IFSM 432 Individual Risk Assessment Assignment

Assignment Instructions

Top of Form

This is the first individual assignment that will start to inform your phased group activity. Using the business scenario information provided by your instructor, each member of the group will identify and prioritize four critical business processes for each business area and perform a risk assessment following the Risk Assessment Form provided by the instructor and as identified by further research.

• Your business areas should be well defined and appropriate to the case studies. The four critical processes per business area should be clearly explained and correctly relates to the case study.
• You should conduct a risk assessment for the business area and four critical processes, ensuring that these are well defined and appropriate to the business scenario provided in your content area.
• The risk assessment categories (columns) should be complete and measures clearly defined.
• The mitigation strategy, additional measures, and contingency plan for the risk should be well defined and mapped to the business area and four critical processes.

Additional Guidance for Completing the Spreadsheet:

This assignment should focus on man-made or natural disasters as you identify risks. Let me provide you with an example.

IMPORTANT!

If you have “Accounting” as your business area and have “Collecting customer payments” as a process, you then must identify risks that could impact continuity and/or disaster recovery looking at man-made or natural disasters. A mistake commonly made is to take this example given here and say that the risk is “customer isn’t making a payment”. I want you to tell me “why” – was it because of a cyber intrusion or flood or fire? Just telling me that the customer has financial problems isn’t the intent of this assignment. It is important to read the BCP/DR Business Scenario provided in your content area for OptiPress. There was a fire at Host Point (web hosting service) in Philadelphia. This prompted the CEO to ask what would happen if it occurred at OptiPress or any of the other hubs. So please make this the focus of your assignment. You can have more than one risk associated with a process.

Here is guidance on populating the spreadsheet:

What is a business area in this scenario? Marketing, Human Resources, Payroll, etc. You are to list these (and you can use your own names or labels), then identify at least four critical business processes for each area (more than four processes needed for full credit -see grading rubric below). For example:

Accounting:

• Creating billing invoices
• Management company financial assets
• Producing financial reports
• Collecting customer payments

After laying out at least four processes (these are just examples), you will then work through the matrix. Without this, it is hard to just take a generalized business area and provide mitigation steps. So, on your risk assessment spreadsheet, please ensure that you state the business areas and then provide at least four processes for each of these areas. You will then assess the risk for each of the four or more processes (man-made or natural) as you traverse across the matrix.

Probability of Occurrence:

Very Likely: 91-100%

Likely to occur: 61-90%

May occur about half of the time: 41-60%

Unlikely: 11-40%

Very unlikely to occur: 0-10%

The next column asks you to justify your selected probability of occurrence.

Impact Intensity:

The impact intensity of the risk can be categorized as High, Medium and Low depending on how critical the risk and its effects can be.

The next column asks you to justify your selected impact intensity.

Existing Measures:

The policies, procedures, and resources which are already available to prevent or reduce the impact of the risk.

Mitigation Strategies:

After analyzing all the aspects of the risks and the existing preventive measures that can be used, the project team needs to decide on the mitigation strategy to deal with the risk. There can be four different mitigation strategies. Please note that various risk management guides will provide other flavors of mitigation strategies, but for purposes of this assignment, let’s go with the following:

Risk Avoidance:

Risk avoidance is the opposite of risk acceptance. It is the action that avoids any exposure to the risk whatsoever. Risk avoidance is usually the most expensive of all risk mitigation options.

Risk Transference:

Risk transference is the involvement of handing risk off to a willing third party. For example, numerous companies outsource certain operations such as customer service, payroll services, etc. This can be beneficial for a company if a transferred risk is not a core competency of that company. It can also be used so a company can focus more on their core competencies.

Risk Limitation:

Risk limitation is the most common risk management strategy used by businesses. This strategy limits a company’s exposure by taking some action. It is a strategy employing a bit of risk acceptance along with a bit of risk avoidance or an average of both. An example of risk limitation would be a company accepting that a disk drive may fail and avoiding a long period of failure by having backups.

Risk Acceptance:

Risk acceptance does not reduce any effects, however, it is still considered a strategy. This strategy is a common option when the cost of other risk management options such as avoidance or limitation may outweigh the cost of the risk itself. A company that doesn’t want to spend a lot of money on avoiding risks that do not have a high possibility of occurring will use the risk acceptance strategy. Mitigation strategies taken from:

https://www.mha-it.com/2013/05/four-types-of-risk-…

The next column asks you to justify your selected mitigation strategy.

Additional Measures: This field needs to be filled in only for those risks for which control mitigation strategies are decided. Contingency Plan: A contingency plan can also be added for high impact risks with a high probability of occurrence, just in case the basic measures fail to perform.

Test Content

1. Review Week 4 Knowledge Check.
   Choose the single best answer for each of the questions in the Week 4 Training and Development Test.Note: The question answers are randomized. You have only one attempt available to complete assignments.
2. Scenario:You are the new Director of the Staff Training and Development Unit for Consolidation Tech Plus (CTP), Inc. You have received a memorandum from the Human Resource Director stating Customer Service Unit # 5 has not met the performance standards set forth during orientation. The Director has raised concerns about the orientation process and the new hire customer service training. Currently, you have HR Program Assistance conducting the new hire orientation. CTP has decided to transition to a more modern orientation. In addition to the performance issues, the unit has started receiving a high number of customer service complaints. You have been asked to manage the development and conducting of training, specifically for Customer Service Unit # 5 in order to address the issues raised in the memorandum.
   As you were conducting initial research into the customer service unit you learned that, John Hicks, vice president of sales at CTP, manages a sales team of 10 employees. Members of John’s sales force vary in experience level. Four members of the sales team have worked at CTP for less than 1 year. The other six salespeople have been with CTP anywhere from 3 to 7 years. John recently received the annual sales report and noticed that sales have been dropping steadily over the last 6 months. John is considering the idea of requesting training for his sales team to boost sales. John has come to seek guidance regarding possible training. You have assigned Nathan, your top Corporate Trainer, the task of reviewing these training requests.
3. Question 1

   10 PointsNathan wants to provide new employees with the basic background information required to perform their jobs satisfactorily. What is he going to provide them?Select the correct answer

   1. Employee development
   2. Employee orientation
   3. Employee recruitment
   4. Employee selection
4. Question 2

   10 PointsYou and your training team are meeting to discuss the primary purposes of CTP’s employee orientation. Which of the following will NOT be included as one of the purposes?Select the correct answer

   1. The employee should understand the organization in a broad sense.
   2. The employee should have a clear understanding of what is expected.
   3. The employee should become skilled with CTP’s software.
   4. The employee should begin the process of learning the firm’s preferences.
5. Question 3

   10 PointsYou have been given the task of coaching Susan who is a new hire for a Customer Service Rep. II position. You have been given the task of coaching Susan. Which of the following are you most likely to do for Susan?Select the correct answer

   1. Monitor Susan’s benefits plan.
   2. Develop a change plan with Susan.
   3. Show Susan the steps of various tasks.
   4. Modify Susan’s workload.
6. Question 4

   10 PointsCTP has adopted a more modern style of orientation, which unlike traditional orientation programs, would include which of the following topics?Select the correct answer

   1. Organizational charts
   2. Culture and values
   3. Personnel policies
   4. Health benefits
7. Question 5

   10 PointsYou have assigned Nathan, the top Corporate Trainer, the task of creating a training and development program for the CTP’s employees. He needs to identify the specific knowledge and skills the sales job requires and compare these with the prospective trainees’ knowledge and skills. What is the first step that Nathan should take?Select the correct answer

   1. Conduct a needs analysis.
   2. Train the targeted group of employees.
   3. Design the program content.
   4. Assess the program’s successes or failures.
8. Question 6

   10 PointsNathan finds himself stuck at the implementation stage. Which of the following most likely occurs during the implementation stage of a training program?Select the correct answer

   1. Providing on-the-job training to the targeted group of employees
   2. Designing the program content for different learners
   3. Conducting a needs analysis of newly hired workers
   4. Presenting the program to a small test audience
9. Question 7

   10 PointsNathan has identified a couple employees that are performing at the lowest level. He wants to determine the training needs of these newer employees. Which of the following would most likely help Nathan?Select the correct answer

   1. Task analysis
   2. Performance analysis
   3. Needs analysis
   4. Training analysis
10. Question 8

    10 PointsNathan has decided to compare those identified individual’s performance to what is labeled as ideal. What should Nathan do to be able to make this comparison?Select the correct answer

    1. Conduct job knowledge assessments.
    2. Conduct a performance analysis.
    3. Evaluate supervisor performance reviews.
    4. Investigate employee-related customer complaints.
11. Question 9

    10 PointsWhich of the following will be most helpful for Nathan to review when conducting a performance analysis of an employee?Select the correct answer

    1. Employment application
    2. Customer complaints
    3. Employee handbook
    4. Health claims
12. Question 10

    10 PointsYou have advised Nathan to complete a competency model. This will allow him to ___________.Select the correct answer

    1. Assist in determining how far in the performance level the employees are behind.
    2. Assist in ranking areas of improvement.
    3. Consolidate knowledge, skills, and behaviors needed to perform a job well.
    4. Assist in completing the ADDIE process.
13. Question 11

    10 PointsWhich of the following best supports the argument that the drop in CTP’s sales can be solved through training?Select the correct answer

    1. Attitude surveys sent to CTP personnel suggest that the firm’s elimination of year-end bonuses has angered many employees.
    2. Members of the sales team have expressed that they do not fully understand the benefits of the service they are selling.
    3. CTP provides laptops to its entire sales team, so each salesperson can easily locate necessary information while on sales calls.
    4. Recent studies suggest that people are choosing more established companies.
14. Question 12

    10 PointsWhich of the following undermines the argument that the drop in CTP’s sales can be solved through training?Select the correct answer

    1. CTP’s most experienced salesperson retired after working at the firm for more than 20 years.
    2. CTP recently eliminated its long-standing policy of paying salespeople commissions on top of base salaries, which angered employees.
    3. CTP no longer requires salespeople to have a technical or sales background.
    4. The newest members of the CTP sales force are unfamiliar with the procedures used by the firm to measure the effectiveness of new drugs.
15. Question 13

    10 PointsAll of the following questions are relevant to Nathan’s decision to implement a training program for his sales team EXCEPT ________.Select the correct answer

    1. What tools are available to sales team members to help them work efficiently?
    2. What methods are used for recruiting and interviewing individuals for sales positions?
    3. What were the results of attitude surveys distributed to the sales team?
    4. What interpersonal competencies are expected of sales team members?
16. Question 14

    10 PointsNathan has Sharon (Lead Instructional & Design Trainer) designing a training program for the customer service representatives. Which of the following activities is Sharon LEAST likely to perform at this stage?Select the correct answer

    1. Setting performance objectives
    2. Choosing a delivery method
    3. Analyzing training needs
    4. Estimating a budget

Problem statement:

In Iowa, you can only register your vehicle in your county of residence. A proposed change to the

law would allow you to register your vehicle in any county adjacent to your county of residence.

For example, Story County is adjacent to Hamilton, Hardin, Boone, Marshall, Polk and Jasper

counties, therefore Story County residents would be able to register in these adjacent counties.

Each of the 99 counties is assigned a number used as part of the National Atlas of the United States.

Details regarding the number assigned to a county and adjacency can be found at:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_counties_in_Iowa.

Objective:

A) Implement a method which takes as parameters two integers and returns a Boolean result

which is true if the counties are adjacent to one-another.

B) Implement one of the following:

1) A Windows Form which prompts the user for the input parameters and displays the results

of the adjacency method.

2) A WPF which prompts the user for the input parameters and displays the results of the

adjacency method.

3) A classic ASP (.asmx) web service which executes the adjacency method.

4) A WCF (.svc) web service which executes the adjacency method.

C) The program should use a relational data store. The data store should use stored procedures to

access any data. Design the data store and any stored procedures needed.

Objectives “A” and “B” should be written in C#, targeting the most recent release of the .Net

Framework. Objective “C” should be written in SQL Server 2012 or a more recent release. There will be

no impact on score with regard to which option is chosen for objective “B”.

Deliverables:

1) A Visual Studio solution file containing a project or projects which implement objective “A” and

“B” above.

a. The solution file should be formatted for Visual Studio 2012, 2013, or 2015.

2) One of the following for objective “C”:

a. A collection of SQL files (.sql) for each SQL schema object designed.

b. A SQL Server Data Tools database project (.sqlproj) for Visual Studio.

3) Data import scripts describing the scenario specified in the problem statement. For the sake of

brevity of the exercise, Story, Greene and Tama counties are required to return accurate results.

There will be no impact on score with regard to which option is chosen for deliverables “1” and “2”.

State any other assumptions you have in your documentation.

I want you to identify a specificpublic service (The Department of Veteran’s Affairs) organization that has recently undergone a major change or reform; or a specific public service organization that might change as a result of pending legislative action. Another option would be to discuss a change to a nonprofit organization.

The paper should be In APA style. 2500- 4000 Word and must use at least 10 sources for reference

Organize your paper with the following sections and be sure to answer all questions in each section:

1) BACKGROUND

• What is the organization?
• What does this organization do?
• What is the reform or proposed change (please be specific)?
• What were the drivers of the change?
• Were they internal or external?
• What level (individual, group, or organizational) is the change occurring?

2) LEADERSHIP: WHO IS THE CURRENT LEADER OF THIS ORGANIZATION?

• Did the events driving the change occur when he/she was in charge?
• Based on your research, do they appear to be transformational or transactional? Why or why not?

3) BARRIERS TO CHANGE

• What are the environmental barriers to change?
• Are resources available to support the change?
• Is there a consensus on what the goal of the change should be?
• How are the organization’s employees likely to respond to the proposed changes? Why might employees resist change?

4) STRATEGIES FOR SUCCESSFUL CHANGE

• Based on the readings for this class, what advice would you give to this organization to successfully implement the proposed changes or reforms?
• Specifically, how might a leader overcome the barriers to change that you have identified?