Homework Question

OL 655: Final Project Guidelines and Rubric

Overview
The final assessment for this course is the creation of a Human Resources Workforce Plan on a company of your choice (approved by your instructor). The

current state of the chosen organization’s workforce will be examined, and plans to meet organizational goals will be detailed. The workforce plan will describe

the process that a human resource manager must take in order to achieve the desired results, supported by scholarly research. The final artifact will be a

document worthy of presentation to future employers as a methodical approach in identifying and resolving talent development and workforce planning

discrepancies. The proposed workforce plan should cover talent development and workforce planning as they relate to the organizational goals of projected

growth and projected reductions, as well as current staffing level. The “big picture” view is to determine, from an HR standpoint, where the company wants to

go, assess where they are currently, and design a plan to get from where they are to where they want to be. The project is divided into three milestones and

one final submission, which will be submitted at various points throughout the course to scaffold learning and ensure quality final submissions. These

milestones will be submitted in Modules Three, Five, and Seven. The final submission will occur in Module Nine.

Outcomes
This assignment will assess your mastery with respect to the following course outcomes:

• Analyze gaps in employee competencies utilizing job descriptions, job analysis, and organizational needs to ensure the human resources strategy is

integrated with the business strategy

• Forecast workforce needs for growth and reductions based on organizational strategic goals and objectives

• Evaluate talent development strategies for alignment with employee and organizational goals

• Assess employee development needs for the extent to which they are integrated in organizational training and development programs

Evaluate succession planning for its relationship to organizational sustainability

• Relate an organization’s human resources opportunities and challenges to the advancement of the vision and mission of the organization

Prompt and Guidelines
Your Human Resources Workforce Plan should address the following question: In order to guide a company to meet its strategic initiatives, what considerations

must a human resources professional contemplate in the proposal of human resource solutions? Specifically, the following critical elements must be addressed:

Introduction: Introduce your audience to the purpose and scope of your chosen company.

I. Give an overview of your company, including the type of company (profit/non-profit, public/private), years in existence, products/services offered, and

strategic goals and objectives.

Current State: An assessment of the current state of a company’s workforce is often used as starting place for desired changes. Specifically, address the

questions below.

I. Competency Gaps

a. What is the current state of the workforce of your company?

b. Based on the company’s strategic goals, are there gaps in the competencies of the current workforce? Explain how you identified these gaps (or

lack of gaps).

c. Does the company systematically identify competency (or skill) gaps for workforce planning and development purposes? If so, explain their

current process, including the types of data used for analysis. If not, provide a framework for identifying gaps in the current workforce.

d. What is the current human resources strategy for your company? Is it integrated with the company’s business strategy?

II. Strategies

a. What is the strategic talent development strategy for your organization? Is it apparent to employees? b.

Does this strategy align with employee goals? Discuss.

c. Does the strategy align with organizational goals? Discuss.

III. Training

a. Identify the training and employee development needs at your company.

b. Are these needs currently integrated in a training and development program? Explain.

Recommendations: An important part of a workforce plan is the recommendations, based on valid evidence. These recommendations should support a

company’s strategic goals, leading the company in its desired direction.

I. Forecast – In order to alleviate gaps in the current workforce to future needs, forecast and provide recommendations based on alignment with

organizational goals for company: a. Growth

b. Reduction

II. Succession Planning – As part of a company workforce plan, individual employees’ training and talent development must be considered. For your chosen

company, address the following:

a. Evaluate succession planning for its relationship to organizational sustainability. If the company does not utilize succession planning, give
reasons for the omission of such a feature.

b. What recommendations would you make to this company in regards to succession planning? Explain your rationale.

Conclusion: Provide concluding thoughts on the use of the following to advance the company’s organizational mission and vision:

a. Human resource opportunities

b. Human resource challenges

Milestones
Milestone One: Human Resources Workforce Plan Introduction

In task 3-2, you will submit Human Resources Workforce Plan Milestone One: Introduction. The introduction should include the purpose and scope of your

chosen company, including an overview of your company. The overview should include the type of company (profit/non-profit, public/private), the number of

years in existence, the products/services offered, and the company’s strategic goals and objectives. This milestone is graded with the Milestone One: Human

Resources Workforce Plan Introduction Rubric.

Milestone Two: Human Resources Workforce Plan Current State

In task 5-2, you will submit Human Resources Workforce Plan Milestone Two: Current State, in which you will analyze the current state of the workforce of the

company you chose for your final project. Your analysis of the current state of the workforce should include an evaluation of competency gaps, strategies, and

training. This milestone will be graded with the Milestone Two: Human Resources Workforce Plan Current State Rubric.

Milestone Three: Human Resources Workforce Plan Recommendations

In task 7-2, you will submit Human Resources Workforce Plan Milestone Three: Recommendations, in which you will discuss your recommendations for the

company you chose to analyze for your final project. Your recommendations should support the company’s strategic goals and include forecasting and

succession planning. This milestone will be graded with the Milestone Three: Human Resources Workforce Plan Recommendations Rubric.

Final Submission: Human Resources Workforce Plan

In task 9-2, you will submit the final product of your Human Resources Workforce Plan. The final product should be a complete, polished artifact adhering to the

instructions set forth within the Prompt and Guidelines section. It should also reflect changes based on the incorporation of feedback. This milestone will be

graded using the Final Product Rubric (below).

Deliverable Milestones

Milestone Deliverables Module

Due

Grading

1 Human Resources Workforce Plan

Introduction

Three Graded separately; Milestone One: Human Resources Workforce Plan

Introduction Rubric

2 Human Resources Workforce Plan

Current State

Five Graded separately; Milestone Two: Human Resources Workforce Plan

Current State Rubric

3 Human Resources Workforce Plan

Recommendations

Seven Graded separately; Milestone Three: Human Resources Workforce

Plan Recommendations Rubric

Final Product: Human Resources

Workforce Plan

Nine Graded separately; Final Product Rubric

Final Product Rubric
Requirements of Submission: The Human Resources Workforce Plan should be a 10-12 page document (not including the cover page or reference page), double

spaced, written in APA format, Times New Roman 12 point font. The inclusion of a minimum of seven scholarly resources is required to support your work. A

cover page and a reference page should be included.

Critical Elements Exemplary (100%) Proficient (90%) Needs Improvement (70%) Not Evident (0%) Value

Introduction Meets “Proficient” criteria and
submission provides additional
substantial details

An overview of the chosen

company is given, including the

company’s strategic goals and

objectives

An overview of the chosen

company is given, but does not

include the company’s strategic

goals and objectives

An overview of the company is

not given

5

Current State:
Competency Gaps

(Current State)

Meets “Proficient” criteria and

analysis is supported by specific

examples

Detailed analysis of the current

state of the workforce is
presented

Current state of the company’s

workforce is analyzed, but is

lacking detail

Current state of the company’s
workforce is not analyzed

4

Current State:
Competency Gaps

(Current Workforce)

Meets “Proficient” criteria and

analysis is supported by specific
examples

Gaps (or lack thereof) in current

employee competencies are

identified, along with the

method used to draw that

conclusion

Gaps (or lack thereof) in current

employee competencies are

identified, but the method used

to draw that conclusion are not

discussed

Gaps (or lack thereof) in current

employee competencies are not

identified

4

Current State:
Competency Gaps

(Identification)

Meets “Proficient” criteria and
detail is insightful and

substantiated by scholarly

research

Analyzes the company’s

systematic approach (or lack of

an approach) for identifying

competency or skills gaps and

relates them to workforce
planning and development

Analyzes the company’s

systematic approach (or lack of

an approach) for identifying

competency or skills gaps, but

does not relate them to

workforce planning and
development

Does not analyze the company’s

systematic approach for

identifying competency or skills

gaps

4

Current State:
Competency Gaps

(Strategy)

Meets “Proficient” criteria and
analysis is multidimensional

Current human resources

strategy is analyzed for its

integration with the company’s

business strategy

Current human resources

strategy is identified, but the

relationship with the company’s
strategy is not

sufficiently analyzed

Current human resources

strategy is not discussed or the

company’s business strategy is

not considered

4

Current State:
Strategies

(Talent
Development)

Meets “Proficient” criteria and
detail is insightful and

substantiated by scholarly

research

Provides in depth details on the

strategic development strategy
of the chosen organization

Makes generalizations about

the strategic development

strategy of the chosen

organization

Does not provide details on the

company’s strategic
development strategy

5

Current State:
Strategies

(Employee Goals)

Meets “Proficient” criteria and
detail is insightful and

substantiated by scholarly

research

Evaluates the current strategic

development strategy for its
alignment with employee goals

Provides detail on the strategic

development strategy of the

chosen organization and

employee goals, but does not

identify a specific relationship

Does not discuss the company’s

strategic development strategy

in association with employee

goals

5

Current State:
Strategies

(Organizational
Goals)

Meets “Proficient” criteria and
detail is insightful and

substantiated by scholarly

research

Evaluates the current strategic

development strategy for its

alignment with organizational

goals

Provides detail on the strategic

development strategy of the

chosen organization and

organizational goals, but does
not identify a specific

relationship

Does not discuss the company’s

strategic development strategy
in association with
organizational goals

5

Current State:
Training
(Needs)

Meets “Proficient” criteria and

the needs are exceptionally well

defined

Identifies the training and

employee development needs

of the chosen company

Identifies the training and

employee development needs

of the chosen company, but
does so in an unclear manner

Does not identify the training

and employee development

needs of the chosen company

7

Current State:
Training

(Integrated)

Meets “Proficient” criteria and

analysis is supported by specific
examples

Determines if employee

development needs are

appropriately integrated in the

company’s training and
development program

Provides a general discussion of

the integration of employee

training and development

needs in the company’s training
and development program

Does not discuss integration of
employee training and
development needs

7

Recommendations:
Forecast
(Growth)

Meets “Proficient” criteria and

recommendations are

supported by valid evidence

Workforce needs are forecasted

based on organizational
strategic goals in relation to

company growth and

recommendations are given to
alleviate gaps

Workforce needs are forecasted

based on organizational
strategic goals in relation to

company growth, but no
recommendations are given

Workforce needs are not
forecasted for growth

7

Recommendations:
Forecast

(Reduction)

Meets “Proficient” criteria and

recommendations are

supported by valid evidence

Workforce needs are forecasted

based on organizational

strategic goals in relation to a

company reduction and

recommendations are given to
alleviate gaps)

Workforce needs are forecasted

based on organizational

strategic goals in relation to a

company reduction, but no
recommendations are given

Workforce needs are not
forecasted for reduction

7

Recommendations:
Succession Planning

(Evaluation)

Meets “Proficient” criteria and

analysis is supported by
scholarly research

Evaluates succession planning

as it relates to the company’s
workforce development plan

Evaluates succession planning,

but does not address its

connection with the workforce

development plan

Does not evaluate succession

planning

7

Recommendations:
Succession Planning

(Rationale)

Meets “Proficient” criteria and

recommendations are

supported by valid evidence,

example, or research

Recommendations are given for

succession planning, along with
their justification

Recommendations are given for

succession planning, but are not

justified

Recommendations are not
given for succession planning

7

Conclusion
(Opportunities)

Meets “Proficient” criteria and

cites relevant sources to

support concluding thoughts

Provides closing remarks

concerning the utilization of

human resource opportunities

to support the company’s

mission and vision

Provides closing remarks

concerning human resource

opportunities, but does not

adequately relate those

opportunities to the mission or

vision

Does not provide closing

remarks on human resources
opportunities

7

Conclusion
(Challenges)

Meets “Proficient” criteria and

cites relevant sources to
support concluding thoughts

Provides closing remarks

concerning the human resource

challenges that could be used to

support the company’s mission
and vision

Provides closing remarks on

human resource challenges, but

does not adequately address

how they are related to the

mission or vision

Does not provide closing

remarks on human resources
challenges

7

Articulation of

Response

Submission is free of errors

related to citations, grammar,

spelling, syntax, and

organization and is presented in

a professional and easy to read

format

Submission has no major errors

related to citations, grammar,

spelling, syntax, or organization

Submission has major errors

related to citations, grammar,

spelling, syntax, or organization

that negatively impact

readability and articulation of
main ideas

Submission has critical errors

related to citations, grammar,

spelling, syntax, or organization

that prevent understanding of

ideas

8

Total 100%