Assignment 5: Impact Identification

Running head: NEEDS 1

NEEDS 5

Needs Assessment

Mark S. Lasky

American Public University

MGMT 495

Professor Davis

March 16, 2019

Objectives of the Needs Assessment Comment by WillieTDavis: Bold font and center

The problem that the business is facing is due to the merger between the Sales department and the marketing department. The merger was formed with the aim of enhancing efficiency in the two departments. However, this has not been the case because the merger has brought about conflicts between members of the two departments. The problems include communication problems, performance problems and interpersonal conflicts. This has, in turn, decreased the productivity of workers in the two departments. The needs assessment is therefore aimed at improving the productivity of workers by determining the causes of the conflicts between the Sales department and the marketing department and developing strategies to address them (Björnerstedt, 2016). The focus is on employee productivity not increasing profits because reduced profits are as a result of poor employee productivity.

Data Collection Comment by WillieTDavis: Level-one headings should be in bold font

To effectively understand the conflict, questionnaires were distributed to the employees in the two departments through email. The completed questionnaires were sent back through the method and various participants from the questionnaires were invited for an interview which was conducted through Skype. The questionnaires had fifteen open-ended questions related to the conflicts between the two departments. The interviews entailed six brief open-ended questions that were designed in a way that seeks to discuss the major causes of the conflicts and how they can be addressed.

Methods of Data Analysis

Thematic analysis was incorporated to evaluate the results from the questionnaires. Statistical software such as STRATA was not used due to the diversity of the questions and a qualitative research approach was adopted. The results of the interviews were manually analyzed in order to find common words that could be put together to determine common trends from employees.

Findings

Majority of the employees who participated in the questionnaire and interviews associated the conflicts between the two departments with the management. The mode of communication in the workplace is vertical communication which means that communication is from the top to the bottom. Employees are therefore not given a chance to communicate their views on various issues because communication from the alternate route (from the bottom to the top) is not encouraged (Hovenkamp, 2017). Performance problems also enhanced the conflicts between the two departments. The inappropriate competition was created when managers openly praised the departments that performed well.

Recommendations

To address the conflict between the two departments, it is important to evaluate the needs of the business. The business needs to conduct its operations effectively in order to ensure that the customers are satisfied. This can only be achieved by maximizing the productivity of workers. It is therefore important to develop strategies to address the conflicts between the two departments which are affecting their productivity. First and foremost, the business needs to adopt diagonal communication which will enhance communication between the employees and the managers. This will improve employee productivity because the views of employees will be listened to which will make them feel worthy. Secondly, managers should provide a framework for the departments which will be used to determine their performance. This will reduce the inappropriate competition created because each department knows what it has to do to perform better than the other (Bettig, 2018). Finally, the business should consider the advantages and disadvantages of the departments working as a singular unit or as two units just as they previously did. In case, the business determines the departments will be much more efficient when working as two units, it should do away with the merger.

Conclusion

The problem that the business is facing is due to the merger between the Sales department and the marketing department. To effectively understand the conflict, questionnaires were distributed to the employees in the two departments through email. Thematic analysis was incorporated to evaluate the results from the questionnaires. Statistical software such as STRATA was not used due to the diversity of the questions and a qualitative research approach was adopted. The majority of the employees who participated in the questionnaire and interviews associated the conflicts between the two departments with the management. To address the conflict between the two departments, it is important to evaluate the needs of the business. It is therefore important to develop strategies to address the conflicts between the two departments which are affecting their productivity.

References

Bettig, R. V. (2018). Copyrighting culture: The political economy of intellectual property. Routledge.

Björnerstedt, J., & Verboven, F. (2016). Does merger simulation work? Evidence from the Swedish analgesics market. American Economic Journal: Applied Economics, 8(3), 125-64.

Hovenkamp, H., & Shapiro, C. (2017). Horizontal mergers, market structure, and burdens of proof. Yale LJ, 127, 1996.