Final Paper (3,200+ words)
The purpose of the final paper is to examine a specific problem or challenge within an organization from the perspective of one of the topics of discussed in this course. You will first select an organization and note the specific problem or challenge that you will focus on. Please use reputable sources of information to select the organization and identify the problem or challenge that company is facing, and please ensure that the issues are relatively contemporary, having occurred in the last few years. Organizations can be in the private sector (for-profit or non-profits) or public organizations.
You will then concretely link this problem, challenge, or opportunity to any one of the topics corresponding to the sessions listed in the outline below (for example: employee relationships, consumer relationships, the business-government interface, ethical decision-making technology, sustainability). Choose only one of those topics as the focus of the analysis in your paper. In doing so, you will outline several key theories, ideas, or concepts important to that topic, and then apply those theories, concepts, or ideas to your selected organization and problem/challenge.
It may be helpful to think of this paper in terms of an audience: the tone of the paper can reflect that of a manager or leader in an organization presenting this information to a corporate board or other supervisory body or individual in a leadership position.
The final paper should contain the following:
● Introduction (1/2 page to 1 page): What is the purpose of the paper? What topics are you going to cover?
● Overview of the organization (1 page): Provide the name of the organization, and discuss primary functions or services provided and clientele
● Discussion of the problem / challenge (1–2 pages): Provide an overview of the problem or challenge faced by the organization
● Discussion of stakeholders impacted by the problem and related ethical considerations (3–4 pages): Identify key stakeholder groups, and discuss ethical challenges related to the problem / challenge. In doing so, concretely link the problem to core course topics
● Assessment of the company’s action plan to manage the problem / challenge, and how you would improve that plan (2 pages): Discuss how you’d solve the problem /challenge, and the reason your proposed solution is superior to other possible solutions
● Conclusion (1 page): Summarize the contents and main points of the paper
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This final paper requires significant external research on the company from sources such as The Wall Street Journal, Fortune, Forbes, Businessweek, and others. Do not use sites such as Wikipedia or other encyclopedia sites. Please use proper attribution and citation for all outside research. You will be evaluated on the quality and accuracy of your research.