Case Studies

As part of the task, you will need to write an email to your manager outlining an organisational response to the case study, including any changes to work practices that will be necessary to ensure a safe and productive work environment.

In response to a further case study, you will need to develop a presentation to communicate strategic directions and objectives for use with a range of staff and stakeholders, i.e. a scripted PowerPoint presentation or a script to be a spoken with a video presentation, etc.

You will need to ensure that you have accurately identified the strategic objectives and mission of your organisation, and are able to identify key roles and responsibilities for the realisation of those strategic objectives, particularly in regard to the new work unit being established.

You will need to ensure that the language and style of presentation you use in appropriate to the target audience (as per the case study). Your presentation will need to clearly state the expectations of the organisation for the new work group as a team and individually.

Procedure

1. Review case studies provided.

2. Case study 1: write an email to your manager outlining the organisational response to this incident, including any changes to work practices that will be necessary to ensure a safe and productive work environment. Include reference to relevant legislation.

3. Case study 2: meet with your manager (your assessor) to discuss and clarify your understanding of the objectives, values and standards of the organisation, and negotiate the medium to be used for presenting information to others.

4. Prepare a brief presentation that describes the organisation and its objectives and establishes responsibilities, ethical behaviours and the expectations of groups and individuals within the organisation.

Ensure that the presentation you prepare uses language that is appropriate and develops and builds commitment to the organisation.

Specifications

You must provide:

• An email to your manager on incident
• A strategic presentation developed for the agreed medium that satisfies the requirements described below:
  • Refers to strategic direction
  • Refers to organisational objectives
  • Outlines clear responsibilities to groups and individuals including ethical behaviour
  • Clearly links objectives, values and standards to responsibilities of groups and individuals
  • Addresses the expectations of the organisation
  • Uses media and language appropriate to the audience.

Your assessor will be looking for evidence that:

• You have analysed and identified the needs of case study 1, and reflected this analysis in the email
• You have analysed and identified the needs of case study 2, and reflected these in the strategic presentation you have developed.

Case Study 1

Macville is an import/export company that sells and maintains espresso coffee machines.

As part of your preparation for a senior management role with Macville, your manager Craig Jenkins, has asked you to review and report on a OHS incident that occurred in Brisbane recently with an employee Gary King.

Your manager explains that Gary King is a maintenance technician. At 60 years of age, he is the oldest employee in the company. Gary is technical espresso machine specialist who has worked in the industry for over 30 years and is recognised as one of the best and most knowledgeable in the trade in Australia.

Recently, the maintenance manager took Gary to the company doctor when Gary complained of an onset of server lower back pain while undertaking repairs to technicians in the workshop. Subsequently, Gary was given four days off work by the doctor.

The job requires him to work in a repair section of the warehouse with other technicians as well as travel to customer sites in the company van for regular maintenance and emergency repairs. Espresso machines weigh over 50 kilos however they only require transport to and from a client on very rare occasions.

The manager asks you to review the incident report. You are aware of the discrimination and OHS laws as well as the ethical issues. When reviewing the incident report, you note the following statement made by Gary:

I have had a chronic low back condition for over 25 years but I have learned to live with it. I use a range of strategies to manage it while maintaining the espresso machines.

I usually follow a self-pacing approach, vary my work tasks, take short rest breaks and change my posture and position as required. I must have just pushed it a bit harder on the day of the incident.

Further down the report your note a few comments that Gary has made concerning his work environment:

• The work bench is a bit too high to work on easily.
• Yes, there are two-person lift rules but with many staff on customer visits there are not always two people left in the workshop.
• Repair tools are stored under the bench, which makes it hard to reach them easily.
• The seat in the repair van is uncomfortable to sit in for long periods of time.

Discussing the incident with the maintenance manager you discover that Gary (like other technicians) has been given some very repetitive tasks that need to be performed for long periods in a standing position. The entire team is rostered to take breaks at a set time and the work is structured without much flexibility.

The manager also speaks of some new technologies in electronics that assist with modular component repair. This means that repairs can be done in-situ without having to remove the machine for dismantling and repair.

Your manager would like you to write an email to him outlining the organisational response to this incident, including any changes to work practices that might be necessary to ensure a safe and productive work environment. Include reference to relevant legislation.

Case study 2

You have been requested by your manager to develop a strategic presentation for use in recruiting potential staff and interns to your organisation.

The presentation should introduce the organisation and should in particular describe the new business centre being established by the organisation, as the presentation will mainly be used to recruit staff for new location.

Some completely new staff will be employed for this venture, and existing staff will also be offered the opportunity to transfer from Brisbane to Sydney. The target audience for the presentation will predominantly be recent graduates seeking employment and current undergraduates seeking work experience. It may also include some current experienced staff of the organisation who may be seeking a transfer or promotion.

One of the key objectives your manager has outlined is that the organisation is about to establish a new operations centre in Sydney (current headquarters and only business centre is in Brisbane).

The strategic presentation you develop must describe both the current strategic objectives of the organisation (including mission and vision) as well as communicating the ethos and requirements for staff to be positioned as the new business centre.

Your manager has provided you with an extract from the recent board meeting minutes, where the establishment of the new business centre was discussed.