Module 1 – SLP
INTRODUCTION AND DEFINING THE MSITM CAPSTONE COURSE REQUIREMENTS
As you know, the purpose of an SLP is to give you the opportunity to explore the applicability of the course learning to your own work-life. By this time, most MSITM students are assumed to have acquired a good deal of important knowledge about information technology and its management. Interestingly, you have likely also functioned (formally or informally) in the role of ‘internal organizational IT consultant’ (or can at least imagine what this might be like). Those of you who have been (or are) IT consultants or contractors (or simply just had to offer IT or other advice) certainly know that, in addition to technical knowledge and skill, you also have to acquire a set of successful ‘consulting techniques’, to include a set of suitable interaction/communication/political behaviors. You also have to know something about the organization and your customers, how to get at the data/issues, then get your message across, getting people to trust and respect you and a host of other things necessary to get the consulting role and keep it, or to get and keep an important IT project moving. This is only a little less true for the internal IT specialist or manager who must respond in many ways as a consultant to internal customers.
The SLP question thus is:
“What do I really know about my personal ‘consulting’ activities?”
Your task for this SLP is to: (1) do a little personal literature mining (properly cited) on the particulars and importance of the role of the IT consultant and the IT unit as a consultant to the organization. You are encouraged to look beyond personal behaviors and check out ‘organization development’ (OD) or general consulting literature to understand organizational techniques (i.e., ‘scanning’) and issues (such as political realities). In particular, you might wish to find one of the several ‘step’ models which suggest phased consulting activities; (2) note some truly important characteristics; and then (3) using this information as a guide, suggest your current most important consulting strengths as well as opportunities you see for improvement, based on both personal knowledge and your assignment literature review. Relate these strengths to the organizational unit for your project and discuss how the strength could benefit the IT outreach from that unit. Try to do this in three to four pages or so. (There is no penalty for a longer paper.) Note that you may wish to seek the opinions of co-workers in this largely self-diagnostic project. They may have some interesting insight for you. Remember, this is not a paper where you make generalized comments about what consultants do. It is about your insight and typical activities. Do not discuss personality ‘traits’ or ‘style labels’ you may have learned. You must discuss actual activities you now use when dealing with others and providing expert IT advice. For example, how well do you listen versus talk, or how well do you scan the organizational environment and try to find out about the politics of a given situation before you wade in with your advice or start a project? As noted above, you will wish to research the Web and check out traditional models of consulting behavior and typical behaviors in each ‘stage.’ For example, what are effective behaviors when one first enters any kind of consulting relationship? Again, stay out of the personality and trait literature; this is about observable activity. You may want to chat with people whom you have provided advice to, to see what they have observed. Be forewarned that generalized papers with no personal information, or including a ‘personality assessment’ will be graded as unresponsive to this assignment. Do not provide a technical outline or project details such as: “conduct project/needs analysis.” This is assumed.
These SLP papers require that you integrate, discuss, contiguously cite, and later fully reference at least three academically sound sources. Use enough concurrent discussion so that the purpose of each citation is apparent to the reader. Note that this paper is incomplete without at least three academically sound references (relevant magazine articles such as CIO are OK. Also, you may use Wikipedia and military/corporate references, but they do not count as one of the required three).
You will be assessed on the appropriateness and completeness of the detail you provide regarding your topic, your use of citations and references as noted above, and your intellectual insight into topically important issues.
You are expected to use correct grammar, spelling, and English vocabulary. Check your paper for missing or inappropriately used words. If in doubt, check the dictionary and not ‘spell check.’ Consider that this paper, and all others, will be reviewed by the CIO and/or your commanding officer. It is strongly suggested that you ask a trusted colleague to review and edit each of your papers.
Post your paper once it is completed.
Module 2 – SLP
ARCHITECTING THE IT GOVERNANCE PLAN
SLP Assignment Expectations
As a consultant to, or manager of, an IT unit within your selected organization, you must be keenly aware of challenges facing your selected organization. This assignment asks you to identify, intellectually discuss, and broadly report on at least two of the most important (in your view) strategic issues faced by your selected organization. In particular, note how these issues have influenced the organization you are considering. Why has the consideration of them positively affected that organization? Conversely, what have been the negative effects on the organization because of not considering them? Make sure you relate the issues and concerns you discuss to IT Governance. Additionally, if failure to properly consider an IT Governance issue has caused the organization problems, how would you alter the IT Strategy? Alternately, if the Governance Issues have aided the organization, what more might you recommend doing? Please provide some detail/examples as you write this paper.
Your paper’s title might be: Considering the Strategic Issues: Their Impact on IT Governance.
Module 3 – SLP
IT ORGANIZATIONAL ASSESSMENT AND PLANNING
These SLP papers require that you integrate, discuss, contiguously cite, and later fully reference at least three academically sound sources. Use enough concurrent discussion so that the purpose of each citation is apparent to the reader. This paper is incomplete without at least three academically sound references. Relevant magazine articles such as CIO are acceptable. Also, you may use military/corporate references, but they do not count as one of the required three.
SLP Assignment Expectations
You will be assessed on the appropriateness and completeness of the detail you provide regarding your topic, your use of citations and references as noted above, and your intellectual insight into topically important issues.
You are expected to use correct grammar, spelling, and English vocabulary. Check your paper for missing or inappropriately used words. If in doubt, check the dictionary and not ‘spell check.’ Consider that this paper, and all others, will be reviewed by the CIO and/or your commanding officer. It is strongly suggested that you ask a trusted colleague to review and edit each of your papers.
Post your paper once it is completed.
Finally, you are not to use any government/military classified or corporate-sensitive information in the development of any course papers or in any Discussion participation.
Module 4 – SLP
MANAGING COMPLEX IT ORGANIZATIONAL CHANGE AND CAPSTONE PAPER
The continuing professional development of IT personnel is a key managerial responsibility. In this light, reflect on a subordinate and prepare a somewhat detailed and actionable professional development plan which would be intended for use in a forthcoming performance review session. In this plan, you should hypothetically assume the individual to be reviewed has indicated interest in a long-term organizational career and steady advancement. From your perspective, your plan would include both near- and long-term objectives and milestones to assist this individual in reaching his or her goals. This plan should include traditional professional development issues such as potential schools and assignments as well as some counsel on how to make use of organizational politics (e.g., getting a senior mentor) and maintain a visible, positive profile. Begin the paper with a brief academic review of the importance of subordinate professional development to personal and organizational performance (with appropriate citations), and then follow this with your detailed plan. The plan title might be: “Achieving Personal Success While Advancing Organizational Performance.”
SLP Assignment Expectations
These SLP papers require that you integrate, discuss, contiguously cite, and later fully reference at least three academically sound sources. Use enough concurrent discussion so that the purpose of each citation is apparent to the reader. This paper is incomplete without at least three academically sound references. Relevant magazine articles such as CIO are OK. Also, you may use military/corporate references, but they do not count as one of the required three.
You will be assessed on the appropriateness and completeness of the detail you provide regarding your topic, your use of citations and references as noted above, and your intellectual insight into topically important issues.
You are expected to use correct grammar, spelling, and English vocabulary. Check your paper for missing or inappropriately used words. If in doubt, check the dictionary and not ‘spell check.’ Consider that this paper, and all others, will be reviewed by the CIO and/or your commanding officer. It is strongly suggested that you ask a trusted colleague to review and edit each of your papers.
Post your paper once it is completed.
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