ECA College Assessment Task 2 Answer

Samson Media is a publisher of several upmarket fashion magazines. It has strong links with a number of high-profile fashion houses whose products are featured in the magazines, and also provides a significant source of advertising revenue. Readers of the magazines are predominantly 35 – 55-year-old women.

Readership has fallen over the last two years. This is due in the most part to competition from a range of other fashion magazines who have made their product available electronically and the consumer trend of consuming their content digitally. Due to the decline in readership, profits have also fallen by 20% and there has also been a decrease in the share price.

As a consequence, the new CEO, Amir Johnson, has been appointed to turn things around. Amir was the former Marketing Director for a well-known successful media business that included a national newspaper, magazines and a subscription television channel. Those publications are focused mainly on sport and celebrity gossip. They were able to undercut their competitors with low prices, enabled by a ruthless approach to achieve high levels of efficiency and a switch early on to publications being made available in both print and electronic format.

Amir and his team have developed a Strategic Plan that includes the following objectives.

• Increase return on capital to 8% within 2 years
• Enact a transformational change of the company that will move to a digital format.
• Close the printing and distribution site.
• Achieve cost efficiencies through relocating the head office to a smaller office.
• Restructure head office staff through moving to a smaller core of permanent staff and more contract staff.

It is intended that the new digital magazines will have the following features:

• Focus on health and beauty, fashion and celebrity gossip.
• Some free content but full access available only on a subscription basis.
• Additional features available to subscribers such as video clips, podcasts and discussion

Current staff information is as follows. All staff are full-time permanent staff and their total salary costs per annum to Samson Media are also included below.

• General Manager: $200,000
• Finance Manager: $150,000
• Marketing Manager: $150,000
• Online Marketing Coordinator: $120,000
• Customer service manager: $100,000
• Customer service assistant: $50,000
• Human Resources Manager: $110,000
• Editor: $85,000
• Art Editor: $80,000
• Journalists (3): $270,000 (total salary costs for each journalist is $90,000)
• Graphic designers (3): $240,000 (total salary costs for each Graphic Designer is $80,000)
• Editing Assistant (2): $120,000 (total salary costs for each assistance is $60,000)
• Photographer (2): $150,000 (total salary costs for each Photographer is $75,000)
• Senior Designer (2): $260,000 (total salary costs for each senior designer is $130,000)
• Senior Production Controller: $95,000
• Printing and distribution (20 staff): Total $1,000, 000
• The current office rent is $500,000 per annum. The cost of running the printing and distribution site, plus the staff costs is approximately 4 million per annum. It has been identified that, given the change to the new medium of publication, it will be an immediate priority to shut down the site and make the printing staff redundant.
• Employment contracts are in place for all staff members employed in Head Office. Printing and distribution workers are employed under an award. The CEO has indicated that he is interested in moving towards an enterprise agreement arrangement for all remaining staff and would like to have this reviewed as part of the change management process.
• Current human resources policies and procedure include a recruitment, selection and induction policy and procedure and a termination policy and procedure. There is an ad-hoc performance review process in place which occurs as issues arise. There are no formal processes for training needs analysis or professional development.

Complete the following activities:

1. Research and Analysis Report

As the Operations Manager, you are now required to conduct research and write a briefing report. Your report must include:

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    • An overview of the current situation facing Samson Industries including:
    • Analysis of the company’s organisational objectives and identification of strategic changes needs.
    • A review of the current human resources policies and procedures and practices at Samson Media against strategic objectives and report on required changes.
    • An analysis of the external environment relevant to Samson Media and its objectives, including events/trends that impact on strategic objectives, including trends in magazine publishing, as well as trends in on-line magazine readership. Your analysis should reflect a PESTLE analysis approach, reviewing political, economic, social, technology, legal and environmental factors.
    • An outline of the major operational change requirements for Samson Media based on your analysis and review, as well as recommended priorities for change.
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    • Sources of information you identified about best practice change management strategies, as well as an overview of best practice change management strategies. Summarise each source of information and briefly outline how it has assisted in identifying major change requirements and opportunities.
    • A cost-benefit analysis of the high priority change requirements and opportunities. Research and document any costs for the change requirements you are recommending.
    • Recommended communication and education strategies to inform all stakeholders of the change, as well as promote the benefits of the change.
    • Risk analysis of the potential risks/barriers to change for Samson Media and strategies to overcome risks and barriers to change. In identifying risks and barriers to change and solutions to address these, you must demonstrate high-level problem-solving skills to identify all possible risks, as well as innovative approaches to risk mitigation.

Use the Briefing Report Template to guide your work

Upload your Change Management Briefing Report to Canvas

2. Meet with the CEO (your assessor)

You are required to participate in a roleplay meeting to discuss your analysis and ideas with the CEO and seek approval to move forward.

At the meeting, carefully explain each area of your report and run your ideas past them. They will give you some further direction at the meeting.

Seek input and approval on the change requirements/opportunities you have identified, including your recommended priorities for the changes.

The CEO and Consultant will provide you with feedback, which you must use in the development of the change management plan, as well as a communication and education plan that you will be developing later. So takes notes as necessary.

During the meeting, demonstrate effective communication skills including:

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    • Speaking clearly and concisely
    • Using non-verbal communication to assist with understanding
    • Asking questions to identify required information
    • Responding to questions as required
    • Using active listening techniques to confirm understanding

3. Write a draft Change Management Plan

The CEO has now approved your report and have asked you to formally begin work on the Change Management Plan.

Your plan should set out all aspects of the recommended changes, and include the following:

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    • An introduction: project background, links to the company’s strategic goals and other changes that are occurring in the company
    • The project sponsor
    • The project’s objectives
    • What the change process will achieve
    • Principles that underpin the change plan
    • Ethical issues that need to be considered
    • Main elements of the Change Plan
    • Change drivers, constraints and risks
    • Key shareholder analysis
    • The company’s readiness to change
    • Key change messages
    • Change elements
    • A change plan
    • Project reporting arrangements
    • How the changes will be consolidated
    • How the changes will be evaluated

4. Write a draft Communication and Education Plan

Develop a communication and education plan to be used in conjunction with the change management project plan.

This plan should show how the change will be managed, including the provision of information to staff about the proposed changes and benefits.

Ensure that the strategies you develop are designed to promote the benefits of change to staff and to reduce the likelihood of a negative response/adverse outcomes.

Your communication and education plan should also show the reporting process to senior management, which will be required on a regular basis.

Use the Communication and Education Plan Template to guide your work.

Upload your Draft Communications and Education Plan to Canvas

5. Send an email to the CEO (assessor).

You will need to gain input from and approval of the CEO.

Send an email that introduces and summarise the contents of the draft change management plan and your draft communication and education plan and ask for their input and approval to move forward with the project.

The text of the email should be in grammatically correct English, written in an appropriate (polite, business-like) style.

6. Update your change management plan

Your assessor in the role of the CEO will provide you with feedback which you must use to modify your change management plan, incorporating the changes suggested.

Name this new document accordingly.

Upload your Updated Change Management Plan to Canvas

7. Update your communication and education plan

Your assessor, in the role of the CEO, will provide you with feedback which you must use to modify your communication and education plan, incorporating the changes suggested.

Name this new document accordingly.

Upload your Updated Communication and Education Plan to canvas

8. Send an email to the CEO (your assessor).

The text of the email should be in grammatically correct English, written in an appropriate (polite, business-like) style.

The email text should confirm that you will proceed with the plan now that the required changes have been made.

Use the Email Template provided

Upload your email to Canvas