Wk2_535

Wk2_535

Due: 8/31/2026 @ 6PM CST

You have recently been promoted to a senior leadership role within your organization. In this position, you are responsible for leading a critical initiative that will shape the company’s future. Before recommending any direction, you must first build a clear picture of the organization’s culture—its strengths, gaps, readiness for change, and alignment with its mission, vision, values, and strategy.

Assessment Preparation

Review the Company Profiles document, and select 1 company that you believe presents the most compelling opportunity for cultural assessment or improvement.

Assume the organization is preparing for significant transformation over the next 5 years, including:

· Increased reliance on AI-enabled and data-driven decision-making

· A push to strengthen alignment between strategy and culture

Assume you have access to any internal, cultural, performance, or operational reports referenced in the profiles.

Brainstorm which AI tools (e.g., Copilot, ChatGPT, other industry-specific tools) could be used to generate the following:

· Cultural themes or patterns

· Areas of alignment or misalignment

· Possible risks of cultural friction

· Early ideas for recommendations

Note: For guidance on how to write a professional strategic report, read " How to Write a Strategy Report? A Step-By-Step Guide for Marketers" from Databox. You may also want to research other examples to guide your formatting and tone.

Assessment Deliverable

Write a 700- to 1,050-word strategic report addressed to the executive leadership team. Your report should include the following sections:

· Executive Summary

· Summarize the following:

· The purpose of the report (why cultural alignment matters for this initiative)

· The company you’ve selected and why

· Key findings about the organization’s current culture

· Organizational Readiness for Change

· Assess the following:

· How well the current culture either supports or suppresses the mission, vision, values, or strategy

· Cultural strengths that enable transformation

· Cultural gaps or frictions that might create resistance

· Which insights were supported by AI-powered analysis

· Recommendations for Change and Future Growth

· Provide 3 AI-informed recommendations to improve alignment between culture, mission, vision, values, and strategy. For each recommendation, include:

· The expected cultural impact

· An evaluation of feasibility (including constraints of a leader’s influence without direct authority)

· Potential unintended consequences or tradeoffs

· How the recommendation supports the organization’s 5-year strategic vision

· Appendix

· Provide a brief note about what AI tools were used, what insights they generated, and how those insights informed your recommendations.

Faculty Note: You must use one of the three organizations as given in the Company Profiles document provided in the instructions.

Do not submit your assignment as a PDF document. Be careful that Microsoft does not default to save as a PDF. Your submission must be a Microsoft Word document. Nothing else will be accepted. 

Assessment Support

· Review the rubric for guidance on deliverable expectations.

• LDR/535 Grading Rubrics
• Wk 2 Summative Assessment: Organizational Culture Report
• Wk 4 Summative Assessment: Innovative Leadership Plan
• Wk 6 Summative Assessment: Change Management Plan Presentation

Company Profiles

Review the three following company profiles. Pay attention to strategic goals, KPIs, employee sentiment indicators, and descriptions of leadership behaviors. Select 1 company that you believe presents the most compelling opportunity for cultural assessment or improvement to complete the Wk 2 Summative Assessment: Organizational Culture Report.

Company A: TechNova Solutions

Industry: Technology (cloud software)

Size: 150 employees

Annual Revenue: $35M

Geographic Footprint: Headquarters in Austin, TX; remote teams across U.S. and Canada

Mission: “Empowering businesses to innovate through seamless cloud computing solutions”

Vision: “To be the most trusted partner for digital transformation in the SMB sector”

Values: Innovation, integrity, agility, customer centricity

Strategic Goals:

· Hit 30% YoY growth in cloud subscriptions

· Expand into 2 new vertical markets (health care and retail) within 5 years

· Maintain employee engagement scores above 85%

Business Model: Agile, cross-functional teams; hybrid work (60% remote); flat hierarchy

Culture: Collaborative, fast-paced, risk-tolerant, “fail fast, learn faster”

Recent Change Initiative: Scaling remote work infrastructure; integrating AI-driven customer support

Challenges: Resistance from long-tenured staff to use AI tools; concerns about maintaining culture during growth

KPIs: NPS, employee engagement, churn rate

AI Readiness: Early adopter; leadership champions AI; some teams lack technical skills; cloud-native infrastructure

Stakeholder Map: Board, executive leadership, managers, employees, customers

Company B: Unity Health Partners

Industry: Health care (regional hospital network)

Size: 2,000 employees

Annual Revenue: $400M

Geographic Footprint: 3 hospitals, 5 clinics in the Midwest

Mission: “Delivering compassionate, high-quality care to every patient, every time”

Vision: “To set the standard for patient-centered care in our region”

Values: Compassion, excellence, accountability, teamwork

Strategic Goals:

· Implement fully digital patient records within 2 years

· Improve patient satisfaction scores by 10%

· Reduce operational costs by 8% through process automation

Business Model: Hierarchical, unionized nursing staff; centralized decision-making

Culture: Patient-focused, slow to adopt change, strong community, risk-averse

Recent Change Initiative: Digital patient records and telehealth expansion

Challenges: Staff skepticism about privacy and technology; concerns about increased workload

KPIs: Patient satisfaction scores, readmission rates, cost per patient

AI Readiness: Limited use (scheduling, diagnostics); cautious leadership; mixed legacy/cloud IT integrations

Stakeholder Map: Board, administrators, IT staff, physicians, nurses, patients

Company C: GlobalMakers, Inc.

Industry: Manufacturing (consumer electronics)

Size: 10,000 employees

Annual Revenue: $2.5B

Geographic Footprint: HQ in Chicago; plants in U.S., Mexico, and Vietnam; global distribution

Mission: “Building innovative products that connect people worldwide”

Vision: “To lead the industry in sustainable, smart manufacturing”

Values: Sustainability, innovation, diversity

Strategic Goals:

· Launch a new AI-powered product line within 18 months

· Reduce carbon footprint by 25% in 5 years

· Increase global market share by 15%

Business Model: Matrix structure; lean manufacturing; global teams

Culture: Results-driven, process-oriented, open to innovation, focus on sustainability

Recent Change Initiative: Restructuring for new product line and sustainability; AI for predictive maintenance and supply chain

Challenges: Middle management resistance; job displacement concerns

KPIs: Production efficiency, defect rates, sustainability metrics

AI Readiness: Advanced AI in manufacturing/logistics; proactive leadership; ongoing upskilling; robust IoT and data analytics

Stakeholder Map: Board, executive leadership, plant managers, engineers, line workers, global partners, customers