human behaviour and social environment

ORGANIZATIONAL ANALYSIS PAPER

. Please review carefully the outline that your paper must follow and expectations as laid out in the syllabus on pages 14-17

3. You must select an actual social service organization on which to base your paper--not a fictitious organization or an organization that your created in your mind.

4. Please review the grading rubric before you submit to find out how the paper will be graded.

5. Be sure to use your textbook to define terms. Your definitions should be paraphrased and not direct quotes.

6. All definitions should be cited in APA format and your reference in APA format is provided on the last page of your paper.

7. EACH MAJOR SECTION OF YOUR PAPER SHOULD INCLUDE THE HEADLINES PROVIDE IN THE OUTLINE.

WHAT:

The Organizational Analysis is an individual assignment that demonstrates your ability

to apply the social systems model to an organization (as based on chapters 5-8 and

supplemental readings). Specifically, it will reflect your knowledge of accurately

identifying, applying, integrating, interpreting, and assessing theoretical concepts,

assumptions, organizational behavior, and diversity/cultural impact.

It will also assess your ability to utilize practice-informed research as substantiated by

available literature.

You are free to choose ANY real-life organization (college, work setting, church,

political entity, social service agency, past volunteer placement, etc.) to complete this

assignment.

HOW:

All analyses are to be submitted through blackboard. You can find the submission link

by going to the tab labeled “weekly modules.”

After initial submission, check your My Grades tabs for a yellow icon indicating the

initial submission was good and is ready for grading.

Click on your submission to view the written text ensuring what you submitted was properly

uploaded with a Blackboard approved file--.doc or .docx (i.e. Mac files—pages--do not

properly show in Blackboard and blank submissions will be considered late).

LOGISTICS:

The template for this assignment is provided to you and all analyses will follow this

template in the order presented using the title and headings in bold.

In between bold headings use paragraph format

DO NOT include numbers or the questions.

Header: No Cover page--Upper right hand corner—First/last name/Date/SOCW 347 Page length: Minimum 6 pages—Maximum 10 pages APA format: Paragraph format/Double-space/12-point font/Times New Roman/Page numbers/Citations/Refs. (note- your textbook will be the only source used and needs to be cited within text as well as included in a reference sheet at the end of the paper).

INSTRUCTIONS: Use chapters 5 and 7 along with the handout given for this assignment.

Please follow the outline below.

Social Service Organizational Analysis: “Place the title of your organization here”

A. Background

1. Provide a brief overview of the social service organization, its mission, and to what

extent it is public vs. private and non-profit vs. for-profit.

2. What conditions within the macro environment initially led to a need for the

organization?

3. Identify one organizational theory (Chapter 5) that best explains how your social

service organization currently operates. Discuss why you selected this theory.

B. Boundary

1. Discuss what a boundary is and its role within the system perspective.

2. Identify your organization’s boundary and reasons why you believe this is a boundary.

3. Identify and discuss specific boundary maintenance behaviors that support the

boundary you have identified in this organization.

C. Interface

1. Discuss what an interface is and its role within the system perspective.

2. Identify one interface between your organization and another entity.

3. Discuss what turbulence exists at the interface that you identified in C (2) and why it is

turbulent.

D. Structure

1. Discuss what ‘organizational structure’ is and why it is important in formal

organizations.

2. Describe your organization’s organizational structure and include discussion about

lines of authority, channels of communication, and dimensions of power. **Be sure to

attach an organizational chart that you create yourself to the end of your paper. See

an example of one organization chart on page 209 in your textbook.

3. Using your organizational chart, identify two organizational positions/roles

a. align 1 of 5 types of power to both positions. Explain your selections.

E. Input

1. Discuss what input is and its role within the systems perspective.

2. Identify your organization’s signal input. Explain how your selection fits the role of

being a signal input.

3. Identify your organization’s maintenance input(s). Explain how your selection(s) fit

the role of being a maintenance input(s).

F. Output

1. Discuss what organizational output is and how it relates to the systems perspective

2. Define what an organizational goal and objective is. Explain how a goal and objective

compare and contrast to one another.

2.1.a. Identify one official goal your organization seeks to achieve and how its mission

informs/shapes the official goal.

2.1.b. Where or in what places does the organization state this official goal?

2.1.c. What is your organization’s objective for achieving the official goal?

2.1.d. Identify whether the objective stated in 2.1.c. is impact, service, operational, or

product related and why you believe this to be the case.

2.1.e. Using supporting data, discuss to what extent the organization’s objective is

achieving its official goal as stated in 2.1.a.

2.2.a. Identify one operational goal your organization seeks to achieve and how its

mission informs/shapes the operational goal.

2.2.b. Briefly discuss to what extent this operational goal is explicit or implicit.

2.2.c. What is your organization’s objective for achieving the operational goal?

2.2.d. Identify whether the objective stated in 2.2.c. is impact, service, operational, or

product related and why you believe this to be the case.

2.2.e. Using supporting data, discuss to what extent the organization’s objective is

achieving its operational goal as stated in 2.2.a.

H. Feedback

1. Discuss what feedback is and its overall utility in formal organizations.

2. Provide examples of feedback occurring in your organization that would impact the

objectives identified in sections (G) 2.1.c. and (G) 2.2.c.

3. Discuss and explain to what extent the feedback is positive, negative or both.

4. In what ways should the objectives in sections (G) 2.1.c. and (G) 2.2.c be modified

based on the feedback you identified in (H) 2? Explain your answer.

5. Discuss how a social work practitioner might potentially use this analysis and resultant

feedback to enhance organizational/employee performance.