Please write in complete sentences unless otherwise directed.
1. Benchmarking is an extremely useful business tool that helps organizations to stay competitive. Explain what benchmarking means. How can benchmarking be used to anticipate change?
2. Consider your own industry/company. What company, in your opinion, sets the benchmark? Justify your answer.
3. Customers are an excellent source of information. Customers help you determine your strengths and weaknesses; customers tell you what they value about your organization. Customers help you anticipate the need for change. According to your textbook, there are six methods for collecting feedback from customers. What three methods would you use if you were conducting a customer value analysis (CVA)? Be sure you explain how you would use these methods and what you would expect to learn.
4. What sort of information about your products and services might you gain from warranty records and customer service records? How would you use this information?
5. Success is our Biggest Enemy!
Here is a scenario for discussion: "You won't believe what I heard our CEO say during the weekly staff meeting this morning," said Mavis Parsons who took the minutes for the meeting. Parsons is the executive secretary to the CEO of TDI, Inc. She is talking on the phone with Melba Matthews, who works in the engineering department. "What did he say?" asked Matthews. "Essentially, he said that all the success we have had over the last 10 years is killing us," said Parsons. "Are you sure you heard right?" asked Matthews. "How can our success be bad? It's been good for me. I'm making more money than I ever thought I would." "So am I," responded Parsons. "They were talking about some big change the CEO wants to make, and I heard him say that success has become our biggest enemy. In fact, he got pretty upset and told our vice presidents that half of them are complacent and the other half is arrogant."
What do you think the CEO meant when he said, "Success has become our biggest enemy?" What must be happening in his company for him to make such a statement?
6. Using the scenario in #5, what should the CEO do to overcome arrogance and complacency in the company and start his plan for change?
7. You want to put together a change leadership team that will help you implement a major plan for change. Before you enlist the people you want for your team, you should determine what duties this team will perform and what types of skills and abilities are required. Identify and describe your plan for change. Describe what your team will do. Include how this team is to take ownership of the change initiative.
8. Refer to #7. You want to place a posting for your change leadership team. Write a brief job description for your team members.
9. Consider your place of work. If you do not work, consider where a close friend or relative works. Describe the leadership in this company. What role does senior level management take? Are there leaders other than senior level management? What are their roles? Why do you consider these employees to be leaders? How could the leadership in this company improve?
10. Finding the right people, creating trust, and developing a common goal are important steps in creating a change leadership team. Explain the processes you would use in performing each of these three steps.