transformational leadership Due April 17, 2019
King Wave
Track1Template-Thesis.docx(DOWNLOAD THIS FORM AS A WORD DOC AND EDIT IN MICROSOFT WORD. PLEASE DO NOT EDIT THE FORM IN GOOGLE DOCS)
College
Track 1 Capstone Project Template - Thesis
Overview
This document serves as a template that can be used by College online students to help formulate their capstone project for the BS in Business Management program. The primary purpose of this template is to help students develop a quality and consistent capstone project.
Students should follow the instructions included in each section of the template. This overview page should be removed. The document is prepared using the APA 6th edition style, or MLA 8th edition style. If students identify elements that are not in APA or MLA style they should make any necessary adjustments.
College
MGMT-470: Business Management Capstone
BS in Business Management Program
Program Director: Dr. Albert Orbinati
Student’s Name: (First Last)
Street Address:
City, State and Zip Code:
Preferred Phone: (123-456-7890)
College Email: [email protected]
Capstone Submission Date: mm/yyyy
Capstone Project Title: ALL CAPS
CERTIFICATE OF AUTHORSHIP:
I certify that I am the author of this paper and that any assistance I receive in its preparation is fully acknowledged and disclosed in this paper. I have also cited any sources from which I used data, ideas, or works, either quoted directly or paraphrased. I also certify that this paper was prepared by me specifically for this course.
Student’s Signature:
Date:
<TITLE OF YOUR CAPSTONE PROJECT>
<Your Name>
A Capstone Project
Submitted in partial fulfillment
of the requirements for the degree
Bachelor of Science in Business Management
Division of Continuing Professional Studies
College
<Date>
Table of Contents
(Input your own page numbers when complete; Delete table lines before making project complete; Hyperlinks are set up to quickly navigate to each section - each section has a page break prior to the title...please do not delete these page breaks. If you do, please put them back in and make sure to set up the hyperlink again)
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List of Tables and Figures
(This section is only needed if you have tables and/opr figures in your project. Input your own numbers when complete; delete table lines before making project complete)
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Table 1: Title of Table |
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Table 2: Title of Table |
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Figure 1: Title of Figure |
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Figure 2: Title of Figure |
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FORMATTING REQUIREMENTS OF THE PROJECT (delete this list when final)
1. APA or MLA formatting style
2. Page size: 8.5 x 11
3. Margins: 1 inch all around
4. First sentence indent (tab): .5 inches
5. Font: Times New Roman, size: 12
6. Spacing: Double, except in block quotations, bulleted or numbered lists, and within references in your References section. Each of these will be single spaced.
7. Running heads? No.
8. All first level headings start on a new page. This is already set up for you.
9. Everything else is cut and paste - simply input your information into the pages provided.
10. Headings:
Heading Level One
Heading Level Two
Heading level three. (Note the indent and period, and note how the capitalization works. You will probably never go deeper than the third heading level.)
Heading level four. The paragraph starts here...
Heading level five. The paragraph starts here...
I. Abstract
An abstract summarizes, usually in one paragraph of 250 words or less, the major aspects of the entire paper in a prescribed sequence that includes: 1) the overall purpose of the study and the research problem(s) you investigated; 2) the basic design of the study; 3) major findings or trends found as a result of your analysis; and, 4) a brief summary of your interpretations and conclusions. The abstract is not indented and is usually written after the research project is complete.
II. Essential Competencies
(Use the verbiage included here and immediately following, please list at least 5 of the essential competencies that your project addresses, and explain how your capstone project experience has addressed them.)
The following outcomes are the 10 Essential Learning Competencies for the MGMT-470 Capstone Project:
1. Functional Area Expertise & General Business Integration
2. Advanced Literacy & Numeric Proficiency
3. Oral Communication Proficiency
4. Technological Competence
5. Teamwork, Human Relations & Organizational Effectiveness
6. Information Literacy
7. Problem Solving & Decision-Making Proficiency
8. Global Awareness & Multi-Cultural Empathy
9. Capacity for Lifelong Learning
10. Complementary Personal Attitudes, Values & Traits
III. Statement of the Problem
Introduction
Capturing your audience's attention is the point to the Intro. In academia we call it a "narrative hook." You want to provide the most salient information you can find that will really "hits it home" to your reader. What issue(s) made you want to write about this topic in the first place? Are there statistics that would really tell the story? How about a brief case study that captures attention? This should be anywhere from 2-4 paragraphs in length. Use references!!
Research Problem and Thesis Statement
First, write a one paragraph statement of the specific problem you want to address in your study. Be clear and succinct in this paragraph.
Then, in the second paragraph write a thesis statement. A thesis statement is a short, concise paragraph that summarizes the main point of an essay or research paper. In a thesis statement, the author is making a specific claim or assertion about a topic that can be debated or challenged. This claim will be developed, supported, and explained in the body of the paper by means of examples and evidence.
Purpose Statement
“The purpose of this study is to _________, in order to __________.”
The purpose statement is an intentional statement that tells your readers (and yourself) "here's exactly what I'm going to do, and why I'm doing it." It's a one-sentence statement. In the first blank you'll identify your primary action verb - are you going to investigate an issue? Are you going to survey and audience? Measure the effect of something? The second blank is the "here's the point to all of this" statement. If you're investigating an issue, what's the outcome of the investigation? Provide a set of recommendations? Create a training manual?
Research Questions
Okay, so now that you've introduced and identified a problem, have a thesis, and gave a statement on how you're going to address the problem, what are the question(s) that will lead to your primary answers? For example: if your purpose is to investigate how diversity and inclusion is supported in your organization's HR practices, the first question you would ask is: "How is diversity and inclusion supported in X-organization's HR practices?" See how easy it is? Then, by the end of the paper, look back to see if you answered this question. If you didn't, then go back and revise until you do.
Methodological Approach
(Simply cut/paste the following language into your Methodological Approach section:)
This study will use a secondary research approach using both internal and external data to substantiate the research problem, and address the research questions. The resulting methodological approach will be:
· The identification of subject domains and sources to acquire information;
· The gathering of existing data;
· Comparing data from different sources; and
· Analyzing the data using deductive reasoning
Structure and Organization
All SoP sections conclude with a brief section-by-section description of the organization of the rest of the paper. So, simply look ahead, create a bulleted list, and a brief description of each section.
IV. Literature Review
The Literature Review (LR) is a significant section of your capstone project, that typically runs 4-5 pages in length. A literature review surveys books, scholarly articles, and any other sources relevant to a particular issue, area of research, or theory, and by so doing, provides a description, summary, and critical evaluation of these works in relation to the research problem being investigated. Literature reviews are designed to provide an overview of sources you have explored while researching a particular topic.
The Literature Review forms the data foundation of your project. So, make sure that in addition to providing a critical evaluation of your works in relation to your research problem, you also make sure there is sufficient data available to pull from to, ultimately, answer your research question(s). There isn’t a standard template for an LR section. Many students create an outline of topics they need to cover and then simply use that outline as the basis of their LR.
V. Discussion of Findings
Very simply, the Discussion of Findings (DoF) section is where you will discuss what you found in your Lit Review - as these findings relate directly to answering your research questions. Here’s what it will look like:
RQ1: What Makes the Sky Blue?
According to Smith (2018) the sky appears to be blue in color because….Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam, quis nostrud exercitation ullamco laboris nisi ut aliquip ex ea commodo consequat (Jones, 2017). “Duis aute irure dolor in reprehenderit in voluptate velit esse cillum dolore eu fugiat nulla pariatur” (Doe, 2018, p.4). Excepteur sint occaecat cupidatat non proident, sunt in culpa qui officia deserunt mollit anim id est laborum
RQ2: Can the Sky Display All Colors?
Orbinati (2019) described sed ut perspiciatis unde omnis iste natus error sit voluptatem accusantium doloremque laudantium, totam rem aperiam, “eaque ipsa quae ab illo inventore veritatis et quasi architecto beatae vitae dicta sunt explicabo” (p.33). Nemo enim ipsam voluptatem quia voluptas sit aspernatur aut odit aut fugit, sed quia consequuntur magni dolores eos qui ratione voluptatem sequi nesciunt
VI. Recommendations
So, you’ve identified an issue or problem to research in your SoP section. Then, you gathered research and analyzed it according to your research questions in the LR and DoF sections. What did you learn? What recommendations do you, the researcher, have to the people or organizations affected by the problem? Using your findings, recommend actions to be taken to mitigate the problem. There should be no new information in the Recommendations section, rather, use the information in your study and provide a set of actionable (repeatable) recommendations. I often tell students to write each recommendation as if you were putting together an instruction manual or set of directions. It won't be enough to just say: “It is recommended that organization X improve its accounting standards.” If you recommend something, explain HOW the organization can implement your recommendation, and be as explicit and detail oriented as possible. Create figures or charts if you have to, but provide actionable recommendations above all else.
VII. Conclusion
In your conclusion section:
1. Present the last word on the issues you raised in your paper. Just as the introduction gives a first impression to your reader, the conclusion offers a chance to leave a lasting impression. Do this, for example, by highlighting key findings in your analysis or result section or by noting important or unexpected implications applied to practice.
2. Summarize your thoughts and conveying the larger significance of your study. The conclusion is an opportunity to succinctly answer [or in some cases, to re-emphasize] the "So What?" question by placing the study within the context of how your research advances past research about the topic.
3. Identify how a gap in the literature has been addressed. The conclusion can be where you describe how a previously identified gap in the literature [described in your literature review section] has been filled by your research.
4. Demonstrate the importance of your ideas. Don't be shy. The conclusion offers you the opportunity to elaborate on the impact and significance of your findings.
5. Introduce possible new or expanded ways of thinking about the research problem. This does not refer to introducing new information [which should be avoided], but to offer new insight and creative approaches for framing or contextualizing the research problem based on the results of your study.
VIII. References
You can also use either APA or MLA formatting in this section, but I ask that you stay consistent with what you used in the paper. Here’s a few examples:
APA Format:
Daus, C. S., & Ashkanasy, N. M. (2005). The case for the ability-based model of emotional intelligence in organizational behavior. Journal of Organizational Behavior, 26, 453–466. http://dx.doi.org/10.1002/job.321
Krishnakumar, S., Hopkins, K., Szmerekovsky, J.G. & Robinson, M. (2016). Assessing workplace emotional intelligence: Development and validation of an ability-based measure. The Journal of Psychology, 150(3), 371-404. http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/00223980.2015.1057096
MacCann, C., & Roberts, R. D. (2008). New paradigms for assessing emotional intelligence: Theory and data. Emotion, 8, 540–551. http://dx.doi.org/10.1037/a0012746
MLA Format:
Dean, Cornelia. "Executive on a Mission: Saving the Planet." The New York Times, 22 May 2007, www.nytimes.com/2007/05/22/science/earth/22ander.html?_r=0 . Accessed 12 May 2016.
Ebert, Roger. Review of An Inconvenient Truth, directed by Davis Guggenheim. rogerebert.com, 1 June 2006, www.rogerebert.com/reviews/an-inconvenient-truth-2006 . Accessed 15 June 2016.
Gowdy, John. "Avoiding Self-organized Extinction: Toward a Co-evolutionary Economics of Sustainability." International Journal of Sustainable Development and World Ecology, vol. 14, no. 1, 2007, pp. 27-36.
Appendices should be included that supported your capstone project efforts; this may include but not be limited to financial statements, charts, diagrams, org charts, instruction manuals, etc. What resources did you use to complete your tasks?
