Strayer BUS499 All Discussions Latest 2024

BUS499 Business Admin. Capstone

Week 1 Discussion

 - Choose Your Company

In this course you will take on the role of a business consultant to help a company solve a problem or capitalize on an opportunity. The first step is to select the company you will use for your assignments.

Preview the instructions for the assignments in Weeks 3, 6, and 9 in the course guide. This will help you as you make your company selection.

Think of a company you would like to work for or a company in an industry that interests you. You may select a publicly traded company, a small business, a non-profit, or a local or federal government entity (Note: You may not select: Amazon, Google, Apple, Netflix, Target, Walmart, Disney or Microsoft). If you choose a local/small business, much of the data you need to gather will come from interviews either in person, by email, or over the phone.

Introduce yourself to your classmates and share some of the knowledge and skills from your business program journey that you could leverage in your role as a business consultant. (Note: Think about the S-Curve for businesses and the importance of innovation and adaptation to change.)

Identify the company you have selected. When were they founded?

What is the mission and vision of the company? What do they do, and who do they serve? What industry does the company serve? (Be concise)

Why did you choose this company?

Provide a substantive response to one or more of your classmates. You are encouraged to ask questions to help each other in refining this part of your assignment.

Research Resources:

Business Source Ultimate Database

These are tutorials/guides to help you efficiently use the Business Source Ultimate database.

Company, Industry, and Market Research using Business Source UltimateLinks to an external site. (this resource will provide custom guidance for your research in this assignment)

Business Source Ultimate Library Guide

Library of Congress Research GuidesLinks to an external site.

Watch Dr. Keller's video to help you get started:

 

 

BUS499 Business Admin. Capstone

Week 2 Discussion

- Company Background

In last week's discussion, you introduced your classmates to the company that you will use for your business consulting plan. This week you will continue to gather data on the company.

Where and how does the company operate? (e.g., headquarters location, store locations, number of employees working for the company, key internal executives in the company.)

In your assignments, you will focus on a challenge or opportunity for the company and connect it back to some of the main categories of study in your business program.

What area do you anticipate will be the focus of your consultation and how can you apply the knowledge and skills that you've obtained throughout your business program? (e.g., finance, operations, leadership, marketing, human resources [staffing], etc.)

Provide a substantive response to one or more of your classmates. You are encouraged to ask questions to help each other in refining this part of your assignment.

Research Resources:

Business Source Ultimate Database

These are tutorials/guides to help you efficiently use the Business Source Ultimate database.

Company, Industry, and Market Research using Business Source UltimateLinks to an external site. (this resource will provide custom guidance for your research in this assignment)

Business Source Ultimate Library Guide

Library of Congress Research GuidesLinks to an external site.

Watch Dr. Keller's video to help you get started:

 

 

BUS499 Business Admin. Capstone

Week 3 Discussion

- Company Financials

The first part of your Business Consulting Plan is due this week. In preparation, research your company's financial statements or other data that provides insight into their financials. If it is a small/local business request this information.

What is the company's annual revenue and cash flow?

Is the company operating on the net positive or negative?

How might the company's financial data provide insight into a challenge or opportunity the company might be facing?

How could you use this data to inform your recommendation in your business consulting plan?

Provide a substantive response to one or more of your classmates. You are encouraged to ask questions to help each other in refining this part of your assignment. For example, you could recommend additional resources to explore for more information.

Research Resources:

Business Source Ultimate Database

These are tutorials/guides to help you efficiently use the Business Source Ultimate database:

Company, Industry, and Market Research using Business Source UltimateLinks to an external site. (this resource will provide custom guidance for your research in this assignment)

Business Source Ultimate Library Guide

Library of Congress Research GuidesLinks to an external site. (See left-hand menu)

The following websites can provide helpful data on budgets and spending:

Government spending (Mind map)

U.S. National Debt: Implications for Organizations

Fiscal Data US Treasury Dept.Links to an external site.

USA SpendingLinks to an external site.

There are also many other relevant internet resources (e.g., Yahoo Finance).

Watch Dr. Keller's video to help you get started:

 

BUS499 Business Admin. Capstone

Week 4 Discussion

- Setting Priorities

In your reading this week from The Leader of the Future 2, you examined new perspectives on leadership including setting direction, creating alignment, and building commitment.

Discuss an example of each of these leadership roles and choose one that is critical for your business consulting plan. Explain why.

In your Week 3 assignment you used a SWOT analysis to target the top priorities for your chosen company.

How can the SWOT analysis help in identifying the most critical areas for improvement or investment??What areas stand out for your chosen company and why?

Are there any trade-offs between addressing weaknesses and seizing opportunities? How can these be balanced effectively when setting priorities?

Provide a substantive response to one or more of your classmates.

 

Watch Dr. Keller's video to help you get started:

 

BUS499 Business Admin. Capstone

Week 5 Discussion

- Personal and Organizational Decision-Making

Prepare:

Complete this self-inventoryLinks to an external site. to explore your personal decision-making style.

Revisit the case study from the Learn section this week: Organizational Decision Making: The Case of CoolToys, Inc.

Discuss:

Answer the following questions about the decision-making self-inventory:

What category or categories did you align with based on your results?

What are you most confident in and what would you like to work on regarding your decision-making abilities?

In the case study, CoolToys' leadership is considering forgoing profitability in the short term for future growth opportunities. In the business world you will be tasked with making strategic decisions.

What stands out to you as the most important data set in the case study to inform CoolToys' leadership about their product mix decision? Why?

Provide a substantive response to one or more of your classmates.

Watch Dr. Keller's video to help you get started:

 

 

BUS499 Business Admin. Capstone

Week 6 Discussion

- Strategic Communication in Change Management

Revisit the Learn section for this week to review Kotter's 8 Steps for Leading Change and the case study: The Importance of Strategic Communication During Change Management at Palm College of Hospitality and Event Management.

In Kotter's model, the first step is "establishing a sense of urgency."

Discuss 2 examples of how a sense of urgency can be created to overcome communication barriers within an organization.

How could you use this strategy as you develop the communication plan for your company?

In the case study Palm College of Hospitality and Event Management is undergoing a change in administrational leadership. The changes need to be communicated in such a way that it improves the workers' morale and provides faculty and staff with the information that they need to support the new vision of the college.

If you were a business consultant for Palm College, what recommendation(s) would you offer to the new dean regarding his email and future communication channels?

How can you apply the change management communication strategies discussed in the case study to your company's consulting plan?

Provide a substantive response to one or more of your classmates.

Watch Dr. Keller's video to help you get started:

 

 

BUS499 Business Admin. Capstone

Week 7 Discussion

- Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion

This week you read the case study: Making the Right Moves? The NFL and Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion in Coach and Executive Hiring. You are also completing a communication plan activity that will be part of your Week 9 assignment.

Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI) programs can enhance organizations' competitive position and brand perception. In the case study you are asked to assume the role of a consultant in helping to make the NFL's commitments around DEI impactful and effectively communicating their resolve in enacting organizational change.

How can the NFL foster a culture that actively supports and promotes the growth of minority and women coaches and executives within the organization? Support your response with specific examples from the case study.

Discuss 2 communication strategies you would recommend to the NFL to discover unconscious bias and create buy-in for DEI efforts.

How might you use this approach when implementing DEI principles for your chosen company?

Provide a substantive response to one or more of your classmates.

Watch Dr. Keller's video to help you get started:

 

BUS499 Business Admin. Capstone

Week 8 Discussion

- Ethical Leadership

What are the key characteristics of an ethical leader?

How does ethical leadership impact employee motivation and organizational culture positively?

This week you read Ch. 14 in The Leader of the Future 2. In this chapter the authors discuss the concept of servant leadership.

Discuss two examples of how servant leadership can ward off unethical behavior.

One example should be from the book and the other should be applicable to your chosen company.

Provide a substantive response to one or more of your classmates.

Watch Dr. Keller's video to help you get started:

 

BUS499 Business Admin. Capstone

Week 9 Discussion

- Managing by Inclusion

This week you will complete the final part of your business consulting plan with your implementation strategy. A precondition for success in implementing organizational change is making sure stakeholder voices matter, which creates an inclusive environment for the successful execution of the plan.

This week you read Chapter 17 Challenges for Leaders in the Years Ahead which explored the concept of managing by inclusion.

Discuss an industry from the reading that has a history of failing to foster inclusion in the decision-making process. Provide specific examples.

How does practicing inclusion (recognizing that stakeholders must be factored into every decision) create a challenge for achieving consensus? How is this a positive outcome?

Share two examples of how you can translate these leadership practices into your implementation strategy for this week's assignment. Be sure to support your position with evidence.

Provide a substantive response to one or more of your classmates.

Watch Dr. Keller's video to help you get started:

 

BUS499 Business Admin. Capstone

Week 10 Discussion

- Measuring Success

Now that your business consulting plan is complete you need to consider how to measure its success and determine changes moving forward.

Discuss two strategies to evaluate the success of your plan.

Predict one possible risk that could impact the success of your consulting plan and a strategy to mitigate that risk.

Discuss two strategies for responding to stakeholder feedback, including a plan to address stakeholder concerns.

Provide a substantive response to one or more of your classmates.

Watch Dr. Keller's video to help you get started:

 

BUS499 Business Admin. Capstone

Week 11 Discussion

- ROI Journal

Every course you take is an investment in the “Business of You.” Take a moment to reflect on what you’ve learned over the last 11 weeks and answer the following:

How will you apply what you have learned in this course in your professional and personal life?

What challenges did you have in this course, and how did you grow from them?

Respond to at least one of your classmates with a comment, suggestion, or comparison to help them in their professional journey. Avoid repeating what your peers have said; instead, aim to be original and authentic.

Watch Dr. Keller's video to help you get started: