Description
Assignment: Business Solutions for Positive Social Change, Part 1
For the Weeks 1–3 Assignments, you will act as a business consultant and apply critical and creative thinking skills in order to assist an organization in bringing about either internal or external positive social change.
This week, you will complete Part 1 of the Business Solutions for Positive Social Change Assignment.
To prepare for this Assignment:
- Review this week’s Learning Resources.
- Refer to the Academic Writing Expectations for 2000/3000-Level Courses as you compose your Assignment.
- Download the Weeks 1–3 Assignment Scenarios (PDF) document.
- Download and review the Critical Thinking and Problem-Solving Exemplar (PDF) document.
- Download the Week 1 Assignment Template (Word document).
You have been hired as a consultant to help a business address a problem by creating solutions that will bring about positive social change—either within the organization or in the surrounding community. You will select one of the businesses to focus on and will develop a set of design documents in which you will analyze the situation, engage in critical and creative thinking activities about the information presented, and develop ideas for how the business can address its problems and bring about positive outcomes. First, you will select one of the following businesses and review the related scenario:
- Soapy Simpson’s Car Wash
- CallMe Call Center
- Plain Print Press
Then, using the provided Week 1 Assignment Template, complete the following activities. Part 1 must contain at least two references from the Walden Library or other scholarly academic sources.
By Day 7
Submit Part 1 of the Assignment, which includes the following:
Part 1: Thinking Critically and Creatively
Empathizing: In this section, you will focus on the company and people, trying to gain an understanding of their needs and wants.
- Analyze the company in your selected scenario and explain at least three initial observations you have about the company and/or the people involved in the scenario. (75–150 words, or 1–2 paragraphs)
- Identify at least three people (or groups of people) whom you would interview to gain additional information about the situation and the needs of your client. Provide a rationale for each of your selections. (75–150 words, or 1–2 paragraphs)
- Identify at least three biases someone could have and/or assumptions someone could make about the scenario. For example, are there any pre-drawn conclusions that someone might have about the industry, groups of people, or business practices that are discussed in the scenario? (Note:It is important to identify these so that you can construct interview questions that are unbiased.) (75–150 words, or 1–2 paragraphs)
- Based on the above, develop at least five interview questions that you would ask of the people involved in the scenario, and explain what insights you would hope to gain from each question. Additionally, if there are any other questions that you would only ask specific individuals, identify what those questions would be and to whom you would ask them. (225–375 words, or 3–5 paragraphs)
Filling in the Gaps: In this section, you will aim to fill in some information that you may not have. You will want to do some research relevant to your scenario (possibly about the industry, the location, or other relevant aspects). (Note: Although you do not have access to the individuals mentioned in the scenarios, put yourself in their position, and consider how they might answer the questions you have constructed. You will be assessed on your critical and creative thinking and ability to piece together information, not on having the “right” answers.)
- Analyze the industry in which the scenario is based and explain some common challenges or considerations that apply to that industry. Explain how some of those insights might impact the situation in the scenario you selected. (150–225 words, or 2–3 paragraphs)
- Return to the interview questions you developed and do one of the following: (approximately 225–300 words, or 3–4 paragraphs, per interview)
- Create a “transcript” of each subject’s interview, including the exact response you imagine each interviewee giving if you had actually conducted the interview.
- Create a comprehensive notes section that includes major points you would have documented from your interviews. This could be a bulleted list of points or a narrative summary about each interview.
Define the Problem: In this section, you will narrow down the information you have so far and define the problem in simple terms so that you will be able to move on to the step of addressing it.
- Create a list of all the known and potential issues from the scenario. For each item you list, explain how critical it is to address it, if at all. Then, narrow down the list and choose which issues are the main ones. (approximately 150–225 words, or 2–3 paragraphs)
- Analyze what potential consequences and/or benefits could result from either addressing or failing to address the issues that are faced in the scenario. (150–225 words, or 2–3 paragraphs)
- Compose a 1- to 2-sentence statement that defines the business problem presented in the scenario. In other words, how would you phrase the problem in a relatable way?
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