Individual Capstone Project – Consulting Project Proposal
Ind. Project Proposal Due
by 11:59pm EST on
12/11/2020
Your final assignment is designed to be a culmination of your coursework within the MSOL program, done within the context of consulting. Simply put, the deliverable is a detailed consulting project proposal and a presentation. Your proposal should focus on a key business issue facing your current employer, or an organization for which you have intimate knowledge of its operations and business activities. The structure of your proposal will be as follows (this is largely based on the information in Wickham & Wilcock textbook on pp. 69-74), and
you must use the template detailed below:
Title:
Client organization and a brief descriptive phrase [You should have this from OL689]
Executive Summary:
Not more than a page stating what the project aims to achieve in broad terms and the summary/abstract of the content of your document
Requirements:
This should include:
Background information on the organization (as opposed to a normal consulting proposal, you should assume that your reader has never heard of the organization – in other words, be comprehensive!) [You should have this from OL689]
The opportunities/issues facing the organization that are the focus of the proposed consulting engagement. [You should have this from OL689]
The high-level scope of the project. [You should have this from OL689]
Data Collection & Analysis (collection of data to know which issues to address)
Deliverables
(what the project will produce/deliver to the client)
Desired Outcomes
(what the organization will gain from the project)
Approach
(how you would go about doing the consulting work)
Timeline
(the schedule for completion of the project, from start to finish)
Resources Required
(both in terms of consultants
and
company personnel)
Budget/Cost Estimates
Your project proposal is due on Blackboard by midnight of the last day of class, 12/11/2020.
(
See grading rubric).
PowerPoint Presentation
PowerPoint Presentation Due by 11:59pm EST on 12/10/20
Your presentation should not be more than 10 PowerPoint slides and not more than 10 minutes duration. This should be posted on the Main Discussion Board for your colleagues to see and is due on the
Thursday, of the last week of class
. The presentation is 50 points, and it should be submitted as voice-over presentation. The reason behind submitting your PPT before the main paper is that comments made on your PPT by colleagues may help in finalizing your final proposal. This also means that you should have the final draft of your paper before preparing your PPT. The PPT is to present what you have in your proposal. Assume you are meeting your clients on the ground, you will present your proposal to them and hand over your full proposal. This is the reason behind submitting the PPT first before the final paper. What have you learned from your data gathering and analysis of their organization? What are you proposing to do for them and why should they hire you as a consultant over others assuming it is a competitive bid to help implement the recommendations you have proposed? What should somebody who will not have the time to read your proposal and sitting in your audience know and be convinced that you understand their problem, and you know how to get their problem resolved? Refer to the grading rubric for the PPT for more details.
Running head: CAPSTONE I PROJECT
Leadership Capstone I: Consulting Project
Katelyn D’Aquila-Latyshev
Quinnipiac University
September 16th, 2020
1
Running head: CAPSTONE I PROJECT
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Contents
Milestone 1.0: Project Overview …………………………………………………………………………………………………. 3
Project Milestone 2.0: Project Plan ……………………………………………………………………………………………… 4
Project Scope ………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………… 4
Work Breakdown Structure ………………………………………………………………………………………………….. 6
Project Estimated Timeline …………………………………………………………………………………………………… 7
Project Milestone 3.0: Risk Management ……………………………………………………………………………………. 8
Project Stakeholders ………………………………………………………………………………………………………………. 8
Project Success Criteria ………………………………………………………………………………………………………… 10
Risk Assessment …………………………………………………………………………………………………………………….. 10
Risk Mitigation ………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………. 12
Milestone 4: Budget …………………………………………………………………………………………………………………. 13
Considerations for Ensuring Program Success …………………………………………………………………………… 14
References ………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………. 16
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Milestone 1.0: Project Overview
McDonald’s is an American fast-food restaurant that has been operational since 1940.
As a fast-food company, it operates in the food and beverage industry and has had a quite
impressive performance reflected by its rapid global expansion. McDonald’s is involved in the
preparation of fast foods for its customers as well as serve beverages. The Company is currently
going through redesigning and profile updates to keep up with the level of competition from
other fast-food retailers (AdomaviÄÂiÅ«tÄ—, 2020).
Over the past few years, McDonald’s has been criticized over the Company’s relationship
status with its employees in several of its branches worldwide. It ranges from sexual assaults,
discriminations, and, more recently, employees contracting coronavirus while on duty. In this
project, however, we concentrate on sexual related cases that have long been reoccurring and
with which there are numerous lawsuits filed against the Company.
An evaluation of the above-stated shortcomings that affect McDonald’s directs us to put
in place mechanisms that will help the Company, its employees, and the society have a mutual
relationship in their coexistence. To come to a tentative solution to this problem, McDonald’s
needs to redesign and reevaluate its executive management choice in its branches and place
proper communication mechanisms for employees to relay their complaints as fast as possible.
Doing so will help cover the cost of brand reputation frustrations over employee concerns’
improperly addressed due to inadequate communication mechanisms.
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Project Milestone 2.0: Project Plan
Project Scope
From the skeleton of the problem statement articulated before, this research aims to build
upon the cases and problems associated with the research statement and offer tangible solutions
to the issues realized. Discussions and recommendations will be made towards addressing each
factor that will be found inappropriate. Furthermore, the discussions and recommendations will
provide further insight into what has, in one way or another, contributed to the continued
malpractices under the observation of this research.
The research group will avail data from previously recorded sexual assault cases from
secondary sources such as newspapers and online websites, and social media. Interviews that
were earlier carried out by newsrooms and prerecorded will help assess the happenings’ reality
into the allegations of the sexual assault cases. We will also look at McDonald’s recruitment
contract agreement form to ascertain the requirements and information asked from prospecting
employees and whether they are trained before undertaking the employment opportunities. The
research group also commits to go through the Company’s operational business plan to see any
possible loop-holes in the communication modules put in place by the Company. Also, how the
executive staff of the Company is hired is a factor under scrutiny by the research.
A thorough investigation and evaluation of the data sources will guarantee the research
results to positively achieve its hypothetical goals and answer the questions put up by the
previous milestone. A look into the recruitment contract form will help the research group
deliver on its promise of finding the primary reason for sexual assault; for instance, does the
Company asks its recruits if they are married? If no, then why? Another analysis of the
Company’s operational business plan will expose the Company’s supposed communication
Running head: CAPSTONE I PROJECT
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systems and its regulations on freedom of speech. Also, this business plan will help us to
understand the procedures undertaken by the management team of the Company in the
recruitment of its executive team. For instance, do they consider the history of their new
executive employees?
This research aims to be exhaustive enough and cover all the fundamental requirements
necessary to answer the project statement’s questions. However, the research will only cover
McDonald’s employees’ well-being and how they relate with their seniors and vice versa. The
research will be limited to researching sexual assaults and would not lose its course in the
process or start researching other unrelated issues.
The process of this research has been inaugurated at a time when most companies in the
Fast Food industry and the beverages industry are finding it problematic keeping up with daily
operations due to the effects of the coronavirus pandemic. Unsurprisingly, this virus has also
struck at McDonald’s employee structure reported to contract the virus, a situation that has led to
the closure of some of the Company’s branches. With these cases in place, the research will
assume that all McDonald’s branches are open despite the ongoing fights against the coronavirus
pandemic. We will also assume that all employees have the willingness and good faith to
participate and offer answers and calls for interviews for this research.
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Work Breakdown Structure
PROJECT
Project Planning
– Project statement
– Project communcations
plans
– Project schedule
Project Scope
– Reviewing McDonald’s
roadmap
– Identifying branches
and department liaison
– Reviewing existing
anti-harassment policies
– Gap analysis
Project Schedule
– Preparing the
training location
– Implementing
technical
requirements
– Reviewing and
customizing
training materials
– Customizing and
printing feedback
– Review of project
budget
Project Results
-Release of results
arrived at during the
research.
– Review of
Recommendations
from the discussions
of the research group
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Project Estimated Timeline
Activity
Estimate Time
Predecessors
1.
START: Laying the foundation covering primary
content to evade badgering and discrimination.
1.5 Weeks
N/A
2.
Highlight the training needs by stating topic
requirements corresponding to the location.
5 Days
1
2 Weeks
1
12 Days
(Avg. Estimate/Dep.
Variable)
1–3
8 Days
1–4
3.
4.
5.
Review of all pertinent evidentiary documents.
Conducting simulations on the interrogation of
sample participant offenders gives a picture of how
to deal with a sexual harassment issue in the
workplace.
Generate and compile documentation of the results
of the investigations
6.
Determining the case, discussions, conclusions, and
possible recommendations.
6 Days
1–5
7.
FINISH: Taking all necessary and applicable policy
and legal corrective actions
3 Weeks
1–6
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Project Milestone 3.0: Risk Management
Project Stakeholders
The project participants who are the primary beneficiaries and engage in this research are
McDonald’s employees. The Company’s Human Resources will also be directly affected by the
project as they will be required to shed light on the current state of affairs. Additional
stakeholders who fall into this category and their primary responsibilities are;
•
McDonald’s Organization Employees: They are expected to help implement the project
to enhance workplace safety, awareness, productivity, and performance. This group of
internal stakeholders is comprised of all individuals employed by the company. Any
actions, or interests possessed by the employees, are interests of the corporations, as they
are also the front stage representatives that have direct contact and communication with
the customers.
•
McDonald’s Corporate Management: Supervising the project to ensure the training
program serves its purpose.
•
McDonald’s Corp. Human Resources Department: Substantial involvement is anticipated
as employee training and development activities are a primary function of HR.
•
McDonald’s Executive Board of Directors: Financing the project. Funds become crucial
for any initiative to function.
•
McDonald’s Individual Franchise Owners: Franchise owners are significant shareholders
that ultimately retain the power over the way and urgency that funds are being directed
for use. As the corporation belongs to them, they support the organization’s course of
action and are essential to achieving success and within the organization’s decisionmaking model.
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The stakeholders involved at the secondary level include those indirectly affected by this
project’s implementation. This level of stakeholders comprises those who will be indirectly
involved in implementing the project for their benefit. Among the stakeholders who fall in this
category include:
•
General Suppliers: Supplying training tools required for a successful training program.
•
Audio/Visual Vendors: Equipment and technical support staff will be required at varying
degrees dependant upon training session locale.
•
McDonald’s Customers – This group of stakeholders can be categorized as an
‘antagonistic stakeholder’ because the corporation works to serve the consumers’ needs. If
the customers demand a specific change in experience or product, ignoring this demand
will foreseeably result in a considerable loss.
The stakeholders who fall at the tertiary level are those who will influence the
performance of this project. This level of stakeholders comprises those who will have an
extended interest in implementing the project either for compliance purposes or to monitor their
competitive leverage. Among the stakeholders who fall in this category include:
•
National, Federal, and State Regulatory Agencies: Overseeing compliance
•
Financial Institutions: Extending funds to propel the training activities
•
Competitors: Criticizing the project
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Project Success Criteria
The project goals will form the basis for evaluating the success criteria of projects. Thus,
the project success criteria will give the stakeholders a roadmap of measuring the actual project
outcome against the project objectives to ascertain the deviation. A festive variation means that
the project objectives have been met, and thus the project has achieved success. On the other
hand, a negative variation means that the project has not fulfilled its target objectives, and
therefore it is a failed project.
The first metric that McDonald’s Restaurant Franchise will use to measure the success of
its objectives is to evaluate the level of safety in the workplace environment for all the staff.
Official examination certificates on the initiative, conduct aptitude tests to measure the feeling of
its employers. At the same time, at the workplace, assess executive employees’ adherence and
practices to the training via exams. The research team will also ask for reviews from customers
visiting McDonald’s on how they are served and how they feel the employees behave. The
project objective is promoting the successful establishment of the training initiative to combat
sexual harassment, assault, and discrimination. Identifying the public and workplace employees’
perceptions regarding the programs helps construct effective policies that benefit all parties
involved, including the Company. According to Ã…ËœeháÄÂek (2017), McDonald’s will evaluate the
effectiveness of its zero-tolerance policies towards any sexual harassment incidence by
examining female employees’ attitudes and perceptions towards the procedure.
Risk Assessment
An associated risk with the project is the contact made between project participants and
employees from McDonald’s. Likewise, McDonald’s operational business plan contents are at
risk of exposure when our team of researchers gets through. The project scope poses a risk of
Running head: CAPSTONE I PROJECT
11
violating the employees’ privacy and confidentiality (Nadikattu, 2019). The project may violate
the employees’ rights and constitutional freedoms if it encroaches on their private life. An
extensive explanation concerning lawsuits reveals the identities of affected parties. The project’s
concise Timeline possesses a risk of running behind schedule and failing to meet deadlines since
it is a short period. The project team faces a risk of rejection and abuse when seeking more
information regarding the Company’s operations and its employee welfare specifically.
1
Initial Occurrence Insignificant
5 High
4 Moderate
2
Minor
3 Low
Violation of
Privacy
2 Very low
1 Remote
3
Significant
4
Serious
5
Major
Compliance
Out of
Schedule
Operational
Exposure
Managerial
Rigidity
Employee
Resistance
The compliance section for the project indicates a high initial occurrence. Ultimately
there is a need to initiate a risk mitigation plan that will help McDonald’s monitor and control
and implement a contingency plan should this issue present itself. The Company will ensure that
it has an alternative source of funds to avoid the last-minute rush to creditors and financial
institutions for funding (Ni et al., 2019). Additionally, the Company will employ legal experts to
help decide upon initiative-taking measures to comply with all the statutory and legal compliance
requirements to avoid confrontation with regulatory authorities.
The risk becomes controlled by ensuring that the project gets implemented within the
scope of the legal agreement and statutory compliance documents (Mojtahed & Oo, 2017). The
Running head: CAPSTONE I PROJECT
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contingency plans used to mitigate these risks include having a risk management team to assess
the risk associated with the project’s stakeholders regularly.
Risk Mitigation
To ensure efficiency in this project’s results, the project team will adhere to the
regulations set up by the team, in a case where the worst is bound to occur, and part of the team
goes astray with the procedures of the project. We have positioned a mitigation plan that will
reduce the frictions that might be brought up.
There remains a risk of leaking the contents of the operational business plan to the
public, which might be detrimental to the Company’s profile, revenues, and profitability. The
team has established stringent rules with equitable repercussions for any activities related to
violating the confidence to address this risk. The team has also selected professional members to
scrutinize the business plan to avoid any exposures and leaks.
Running head: CAPSTONE I PROJECT
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Milestone 4: Budget
MCDONALD’S HARASSMENT TRAINING PROJECT BUDGET
CATEGORY
PERSONNEL
UNITS
ESTIMATED COST PER UNIT
TOTAL COST
PROJECT MANAGEMENT
Chief Executive Director
Human Resources Manager
Lead Report Manager
2
2
1
$150.00
$200.00
$180.00
SUB-TOTAL
$300.00
$400.00
$180.00
$880.00
REPORT WRITING
Head Report Writer
Staff Report Writers
Research aids
Volunteer Writers
Peer Reviewers
1
5
8
5
8
$120.00
$100.00
$80.00
0
$50.00
SUB-TOTAL
$120.00
$500.00
$640.00
0
$400.00
$1,660.00
DATA EVALUATION
Data Entry Clerks
Statisticians
Social Programme Researchers
Data Analysts
8
5
5
5
$50.00
$100.00
$100.00
$80.00
SUB-TOTAL
$400.00
$500.00
$500.00
$400.00
$1,800.00
TRAVEL
Drivers
Mechanics
2
2
$100.00
$80.00
SUB-TOTAL
SUNDRY TOTAL
$200.00
$160.00
$360.00
$4,700.00
Running head: CAPSTONE I PROJECT
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Considerations for Ensuring Program Success
i.
After the delivery portion of employee training has been completed, the practical value of
the training itself must then be assessed. This follow-up evaluation is necessary for
McDonald’s to ensure whether the anti-harassment and discrimination training programs
are efficacious and whether they succeed in improving workplace safety. Ensuring
workplace safety is the underlying goal of anti-harassment and discrimination training
and, as expressed throughout this paper, is a significant concern at McDonald’s Corp.
Therefore, performing exhaustive follow-up evaluations of each training session is
critical to the program’s success. Furthermore, the program director and instructors of the
training program will also find the evaluation results useful for providing vital feedback,
which is necessary for improving the delivery and reception of the next training session.
The initial session’s results also serve as a tangible means for quantifying the program’s
value. The first training session’s evaluation results will be used to provide a baseline for
data comparison that provides a measurable success rate that can be longitudinally
demonstrated over time.
Evaluation is a fundamental element of any employee training program (Mello, 2015).
Comprehensive feedback for all employee training seminars must be collected and
presented to the organization for review and comparison to determine whether the
program should be continued as is, reevaluated, transformed, or discontinued. According
to Kucherov and Manokhina (2017), a higher learning transfer rate can be reached by
conducting training evaluations from a strategic viewpoint. The evaluation of training
programs follows an integrated approach that connects long-term HR priorities and
objectives with training outcomes.
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ii.
15
To improve the anti-harassment and discrimination training program’s efficacy,
McDonald’s must consider both the environmental and administrative controls during the
training implementation. Environmental controls mean that McDonald’s has an employee
whose primary function in their appointment is to monitor other employees who have
demonstrated sexual harassment issues in the past to prevent future incidents of noncompliance. Implementing these environmental controls will help employees be safe,
decreasing the likelihood of recurring sexual harassment behavior. Gutworth and Howard
(2019) determined that measurable success can be achieved using environmental controls
such as strict security measures and segregating employees from continued contact with
harmful customers. While sexual harassment is not permitted within any organization, it
remains a serious threat to each employee in the workforce. Despite this, the work of
Gutworth and Howard (2019) affirm that environmental controls are adequate measures
proven to reduce sexual harassment by confirming that safety threats are caught.
iii.
McDonald’s should also maintain administrative control to enhance the training
program’s usefulness and ensure positive long-term results. Administrative control
implies that the organization will construct its corporate policies and procedures to be
clear and enforce unacceptable behavior restrictions such as harassment consistently. In
return, any employees acting against these clearly defined policies will be punished or
fired. Per Gutworth and Howard (2019), healthy administrative controls, such as policies
that are clear, levied consistently and confidentially, can reduce sexual harassment,
violence, and bullying in the workplace. Principally, Administrative controls can be
employed before and after the training program to strictly communicate the importance of
the training to enforce grievance procedures.
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References
AdomaviÄÂiÅ«tÄ—, M. (2020). Analysis of localization strategies of McDonald’s brand (Doctoral
dissertation, Kauno technologijos universitetas).
Aminuddin, M. (2018). Human Resource Management Principles and Practices. Shah Alam:
Oxford Fajar Sdn. Bhd.
BBC News. 2020. Mcdonald’s Workers File $500M Sexual Harassment Suit. [online] Available
at: https://www.bbc.com/news/world-us-canada-52284054
Clare Duffy, C. (2019). McDonald’s to start new worker training program following criticism
over workplace safety issues. Available from:
https://edition.cnn.com/2019/08/28/business/mcdonalds-workplace-safety
training/index.html
EEOC, Report, Select Task Force on the Study of Harassment in the Workplace (June 2016),
https://www.eeoc.gov/eeoc/task_force/harassment/report.cfm.
Gutworth, M. B. and M. C. Howard (2019). Improving sexual harassment training effectiveness
with climate interventions, Industrial and Organizational Psychology 12(01): 68-72.
https://doi.org/10.1017/iop.2019.11
Kucherov, D. and D. Manokhina (2017). Evaluation of training programs in Russian
manufacturing companies. European Journal of Training and Development , Vol. 41 No.
2, pp. 119-143. https://doi.org/10.1108/EJTD-10-2015-0084.
McDonald’s Investors. (2015). Company Profile: McDonald’s is Global- and in Your
Hometown. McDonald’s: I’m Lovin’ It Official Website. Retrieved from
http://www.aboutmcdonalds.com/mcd/investors/company_profile.html
McDonald’s. (2015). Codes of Conduct. McDonald’s: I’m Lovin’ It Official Website. Retrieved
from
http://www.aboutmcdonalds.com/mcd/investors/corporate_governance/codes_of_conduct
.html
McDonald’s. (2015). The History of the Golden Arches. McDonald’s: I’m Lovin’ It Official
Website. Retrieved from http://www.mcdonalds.ca/ca/en/our_story/our_history.html
McDonalds. (2008). Standards of Business Conduct: The Promise of the Golden Arches.
McDonald’s Creative Services CS-9497. [p. 25-35] Retrieved from
http://www.mcdonalds.com/content/dam/AboutMcDonalds/Investors/9497_SBC_McD_
US_interactive_final_112408.pdf
Mello, J. (2015). Strategic Human Resource Management (4th Edition). Cengage Learning.
Mojtahedi, M., & Oo, B. L. (2017). Critical attributes for proactive engagement of stakeholders
in disaster risk management. International Journal of Disaster Risk Reduction, 21, 35-43.
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Nadikattu, R. R. (2019). Risk Management in the Private Sector. International Journal of
Computer Trends and Technology.
Ni, Z. J., Rong, L., Wang, N., & Cao, S. (2019). Knowledge model for emergency response
based on the contingency planning system of China. International Journal of Information
Management, 46, 10-22.
Pilgram, Mary & Keyton, Joann. (2009). Evaluation of Sexual Harassment Training Instructional
Strategies. Naspa Journal About Women in Higher Education. 2. . 10.2202/19407890.1032.
Ã…ËœeháÄÂek, P. (2017). Risk management standards for project management.
Running head: DATA COLLECTION AND CONSULTING PRACTICE
Data Collection & Theory Behind the Practice Analysis
Katelyn D’Aquila-Latyshev
Prof. Robert Yawson, Ph.D.
Quinnipiac University
1
DATA COLLECTION AND CONSULTING PRACTICE
Data Collection
Introduction
Data collection is a process of gathering information from a particular group of people or
relevant sources under study to determine the solution or answer to the research problem. Thus,
data collection is an essential aspect of research since it helps answer the research questions, test
hypotheses, and evaluate the findings. Data collection helps researchers acquire crucial
information regarding a particular study of interest needed to make informed decisions. Since
data collection is a process that involves different stages, some principles must be followed, and
also, there are challenges experienced in collecting data. Therefore, this paper discusses the
principles, challenges, and techniques used in data collection and the difference between
warehouse data and transaction databases. Therefore, the data collected have must be relevant,
offer clarity, simplicity, and accuracy. Therefore, when collecting data, the researchers must
ensure that they follow data collection principles, which include relevance, simplicity, accuracy,
and clarity. Thus, the data collected must be relevant to the requirement of the study.
Data Collected
Sexual Harassment
Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) has established that there are two types of
sexual harassment claims, which include: – “Quid pro quo” and “hostile work environment.”
Quid pro quo type of sexual harassment is when one is asked for sex favor for delivery of
services, promotion, or job opportunities. This type of sexual harassment “involves expressed or
implied demands for sexual favors in exchange for some benefit (e.g., a promotion, pay increase)
or to avoid some detriment (e.g., termination, demotion) in the workplace (Shrm.org, 2011).”
2
DATA COLLECTION AND CONSULTING PRACTICE
Usually, the perpetrators are people in a position of power, such as managers to their
subordinates.
A hostile work environment occurs when workplace conduct or speech of some individuals is
severe and pervasive in creating an intimidating or demeaning environment impacting someone
negatively. This type of harassment can be perpetrated by anyone, including a peer, supervisor,
subordinate, vendor, customer, or contractor. Furthermore, it is difficult to recognize such
situations as demeaning behavior that is not based on sex, and there may be long periods
between offensive incidents. Example of this type of sexual harassment includes: “inappropriate touching, sexual jokes or comments, repeated requests for dates, and a work
environment where offensive pictures are displayed (Shrm.org, 2011).”
Methods
The data collected included quantitative and qualitative data that include 282 formal complaints
the company has received from its employees. I engaged with the company’s head from human
resource management to acquire such information. The data collection process involved a
rigorous coding of detailed information in the company’s complaint files held by the McDonald’s
complaint department. The details of the complaint process informed the qualitative data
collection method while the complaint process concluded (such as settlement amount, employee
fired) helped illustrate the quantitative findings.
Based on the feedback of the information I got from the company’s complaint files, four groups
of sexual harassment (SH) complaints helped inform the analysis findings. Therefore, the data
gathered included:
3
DATA COLLECTION AND CONSULTING PRACTICE
Findings and Analysis
Sex of Complainants and Harassers
The sex data (see table 1) obtained from the feedback included both the complainant and
harasser, ultimately revealing that the perpetrators of the alleged SH were mostly men, i.e., 89%
compared to 11% women being the harassers. Specifically, of 45 SH complaints in the sex data,
31 were allegedly harassed by a male, and 14 being harassed by a woman. Thus, 11% of the
complaints were allegedly committed against an individual of the same-sex. Therefore, more
men committed alleged sexual harassment than women with a ratio of 9 to 1. 6% of women
indicated that they were sexually harassed by a woman (Coleman, 2018). An example of sexual
harassment of a lady who was chef at one of the company’s workplace aged in her 30s who
alleged her male co-worker chef occasionally made offensive sexualized comments and often
rubbed himself against her while working and talked about sex. Also, she alleged that his head
chef referred to him as a ‘dumb blonde,’ ‘slut’, and often told her to ‘stop acting like a bitch’.
The hierarchical relationship between complainants and harassers
4
DATA COLLECTION AND CONSULTING PRACTICE
Table 2 (see figure below) indicates the relationship between the complaints and harassers within
the organization. Thus, the data revealed that most of all four groups that alleged harass their coworkers came from senior positions.
Therefore, the data revealed that 67% of SH complaints were allegedly committed by people in
power positions, i.e., managers and supervisors. 27% of the complaints were lodged against coworkers (Coleman, 2018). Therefore, there is systematic sexual harassment that managers in
organizations are committing against their juniors. Thus, this is an issue that the company should
address. For instance, one of the complainants expressed living fear of her manager and indicated
that she felt forced to leave the job as she declined sexual advancement from the manager.
Nature of the Alleged Sexual Harassment
The descriptive of SH complaints were coded based on the nature of the harassment. Thus, the
SH was categorized as to whether: – “physical SH only; non-physical SH only; or both physical
and non-physical SH.†Thus, most of the non-physical SH was sexually suggestive comments.
Consulting Process Model
Consulting Process
5
DATA COLLECTION AND CONSULTING PRACTICE
The process approach referred to as process consultation (PC) is a model defined as series of
steps facilitated by the consultant that allows the client to perceive, understand and act upon the
issues that occur in the client’s environment(s) to address the problems as established by the
client. Therefore, my leading consulting theory using the process consultation model to address
the client’s problem, which is to develop a working environment that does not allow sexual
harassment of women in the company. Thus, I will use the 7Cs model (Client, Clarify, Create,
Change, Confirm, Continue, Close) (Todorova, 2020).” to ensure that there is a collaboration
between me and the client, i.e., McDonald Cooperation. The Seven Cs of Consulting provides
both emerging and seasoned consultants with a rigorous and robust structure to improve their
ability to handle any consulting taskâ€â€from knowing the client’s requirements to effectively
completing the assignment and providing innovative business out of that performance. Because
of the notes’ aid on the pull-out back pocket template, the 7Cs method helps teach how to
develop your competence and produce consistent and irrefutable outcomes to your customers,
bringing them back for more. Therefore, Process Consultation (PC) is a set of integrated
measures and systems that establish ‘preparedness and ownership’ in the client system to make
‘their’ efforts. PC enables the client to cultivate ‘ownership’ to make the required share of
accountability and commitment in the process of change and growth and increase the possibility
of continued progress in the culture of constant change (Todorova, 2020).
Strategies for Effective Negotiation
Effective Communication
Negotiations entirely depend on communication. Negotiation involves two or more parties who
are talking back and forth at each finding common ground. Thus, the lack of proper
6
DATA COLLECTION AND CONSULTING PRACTICE
communication leads to the lack of an agreement or resolution. Effective communication is one
of the lessons one can learn from the reading. Appropriate communication is paramount since it
is easy to be misunderstood. To achieve effective and meaningful communication, parties
involved must focus on constructive steps rather than hindering themselves by transmitting
ambiguous or unclear messages. Thus, it is critical to understand the relationship between
emotional intelligence and successful communication and its invaluable role in building effective
leadership. Effectually communicating with peers may be achieved by being attentive and
exercising active listening to communicate effectively. Listening is part of the conversation and
helps one to understand another person’s point of view. Paying attention also helps one to other
person points in a straightforward way. A common problem while communicating is being
misunderstood. Thus, to avoid being misunderstood, you must be precise and concise to avoid
conflict you stand. Moreover, acknowledging what being said ensures effective communication.
Controlling your Emotions
During the negotiation, emotions are run high sometimes, leading to a discontinuity of the
process, as different emotions and feelings are displayed, especially during bitter negotiation,
which includes anger, disappointment, resentment, and more (Todorova, 2020). Therefore, it is
crucial to keep your emotions and feeling under control during negotiation. It is also crucial to
understand that the people you are negotiating with people have emotions. One should avoid
reacting to an outburst since it helps to avoid further conflict. Focusing on the problem and not
people helps in ensuring that your emotions are checked. Thus, controlling one’s emotions is
essential to ensuring negotiating successfully.
Pre-Existing Assumptions Brought To the Consultancy Practice
7
DATA COLLECTION AND CONSULTING PRACTICE
My central role as a process consultant (internal/external) is to pass on the expertise required to
diagnose and fix operational challenges so that the client can better cope with problems in the
future. As a process consultant, I will also focus on ‘joint-diagnosis’ and help the client
understand the root cause.
Biases Emanating from Personal Experiences
I have witnessed domestic violence against women, and I have been involved in activism against
violence against women. Therefore, as a consultant of the firm that is being accused of having
systematic sexual harassment of women in the workplace might influence my decision. I am also
a strong advocate of the Violence Against Women Act (VAWA), which was enacted in 1994 to
address violence and crime against women in various ways. The Act ensures the federal sex
offenders are punished, mandated the restitution to women subjected to sex offenses by sex
offenders, and gave the authorized grants to state and local enforcement officers to investigate
and prosecute any form of crime and violence against women (Sacco, 2019). Therefore, the law
outlined different acts such as stalking, injuring women, sex offenses, etc., as illegal acts
punishable by law.
Strategies in Place to ensure that I am not Bias
There are various mechanisms that I will use throughout the research to ensure that I maintain
objectivity and avoid bias include: – ensure that I use multiple individuals when coding the data.
Since it is a collaboration process, I will let the participants and the client review the results,
ensure I verify the data with multiple sources, check for possible alternative explanations, and
thoroughly review the findings with peers.
Ethical Implications
Due to subject sensitivity, I ensure that the names of the complainants in this remained private.
8
DATA COLLECTION AND CONSULTING PRACTICE
Ethics are the norms or standards of conduct that distinguish between right and wrong. One of
the main ethical issues in the qualitative research method is the participants’ right to privacy.
This ethical dilemma is mainly because so much of the data collection is done through personal
interviews and surveys with the researcher taking part in the research (Park & Park, 2016, p.3).
Other ethical considerations for qualitative research are the safety of all participants, freely
participating, and of course, complete confidentiality. When looking at ethics in the quantitative
research design, there is still free will participation, confidentiality, and the researcher cannot
falsify the data received. In any research method, all participants should have informed consent,
meaning that they must be fully informed regarding the research project’s procedures.
9
DATA COLLECTION AND CONSULTING PRACTICE
References
Coleman, A. (2018). United States: McDonald’s workers launch unprecedented# MeToo
strike. Green Left Weekly, (1198), 12.
Prohorovs, A., & Fainglozs, L. (2014). Problems of data collection, processing and use of
informal venture capital. Procedia-Social and Behavioral Sciences, 150, 88-96.
Wang, E. T., & Chen, J. H. (2006). Effects of internal support and consultant quality on the
consulting process and ERP system quality. Decision support systems, 42(2), 1029-1041.
Todorova, I. (2020). Innovative Methods In The Career Consulting Process. Economic Science,
education and the real economy: Development and interactions in the digital age, (1),
583-592.
10
Running head: NEW EMPLOYEE ONBOARDING
New Employee Onboarding Proposal for the Athletic Department
XXXX XXXX
Data Collection & Theory Behind the Practice Analysis
Dr. Robert Yawson
1
Running head: New Employee Onboarding
2
Data Collection
The data collected was gathered using mixed methods both quantitative research
methods, surveys and questionnaires as well as qualitative methods through interviews. The
electronic survey was distributed to twenty-four new employees in the athletic department. The
survey contained ten Likert scale questions, one multiple choice question (relating to length of
time the employee had been with the institution) and two open ended questions1. Of the twentyfour surveys sent, eleven employees responded.
The interviews were conducted individually with three employees. One assistant coach,
one assistant director for compliance and one director of the ticket office, each of which were in
their first six month of employment. The interview consisted of three questions and each was
conducted with a time limit of fifteen minutes per interview for consistency purposes4.
Data Findings & Anaylsis
The data collection from the electronic surveys generated eleven responses3, of those
eleven responses more than seventy percent expressed they did not know here their office was
located in the department before they began work on their first day. A mere eighteen percent
reported feeling welcome on the first day. Thirty-six percent of the respondents neither agreed
or disagreed with the recommending the athletic department at the University of Maine as a
place to work. There were themes that emerged from the open-ended question of what new
employees wished someone would have told them before arriving: location of the restrooms, the
pay schedule, how to generate a nameplate for their door, places to live in the area and who to
call to fix things in the office. There was an underpinning from those that included additional
comments of creating a welcome program and suggests for a way to meet people in the
department in the first few days on the job.
Running head: New Employee Onboarding
3
The interviews generated conversation about the lack of an on-boarding process in not
only in the department rather the university as a whole. Two of the three employees shared their
belief that an assigned mentor would have made them feel more welcome and would have been a
great resource to answer those questions they were not comfortable asking their supervisor.
In order to analyze the data, it is important to note that currently the athletic department
at the University of Maine does not have a new employee orientation or onboarding process. The
process is a set of keys with a checklist of to do’s items across campus that include a stop at HR,
and the student Union for an employee ID to access the athletic facilities and offices. The overall
themes generated from the data is that there should be something more in place for new
employees joining the athletic department to feel more welcome and more recourses provided to
help navigate the first few weeks.
Theory Behind the Practice
The main theory I have adopted for the consultation project is the relational leadership
theory. The relational leadership theory (RLT) encompasses a five-component model: inclusion,
ethics, empowerment, purpose and process (Uhl-Bien, 2006). RTL is founded on the idea that
leaders are socially responsible, morally and ethically accountable and the relationship is
reciprocal between leader and the members. The importance of this theory in relation to the
engagement and retention of employees is the literature suggests people are connected to people.
Allow me to tease that out further, a new employee likely has anxiety about their first day on a
new job, there are many questions to be answered, piles of paperwork to fill out and a multitude
of people and personalities to learn as well as the daunting task of uncovering the real culture of
the organization that exists beyond the smiling faces and vision statement found on the website.
The only way to truly explore the do and don’t, the unspoken workings of the organization, is by
Running head: New Employee Onboarding
4
talking with others that work in the organization. Relational leadership uses face to face
conversations, email communications, text messages, video chatting are all platforms to build
trust with new employees so they feel confident to ask the tough questions that they would not
ask their supervisor. Lyons (2009) suggest it is critical to have the correct person in the role of
training new employees as it can impact new employee engagement. Along those same lines, the
relational leadership model helps to build that trust and engagement long before the new
employee steps foot in the building for their first day.
Bias, Assumptions & Limitations
There are personal biases embedded prior to my data collection. Allow me to unpack
those biases. My background is in restaurant management, in the hospitality industry (in
particular restaurants) an extensive orientation program is required for by all new employees.
The training encapsulates safety, a tour and the do’s and don’ts of the day to day operations. In
both higher education institutions, I have since worked, there was not an employee orientation
program. I was directed to spend the week researching the institution online on my personal
laptop as I still had not been issued a computer. The institution I currently work for, I was
handed a set of keys, a checklist of items and told to discover human resources and the student
union on the 660 acres of campus. Therefore, my biases are that all organizations need an
onboarding process in order for employees to feel welcome in an organization.
My pre-existing assumptions are linked to my aforementioned prior experience as a new
employee in other organizations. My assumptions are derived from lack of an assigned mentor in
other organizations, in other words my supervisors did not act as a mentor and there was not an
appointed person on staff to help me navigate through the first year I the new role. In
organizations, similar to the one I currently work, the director of the departments views the
Running head: New Employee Onboarding
5
supervisors as the mentors for their direct reports. Minter (2000), suggests the importance of a
coach, mentor or counselor assigned to an employee aids in personal and professional
development, he recommends further research to explore regarding supervisors acting as
mentors. Therefore, we can postulate that an assigned mentor is an important component of
employee engagement and retention and that it should not be the acting supervisor.
My limitations are imbedded in the fact I am an employee in the athletic department in
which I am working as the consultant on this project. I have biases, assumptions and as we know
from Wickham and Wilcock (2016) participating management in a consulting role can be
limiting. Lovrich (1985) would agree with Wickham and Wilcock that participant management
can often provide a narrow scope and therefore limit the ability the view from the balcony
(Heifetz, 2009). Another limitation is that I have only worked for two smaller consultant
agencies and therefore I am still in the development stages of becoming a consultant.
Strategies to Overcome the Limitations, Assumptions and Biases
The first step to develop a mechanism against my limitations as a participant manger, the
assumptions and biases derived from past experiences, is to identify them. The second strategy is
to recognize that some of the assumptions and limitations are beneficial as a consultant. For
example, my unwelcoming experience as a new employee, affords me to have more empathy and
passion for creating a program to help new employees feel welcome and engaged. Another
strategy to help with assumptions and limitations is to continue research the literature about
employee onboarding and in the impact on employee engagement and retention. Lastly, I will
utilize my resources with the consulting agencies and HR to develop recommendations to the
athletic director that can benefit the athletic department and the University of Maine.
Running head: New Employee Onboarding
6
References
Bookins, M. (2019). Example of an orientation program for new employees.
Smallbusinesschron.com. Retrieved on 20, June, 2019.
Gallos, J. (2006). Organization development: A Jossey-Bass reader. San Francisco, CA: JosseyBass.
Half, R. (2019). How to create a successful new hire orientation program. Roberthoalf.com.
Retrieved on 23, June, 2019.
Heifetz, R., Grashow, A. & Linsky, M. (2009) The Practice of Adaptive Leadership: Tools and
Tactics for Changing Your Organization and the World. Boston, MA: Harvard Business
Jose M. Acevedo, George B. Yancey, (2011) “Assessing new employee orientation
programs”, Journal of Workplace Learning, Vol. 23 Issue: 5, pp.349354,https://doi.org/10.1108/13665621111141939
Lyons, P. (2009). Trainer influence on the regulation of learning and performance.Training &
Management Development Methods, 23(3), 349-364. Retrieved from
https://library.umaine.edu/auth/EZproxy/test/authej.asp?url=https://search.proquest.com/
docview/202583056?accountid=14583
Lovrich, Nicholas P., Jr. (1985). The dangers of participative management: A test of unexamined
assumptions concerning employee involvement. Review of Public Personnel
Administration, 5(3), 9. Retrieved from
https://library.umaine.edu/auth/EZproxy/test/authej.asp?url=https://search.proquest.com/
docview/201502617?accountid=14583
Minter, R. L., & Thomas, E. G. (2000). Employee development through coaching, mentoring and
counseling: A multidimensional approach. Review of Business, 21(1), 43-47. Retrieved
Running head: New Employee Onboarding
7
from
https://library.umaine.edu/auth/EZproxy/test/authej.asp?url=https://search.proquest.com/
docview/220965705?accountid=14583
Official Athletics Website. University of Maine Athletics, goblackbears.com/. Retrieved on 13,
July, 2019.
Uhl-Bien, M. (2006). Relational Leadership Theory: Exploring the social processes of leadership
and organizing. The Leadership Quarterly. Volume 17, Issue 6, December 2006, Pages
654-676
Wickham, P. & Wilcock, J. (2016). Management Consulting: Delivering an Effective Project.
New York: Pearson. 5th Edition
Running head: New Employee Onboarding
8
Appendix 1
Those interviewed and surveyed ranged from those that have a hire date January 1, 2019
to June 1, 2019. The data was collected from employees that have been with the department for
six months to one week in order to capture the opinion of those that have had the opportunity to
discover what they may have not been aware they needed to know in week one.
Appendix 2
Likert scale, electronic questionnaire for all full-time employees of the University of Maine
athletic department:
Strongly Disagree Disagree
1
2
Neither Agree/Nor Disagree
3
Agree
Strongly Agree
4
5
1) I have worked in the athletic department at the University of Maine for:
1-6 Weeks
2-3 Months
4-5 Months
6 Months
2) I had numerous communication exchanges with my supervisor before my first day
3) Before I began my first day on campus, I felt welcome and most of the questions about the
position were answered.
4) I received a map of campus before I arrived on my first day so that I understood where I had
to go to complete paperwork with HR, get my employee ID, etc.
5) I knew where my office was in the building before I arrived the first day
6) On my first day in the position, I was assigned a mentor to help me with any questions I might
have as a new employee
7) I believe the athletic department should develop a new employee orientation program
8) A new employee orientation program would have helped ease my anxiety on the first day
Running head: New Employee Onboarding
9
9) Having a mentor through the onboarding process would have helped me feel more confident
to ask questions that I did feel comfortable asking my supervisor
10) I would recommend to others to work in the athletic department at the University of Maine
Open Ended Questions:
A) Use three words to describe to the three things you wish someone had shared with you before
your first day in the athletic department at the University of Maine:
B) Are there other comments you would like to make about your experience as a new employee
in the athletic department?
Appendix 3
University of Maine Athletic Department New Employee Data Collection
I had numerous communication exchanges with my supervisor
before my first day
I felt welcome and most of the questions were answered
I received a map of campus before I arrived
I knew where my office was before I arrived the first day
I was assigned a mentor to help me with any questions
I believe the athletic department should develop a new
employee orientation progra
A new employee orientation program would have helped ease
my anxiety
Having a mentor through the onboarding process would have
helped me feel more confident
I would recommend to others to work in the athletic department
at the University of Maine
0
2
Strongly Disagree
4
6
8
Disagree
10
12
Running head: New Employee Onboarding
Appendix 4
Interview Questions:
1) Is there anything you wish someone had shared with you before you arrived on campus for
your first day?
2) Tell me about the onboarding process at the University of Maine in the athletic department
3) What are your thoughts about a mentorship program for all new hirers in the department?
10
Copyright ©2020 Robert M. Yawson, PhD, MPhil, MS, BS
Individual Capstone Project – Consulting Project Proposal
(220 points – 44% of total grade)
Your final assignment is designed to be a culmination of your coursework within the MSOL program, done
within the context of consulting. Simply put, the deliverable is a detailed consulting project proposal and a
presentation. Your proposal should focus on a key business issue facing your current employer, or an
organization for which you have intimate knowledge of its operations and business activities. The structure of
your proposal will be as follows (this is largely based on the information in Wickham & Wilcock textbook on
pp. 69-74), and you must use the template detailed below:
•
•
Title: Client organization and a brief descriptive phrase [You should have this from OL689]
Executive Summary: Not more than a page stating what the project aims to achieve in broad terms
and the summary/abstract of the content of your document
•
Requirements: This should include:
a. Background information on the organization (as opposed to a normal consulting proposal, you
should assume that your reader has never heard of the organization – in other words, be
comprehensive!) [You should have this from OL689]
b. The opportunities/issues facing the organization that are the focus of the proposed consulting
engagement. [You should have this from OL689]
c. The high-level scope of the project. [You should have this from OL689]
d. Data Collection & Analysis (collection of data to know which issues to address)
• Deliverables (what the project will produce/deliver to the client)
• Desired Outcomes (what the organization will gain from the project)
• Approach (how you would go about doing the consulting work)
• Timeline (the schedule for completion of the project, from start to finish)
• Resources Required (both in terms of consultants and company personnel)
• Budget/Cost Estimates
Your project proposal is due on Blackboard by midnight of the last day of class. A grading rubric is
provided on Blackboard
PowerPoint Presentation
Your presentation should not be more than 10 PowerPoint slides and not more than 10 minutes duration. This
should be posted on the Main Discussion Board for your colleagues to see and is due on the Thursday, of the
last week of class. The presentation is 50 points, and it should be submitted as voice-over presentation. The
reason behind submitting your PPT before the main paper is that comments made on your PPT by colleagues
may help in finalizing your final proposal. This also means that you should have the final draft of your paper
before preparing your PPT. The PPT is to present what you have in your proposal. Assume you are meeting
your clients on the ground, you will present your proposal to them and hand over your full proposal. This is
the reason behind submitting the PPT first before the final paper. What have you learned from your data
gathering and analysis of their organization? What are you proposing to do for them and why should they hire
you as a consultant over others assuming it is a competitive bid to help implement the recommendations you
have proposed? What should somebody who will not have the time to read your proposal and sitting in your
audience know and be convinced that you understand their problem, and you know how to get their problem
resolved? Refer to the grading rubric for the PPT for more details.
Copyright ©2020 Robert M. Yawson, PhD, MPhil, MS, BS
Guidelines:
•
•
•
•
•
Your final consulting project is the culmination of what you started in OL 689. As a prerequisite for
this class you should already have 1) the organization you know quite well and worked on in OL 689,
2) the focal business issue(s) are clearly related to the OL curriculum in some capacity, and 3) the
consulting engagement is realistic – this is something that could reasonably be completed, and would
provide value to the organization.
Be specific regarding your approach to the project! In practice, you would not necessarily divulge all
of the details of the consulting process to a client (as this information may be a competitive advantage
over your competition). But for this exercise, I clearly want to know exactly what you would do, from
start to finish, in completing the consulting activity. This will be a major component of your grade on
the assignment.
Similarly, the timeline, budget and resource requirements should be as specific as possible. I will be
looking for estimates that are realistic and adequate for the work to be performed.
Structural guidelines for the paper are:
o Double-spaced o 12-point font o 1†margins
o The header should include the name of the
assignment and the author’s name (e.g., “Consulting
Proposal – Yawsonâ€Â). The file name should be the
same as the header.
You are limited to no more than ten pages of text for the proposal. This does not include the executive
summary, tables, appendices, and/or figures appended to the body of the paper.
Final Deliverable
Just to reiterate, you must use the template provided. Having everyone use the template will help ensure that
all of you meet the structural guidelines listed above, and provide some consistency between proposals.
Data Collection & Theory Behind the Practice Analysis
As part of your final project, you are required to submit a double space, 12-point font, minimum 5 page
document describing the type of data collected, the analysis, and findings from the data. This will require actual
collection of data as part of the client diagnosis phase of your consulting. As I have stated earlier, the actual
data collection for this assignment is extremely important. You will need to collaboratively work with your
client. You DO NOT have to collect data and make recommendations prescriptively, but rather work
collaboratively with the clients. The data feedback session is a very important step in which together with the
client, you decide what is needed to achieve the organizational goals set forth up front in the consulting project.
Part of this will ultimately be part of your “requirements†section of your final proposal.
You are also required to discuss in the 5-page document, the main theory/theories behind your consulting
practice and your negotiation skills as a consultant. This initial written assignment will require you to situate
yourself as a consultant in a reflexive manner. As part of the theory behind the practice write-up, you must
examine the ways in which you, as a consultant, are biased, bound and limited. You will also discuss your
negotiation strategies for the consulting process – Entry, Contracting and Data Gathering, and any ethical
implications of your negotiation strategies. Your write-up should be supported by a minimum of three peerreviewed scholarly journal paper citations. This part of your project is due the end of the 4th week of class. The
grading criteria for this assignment which carries 70 out of the total 220 points are as follows:
Copyright ©2020 Robert M. Yawson, PhD, MPhil, MS, BS
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
Has the student collected relevant data?
Has the student analyzed the data to know which issues to address at the organization?
Has the student convincingly discussed the main theory/theories behind the consulting practice?
Has the student used proper formatting? APA required
Has the student identified biases emanating from personal experiences?
Has the student identified pre-existing assumptions brought to the consultancy practice?
Has the student identified strategies for addressing these biases, limitations and assumptions towards
a more authentic consulting experience?
Has the student discussed negotiation strategies for the consulting process – Entry, Contracting and
Data Gathering and any Ethical Implications?
Is the write-up supported by a minimum of three peer-reviewed scholarly citations?
Is the paper free from written errors?
At the front-end of this paper, please include the project scope you developed in OL 689 for your final
capstone. This does not count towards the page limitation.
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