Summary paper | BUS 402 Strategic Management & Business Policy | Ashford University

Summary Paper

As a graduate of this program, you will need to translate abstract academic theory into concrete organizational behavior in order to improve your company’s culture and performance. With that in mind, suppose your employer has paid your tuition for this class, and, in return for their investment, they expect you to present a report detailing specific suggestions to managers and/or executives on how to improve organizational culture. You are to write a 12-to-15 page paper that will be presented to the organization’s top executives. In your paper, include the following:

• Executive Summary (1 page): Summary of the paper’s content and objectives. 
• Body of paper (10-12 pages):
  • Introduction, including overview of current organizational culture (2 pages). In this section, discuss the importance of organizational culture in general and the need to appropriately and effectively manage it. In describing your organization’s culture, you may reference your current or a past employer, or any of the organizational case studies presented in the text (e.g., Digital Equipment Corporation or Ciba-Geigy, as discussed in Chapter 3).
  • Specific suggestions/Action plan (7-8 pages). Provide five actionable and detailed suggestions on how the organization’s leaders can improve organizational culture. Each suggestion should be specific and relevant to your organization, or the organization you have chosen, and should include a detailed rationale based upon the data/information presented in the course.
  • Conclusion (1-2 pages). Summarize the importance of effective leadership in managing your chosen organizational culture, along with a summary of the action items your organizational leaders should consider, and why. 
• References page (1 page): Format according to APA style as outlined in the approved APA manual. Provide a minimum of five references in addition to your course text.

Writing the Research Report
The research report:

• Must be 12-to-15 double-spaced-pages in length and formatted according to APA style as outlined in the approved APA manual (6th edition).
• Must include a cover page that includes:
  • Student’s name
  • Course name and number
  • Title of paper
  • Instructor’s name
  • Date submitted
• Must address the topic of the paper with critical thought.
• Must use APA style as outlined in the approved APA style guide to document all sources.
• Must include, on the final page, a Reference Page that is completed according to APA style as outlined in the approved APA style guide. 
• Conclusion (1-2 pages). – summary of the importance of effective leadership in managing  student’s chosen organizational culture, along with a summary of the action items their organizational leaders should consider, and why

                                                        References, (you may use other references)

Chatman, J, A. & O’Reilly, C. A. (2016). Paradigm lost: Reinvigorating the study of organizational culture. Research in Organizational Behavior, Volume 36, pp 199-224.

Rijal, S., (2016). The influence of transformational leadership and organizational culture on learning organization: A comparative analysis of the IT sector. Journal of Administrative and Business Studies, Vol. 2(3): 121-129.

Warrick, D. D. (2017). What leaders need to know about organizational culture. Business Horizons, Volume 60 (3), May–June, pp 395-404.

Schein, E. H. (2016). Organizational culture and leadership (5th ed.). San Francisco: Jossey-Bass:

• Chapter 17. The Change Leader as Learner