Case Analysis

This week and next week, we will study the case “Building the Cuyahoga River Valley Organization” (Cummings & Worley, 2015, p. 764). This case is one of the integrative cases at the end of the text, but its primary purpose is to provide a real-world example of the role of an OD practitioner in transorganization development. You might also look at the future of OD, especially in regards to sustainability, through this case.
This is a very complex case with complex issues, but I am sure with your real-world experience, your analysis will be mature and well thought out. If you do not have public administration experiences or are not familiar with government organizations, this case is also a good learning tool for you.
In your analysis, you should consider three sets of questions:
* What?
Use your own words to point out the most important issues described in the case. When you identify these issues, you should focus on problem that are
* urgent,
* important, and
* both urgent and important.
Please focus on major problems and issues in the case.
* Why?
Identify symptoms and causes. What are the causes or factors producing the situation? How do you know these are causal factors (the symptoms of the issue)? What are the most fundamental causes of all the problems? Please use theories and concepts you have learned from this course and from other courses, such as P ADM 510 (Organizational Behavior), to analyze the situation. For example, if you noted that a root cause for the problems is poor leadership, then you should use what you have learned about leadership theories in P ADM 510 to analyze this root cause and the situation.
* How?
Identify four or five major decision criteria and a few alternative solutions. Are your decision criteria pertinent, relevant, and in some way quantifiable? Are these criteria equally important when evaluating alternatives? Did they matter? Do they allow you to clearly differentiate among your alternatives? Do you use them in evaluating your alternatives? Are all of your alternatives realistic and plausible, or do you add “strawman” alternatives? Based on your decision criteria, how did you reach your recommendation or recommended solution (i.e., why, for example, is Alternative 1 better or worse when evaluated against your decision criteria)? Based on your recommended solution, what specific course of action would you adopt to implement your recommendation? Please justify why your recommended solution and actions are appropriate and able to solve the issues or problems you identified at the beginning of your analysis. Please also consider the assumptions you made in proposing the solution. Are the assumptions valid? What if your proposed solution fails—what is your contingency plan?
* At the very end of your analysis, describe the contingency factors that might influence your analysis and recommendation.