and sticking to it firmly, making sure our team members were trained 100% correctly and that our new employees in return will be trained 100% too.

From your own experiences, what do you think Red Carpet should do to make the change successful?

I full heartedly think that the red carper needs strong employees that will benefit the business by learning from the orientation and training techniques and putting forth those skills in, out on the floor. Management needs to make sure each employee knows the terms of their employment and if they do a good job a raise could happen or promotion, if they are not able to put forth all skills and accomplish their job duties during their scheduled shift then they may be in jeopardy of their job. (This is what I was told when I was re-hired and feel that it makes a person want to work harder and do better)

Scenario

This course uses the CTU Professional Learning Model™ (CTU PLM) to teach students with hands-on, industry-related, problem-solving experiences that model the professional environment and encourage achievements that lead to student and employer success. The CTU PLM is founded on the idea that students learn best by working on real-world, professional projects related to their chosen career fields. By working this way, students develop the expertise to apply conceptual knowledge to get effective results. Through professional learning, students experience the complexity of real-world problems and learn to select an appropriate approach to a problem that has more than one solution. This method of learning is called Problem-Based Learning (PBL). PBL assumes that you will master content while solving a meaningful problem in each assignment.

Throughout the course, you will work with a scenario in which some basic, background information is provided about a company. (This information could apply to any company that provides products or services of this sort in general.) You have a role in the scenario; that is, you are part of the story. The dialogue in each assignment presents the problem that must be solved. It is up to you to respond to the problem and submit a deliverable that will be graded.

Refer to the following scenario as you progress through the PBL process.

Problem-Based Learning (PBL) Scenario: Red Carpet LLC

Red Carpet LLC is a national hospitality and entertainment company with headquarters in Philadelphia, PA with national operations in the US. Historically, the company has had 3 divisions: hotels, food service, and cruise lines. However, it recently completed the acquisition of Sparkstar theaters, a movie theater company, that it is slated to become its 4th division. Red Carpet now owns 200 hotels in 48 states, 4 brands of restaurants with 1776 locations, 4 Buoy Bay branded cruise ships, and 300 Sparkstar theaters.

Its matrix organizational structure consists of a central HR, accounting, business development, sales, marketing, and research and development departments located at the headquarters in Philadelphia that serve each division. Each division is located in a different part of the US and lead by a VP that reports to the President and CEO. The company is privately owned by a consortium of investors and investor groups.

Red Carpet has 16,000 employees, 1000 of which work at its corporate headquarters. The organizational culture of the headquarters is informal and organic and there are few policies and processes that guide employee behavior. The company, as a whole, does not value HR so employees struggle with many employee relations and employment law concerns. The company outsources all of its training to one of the investor group companies, however this training is commonly not customized to the needs of Red Carpet.

As a whole, Red Carpet struggles with its business to business partners and suppliers because of its reputation for being nonnegotiable. Red Carpet would rather disrupt the quality and availability of its only products and services rather than partner for the supply chain resources that it needs. Likewise, Red Carpet does not hold many of the General Managers in its hotels, restaurants, and its cruise ships accountable for performance, opting instead for a weaker political strategy of blaming and gotcha games.

Being aware of these challenges, Red Carpet acquired Sparkstar for their strong industry reputation and financial performance in the hopes that merging the structure and culture of Sparkstar into Red Carpet would change the organization for the better. Historically, Red Carpet has been a highly successful company, however in recent years, its mismanagement has created noticeable effectives in product and service quality and its bottom line.

Divisions

Hotels: Red Carpet branded hotels are mid-price semi-luxury hotels known for high quality. Each customer is given a red velvet cupcake upon checking in. Red Carpet relies on its General Managers to micromanage the hotel. Despite its corporate parent owning a restaurant division, no Red Carpet hotels have restaurants. The Red Carpet division headquarters are in Sedona AZ. Many of the hotels are in need of refurbishment.

Food Service: Chicken Heaven is a fast-food chain with a long tradition of quality, large customer base, and 1000 locations. It is a solid overall performer for Red Carpet with high employee satisfaction. Burger Blast is another fast-food chain recently launched to cater to upscale customers who seek customized, gourmet-style burgers. It has 200 locations, however General Managers are struggling with budget and supplies causing a poor customer experience and high employee turnover. Food Park is a buffet-style restaurant with 500 locations that has been recently struggling because of high competition and poor marketing.  Delicacy is a high-end restaurant with an urban theme. It has 76 locations, is the oldest of Red Carpet’s food service operations, and provides a unique dining experience for customers. However, General Managers have a high turnover at Delicacy because of the grueling schedule. The food service division is located in Burke, ID.

Cruise Ships: Buoy Bay cruise ships offer low-cost, short-term cruises from Port Canaveral, FL only to the US Virgin Islands. Buoy Bay offers customers average quality staterooms and food from Chicken Heaven, Burger Blast, and Food Park. However, it does not offer a non-buffet formal dining option such as Delicacy. Although they are known for their over-the-top entertainment, employee turnover is very high relying primary on seasonal employees who are poorly trained. Buoy Bay has had much controversy. Just 5 years ago, the Buoy Bay cruise ship, Garland of the Sails, hit a reef, partially sank, and had to be salvaged in a 1.5 billion dollar operation. This resulted in a Federal investigation that is still pending. The Buoy Bay division is located in Lapsowanne, OR.

Movie Theaters: Sparkstar theaters were recently purchased from the Vegamega group for 2.3  billion dollars. Sparkstar is the highest rated movie theater chain the US. It has high customer and employee satisfaction, an efficient organizational structure, and solid financial results. Sparkstar’s culture is one of high HR involvement including a strong training and development department, Sparkstar Institute. Sparkstar has a customer rewards program that provides a free movie rental of the film that the customer saw in the theater which has been very popular and has increased its strong customer base. Sparkstar has its divisional headquarters in Pasadena, CA.

The Issues

With the purchase of Sparkstar theaters, Red Carpet is hoping to redefine its operations in the next 5 years. It sees opportunities to integrate its divisions, products, and services to better serve its customers and employees. Here is a summary of some of the issues that Red Carpet must address in its strategic plan:

· Internal politics and communication

· Improved HR and training

· Employee relations issues

· Federal investigations

· Product and service quality

· Marketing support

· Performance issues

· Redefining the organizational structure

· Improving its organizational culture

· Integrating products and services

· Resource and supply chain issues

Your Role 

Leroy Banks, the Director of Change management at Red Carpet is seeking an Organization Development Consultant to address Red Carpet’s need for change. You’ve just received a consulting contract from him to help prepare a plan to assist Red Carpet. You’re excited about the opportunity and are motivated to work on this project. You know that your insight will assist Red Carpet with managing organizational change.

The need for change at Red Carpet is driven by the company’s desire to boost its overall performance in the business and enhance its position as a market competitor. The purchase of a theater company justifies the requirement that Red Carpet alters its business practices in order for the organization to be able to run the newly acquired business. For Red Carpet to successfully operate its standard business and the movie theater, a significant adjustment is required. This considers that the company would be obliged to break away from its distinct corporate culture and implement new guidelines to manage the hospitality sector, in which Red Carpet works, and the new theater industry (Napier et al., 2017). Red Carpet’s decision to incorporate the theater into its corporate culture will require the company to implement some much-needed operational adjustments. For a business to undergo transformational change, it must first develop a strategic plan that outlines how operations will be managed. It is an essential model of transformation since it enables a business to boost its overall performance and, as a result, improve its chances of success in the market (Napier et al., 2017).

To guarantee that the organizational changes successfully achieve the goals set or desired, all stakeholders should model the changes. Employees of an organization are the most critical stakeholders since they are the ones who can rapidly determine whether or not a change is successful. To ensure that both of its businesses function as a single entity, Red Carpet should recruit individuals from a variety of backgrounds who are well-suited to their respective fields. Red Carpet has to prioritize recruiting qualified workers in the electronics and electrical engineering sectors.

Analysts and personnel working in human relations would also play an essential role in ensuring the success of the Red Carpet purchase. Red Carpet would need such staff because they would be responsible for maintaining harmony across all departments. The staff of Red Capet should be up to date and be able to keep up with the latest trends despite their constantly shifting nature. Due to this, the organization has the potential to maintain its competitive edge in the hospitality as well as creative sectors.

After completing the purchase of the movie theater, Red Carpet should begin by formulating a comprehensive plan outlining how it intends to integrate the newly acquired business into its existing structure. This should include the management, workers, policies, laws, and regulations expected to be in place. With the help of the plan, the company should assess how efficient the process of acquiring new assets is and provide timetables for how the transition to the new state is anticipated. Because of this, the business can avoid incurring costs that are not essential and continue to be competitive across the entire market with fewer or no variances. In light of the results of these evaluations, the company may accept the new organizational structures and put the determined policies, laws, and regulations into effect. For the company to avoid any potential internal conflicts, it should make every effort to involve all of the organization’s essential stakeholders.