Assignment

 

This document is to be used to identify your organization, describe your organization in detail (often referred to as an organizational scan-see below), and create an initial/proposed timeline to assess and create a change plan for your organization. This document should be in a memo and technical report formatting, using section headings and have page numbers, etc. Length needs to be three pages, single-spaced, minimum.  Address the document to me, or both the principal and me.

First-off: make sure you have contacted a principal and have received some sort of positive verification that you can use this organization as your “case study.”

Have an e-mail record if you can get it.

Guidelines: Using the “Phases of OD Programs,” on p. 121 in the French & Bell text, describe your organization in detail to me. Make sure to include products, services, organizational structure, jurisdiction/catchment area (especially for public agencies and school districts), principals (CEO, director, superintendent, etc.), legal charter (501.c3, subS, LLC, etc.), mission, vision statements, governing bodies, general annual budget estimates, organizational history/news, etc. Most of this will be available on-line or through your initial contact with the principal of the organization. If you are studying a department of a larger organization, please focus much more on the department, vs. the larger organization.

Then create a proposed timeline for securing and performing the first four of the seven phases of OD programs: entry, contracting, diagnosis, and feedback, using a maximum of one page, of the three page minimum.

Of the 10 points: 5 will be for the organizational description; 2 for the timeline; and 3 for general document formatting consistency, and writing. 

Feel free to use a table format with respective OD phases, contact person (principal), timeline, and preferred outcome in each column. Remember that this timeline needs to be in synch with the course requirements/timelines, and leaves room for flexibility in scheduling. In other words, don’t leave stuff until the last minute. If you schedule an appointment required to complete an assignment, one day before an assignment due date, you are asking for trouble. 

Please use section headings for each area of information you are presenting (vision, mission, budget, org. structure, general description of principals, etc.). If you’d like to use another single-spacing format, fine go for it. The issue is always consistency in appearance. Make it look good. Lastly, the table format for the timelines/plan should be simple and again consistent in appearance.  Feel free to get these to me ahead of time (Wed. or early Thurs. via e-mail), and I’ll proof them if you’d like.

I’ve attached a little article that describes the concept of an “Organizational Scan” for your review. Don’t feel obligated to use all the categories in the example. I just want you to see what a major org. SCAN document uses as sections.  

05OrganizationalScan

Here’s an example of an OK, but not perfect, Org. scan document. Please use the formatting for the MEMO headings and section headings. And don’t forget page numbers!

Org. scan example x