For the final interview please prepare a visual presentation ✓ Solved

For the final interview, please prepare a visual presentation of your work (e.g. a slideshow, a prezi, an info-graphic, flow-chart, mind-map, timeline, or slide deck) and consider audience engagement, learning styles, and accessibility. Present your ideas in whatever visual-oral format you choose but please make sure there is a compelling visual element. Task 1: Organizational Culture Assessment and Improvement Plan Prompt: You’ve recently joined as Deputy Director of People and Operations at a small, deeply collaborative organization. After conducting initial interviews with staff across departments, you discover that there are clear silos between teams, communication is inefficient, and employees feel disconnected from the organization’s core values.

How would you approach improving the organizational culture to foster greater collaboration, communication, and alignment with the organization’s mission and values? What core values are important to activate and maintain in our organization? Please outline your plan, including key initiatives you would prioritize in the first six months. Consider both short-term actions and long-term strategies. Key points to consider in the response: â— Diagnosis of existing culture (based on the symptoms described). â— What is sacred and needs to be kept within the organization’s culture (you may need to create narrative)?

What needs to change? What do we need to integrate? â— Strategies to break down silos and improve communication. â— Support containers for the staff. â— Alignment with company values and mission. â— The importance of leadership buy-in and employee engagement. â— Measurement and evaluation of culture change over time. Task 2: HR Strategy for Employee Development and Retention Prompt: The organization has experienced high turnover in key departments over the past year. Exit interviews have revealed that employees feel there is a lack of professional development opportunities and clarity in career progression, and also that the overall culture of the organization is not meeting expectations set forth during onboarding.

As Deputy Director of People and Operations, you are asked to create a strategy to improve employee retention by addressing these concerns. Please outline your plan to improve employee engagement and retention with a focus on professional development, career growth, and creating a supportive workplace culture. Include the following elements: â— How would you assess the current development programs and identify gaps? â— What new programs or initiatives would you introduce to support employee growth? â— How would you integrate feedback from employees and managers into the retention strategy? â— What metrics would you use to measure success? Key points to consider in the response: â— Employee feedback mechanisms (surveys, focus groups). â— Development programs (mentorship, leadership training, skill-building workshops). â— Career progression paths (clear goals, role definitions). â— Support for work-life balance and overall wellbeing. â— Long-term focus on creating a culture of growth and opportunity. â— Values alignment and cultural competency; wellness of the staff and the organization

Paper for above instructions

This comprehensive 1500‑word analysis addresses two major tasks: (1) developing an organizational culture improvement plan, and (2) designing an HR strategy for employee development and retention. Together, these initiatives support a growing organization experiencing fragmentation, misalignment with values, and concerns about career growth. The plan integrates evidence-based HR practices, organizational behavior theories, and culture-building models to strengthen collaboration, communication, and employee engagement.

Task 1: Organizational Culture Assessment and Improvement Plan

Upon joining the organization as Deputy Director of People and Operations, it becomes immediately evident that cultural fragmentation, departmental silos, and inconsistent communication patterns are undermining collaboration and weakening morale. The initial interviews point to a culture that may have started with strong intentions of collaboration but gradually drifted toward isolated working groups, unclear information-sharing practices, and weakening connections to the organization’s mission. According to Schein (2017), culture is shaped by underlying assumptions, espoused values, and visible artifacts; therefore, diagnosing the culture requires examining behaviors, rituals, and communication norms. The symptoms—silos, inefficiency, and disconnection from core values—suggest a misalignment between the organization’s stated mission and daily experiences.

To address this misalignment, the first step involves clarifying what aspects of the existing culture should remain sacred. Many small collaborative organizations have strong commitments to equity, shared leadership, and community-centered values. These should be preserved because they form the emotional bedrock of staff identity and engagement. Shared values such as transparency, collective responsibility, respect, belonging, and trust are essential to maintain (Katzenbach & Smith, 2015). However, what must change are the operational habits that inadvertently reinforce silos, slow communication, and limit cross‑functional cohesion. The organization needs to integrate new behaviors that support openness, continuous learning, and agility.

The first six months of cultural transformation involve targeted initiatives designed to build psychological safety, strengthen communication systems, and improve interdepartmental relationships. Psychological safety is foundational; Edmondson (2019) emphasizes that employees collaborate more effectively when they feel safe to share ideas, ask questions, and raise concerns. This can be activated through facilitated dialogues, structured team agreements, and norms that encourage listening and inquiry.

A major priority is breaking down silos. Cross-functional collaboration can be stimulated through monthly interdepartmental working groups, project‑based task forces, “lunch and learn” exchanges, and job-shadowing programs. These activities increase visibility into others’ work and build empathy while creating shared ownership over outcomes. Research shows that cross-team collaboration strengthens organizational learning, reduces duplicated work, and improves innovation (Gratton & Erickson, 2007). To improve communication, the organization must implement streamlined channels grounded in clarity and accessibility—such as standardized meeting notes, shared digital dashboards, accessible intranet knowledge hubs, and consistent internal newsletters that articulate updates, priorities, and values-based narratives.

Employee support containers must also be intentionally created. Support containers include structures that ensure individuals feel held, supported, and valued—examples include peer circles, employee resource groups, professional coaching, reflective practice groups, and affinity-based momentum spaces. These are essential for reducing burnout and increasing belonging. Research by Maslach & Leiter (2021) highlights that environments with support containers experience reduced turnover and stronger engagement.

Leadership buy‑in is essential. Leaders must model the values and behaviors expected of the staff—such as transparency, humility, and accountability. Leaders should attend cross‑functional meetings, participate in value-reflection sessions, and openly discuss their learning journey. Kouzes & Posner (2018) argue that leaders reinforce culture through modeling, celebrating wins, and recognizing collaborative behaviors. Leadership alignment is also essential for communicating priorities consistently.

Measurement and evaluation of culture change should begin immediately. Tools such as pulse surveys, qualitative feedback circles, team performance indicators, and observation of behavior shifts will provide data on progress. Culture metrics may include communication quality, cross‑functional project participation, psychological safety scores, and clarity of mission alignment. Tracking progress over six months will allow adjustments and reinforce accountability. Ultimately, culture transformation is sustained through continuous reinforcement, storytelling, recognition, and aligned organizational systems.

Task 2: HR Strategy for Employee Development and Retention

High turnover in key departments indicates deeper systemic issues related to growth, recognition, and unmet expectations. Exit interviews reveal that employees feel limited professional development opportunities, unclear career progression pathways, and misalignment between onboarding promises and actual culture. According to the Society for Human Resource Management (SHRM, 2023), development and recognition are two of the top factors influencing retention. Employees seek environments where they can grow, feel valued, and see a future for themselves.

The first step is conducting a comprehensive assessment of existing development programs. This includes analyzing training materials, leadership development opportunities, mentorship availability, skill-gap data, and employee feedback. Methods such as surveys, focus groups, competency mapping, and manager interviews provide essential qualitative and quantitative insights. A 360-degree review of learning needs identifies gaps between current capabilities and organizational goals (London, 2021).

Based on this assessment, new programs must be introduced. These development initiatives may include structured mentorship, leadership pipelines, skill-building workshops, cross‑training opportunities, and tuition assistance. Creating career progression pathways is critical. Career mapping helps employees understand how they can grow horizontally or vertically (DeRue & Ashford, 2010). Clear competencies, role expectations, and skill ladders increase clarity and internal mobility.

An effective retention strategy integrates continuous feedback loops. Quarterly stay interviews, pulse surveys, open forums, and structured manager check‑ins ensure that employee concerns are captured early. According to Gallup (2020), continuous feedback increases engagement and decreases turnover significantly. Managers must be trained in delivering feedback, conducting coaching conversations, and supporting individualized development plans.

Work‑life balance and wellbeing initiatives should also be integrated. Flexible work arrangements, wellness stipends, mental health support, access to coaching, and restorative practices reduce burnout and reinforce belonging. Employee wellness is tightly connected to retention and overall engagement; organizations that invest in wellbeing report significantly lower turnover (Grawitch et al., 2017).

Metrics for success must be clearly defined. These may include turnover rates, internal mobility rates, promotion readiness scores, employee satisfaction, engagement index results, competency improvements, and participation in development programs. Transparency in reporting these metrics helps reinforce accountability across leadership. In the long term, building a culture of growth requires embedding development into the organization’s identity and operational rhythms.

Overall, the retention strategy aims to transform the workplace into an environment where employees experience psychological safety, professional growth, and cultural alignment. When employees feel seen, supported, and offered pathways for advancement, retention increases and engagement flourishes.

References

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3. Edmondson, A. (2019). The Fearless Organization. Wiley.
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6. Grawitch, M., et al. (2017). Healthy workplace practices. Consulting Psychology Journal.
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8. Kouzes, J., & Posner, B. (2018). The Leadership Challenge. Wiley.
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