Instructions: The Organizational Leadership Analysis is the culminating assignment that will allow you to demonstrate an understanding of the leadership theories and approaches covered in this course, as well as their practice in a team and organizational settings. You have practiced this type of analysis through our previous case study assignments. Now it is time to take your leadership knowledge and analysis skills and apply them to a real-world case study; an organization with which you are very familiar.
How to select an organization for your case: You will select an organization in which to study. The use of your own organization for this assignment is highly recommended. If you are not currently connected to a formal organization, you may choose one from your recent past. Remember to change the name of the organization and people to protect the anonymity of those included in your case!
Write a 10- to 12-page leadership case study analysis on your current organization, or one very familiar to you. Analyze it through the leadership theories and approaches presented in this course. Your analysis should include at least five peer-reviewed sources besides Northouse.
This assignment will have four sections:
Introduction describing the organization and your specific connection to it (app. 1 page);
Provide a profile of your selected organization that includes its vision, mission, goals, and structure.
Describe your connection to the organization and your level of familiarity with it.
Case: a description of the key leaders and situations you will be analyzing (app. 2 pages);
Write a case study of a leadership situation or problem found in your organization. This can revolve around one specific leader (not you) and situation or can describe an issue with your organization’s overall leadership culture.
While you might be a part of your case study, you should not be the primary leader you will analyze. Also, your case will need to be complex enough to analyze it through at least three different leadership theories or approaches. Just remember, the quality of your case will factor greatly into the effectiveness of its analysis and recommendations.
Use the case studies used in our previous assignments and found throughout our textbook as models for writing your case (there are 45 from which to choose). Structure your case study similarly.
Analysis of your organization’s leadership through relevant leadership theories and approaches (app. 5 pages); and
Analyze the effectiveness of your selected organization’s leadership through at least three different leadership theories/approaches presented in this course, one of which must be team leadership.
You must incorporate into the analysis the journal articles from earlier modules that match the leadership theories/approaches that you choose. Make sure to utilize the literature on leadership theory and approaches to support your analysis. For example, if situational leadership is one of the three theories/approaches of leadership with which you choose to analyze your case study, then you will incorporate into your analysis support from relevant journal articles and the textbook for that module.
Use your knowledge of leadership theory and approaches to form your conclusions and make judgments about the effectiveness of leadership in your selected situation and organization.
Tip: To help with organization and clarity, create section headers for each of the three leadership theories/approaches you will be using to analyze your case. For example, you might label the names of the four sections of this assignment (Introduction, Case, Analysis, and Recommendations) with APA style Level 1 headers. Use Level 2 headers to label the sections for each of the leadership theories/approaches through which you will be analyzing your case.
Recommendations for improvement (app. 3 pages).
Create recommendations for improving the specific situation in your case, as well as helping develop more effective leadership in your selected organization. Your recommendations will directly relate to your case analysis and will include at least two leadership theories or approaches presented in this course (e.g., labeled with Level 2 headers), adapted to match the specific needs of the organization and contemporary challenges facing the leaders.
Do not forget to complete your paper with a concluding paragraph.
Format your paper according to APA guidelines. Your analysis should include at least five peer-reviewed sources besides your textbook.
