Assignment 1: Discussion Strategy And Alignment

Assignment 1 Discussionstrategy And Alignmentthere Are A Variety Of

There are a variety of tools available for organizations to use to assess process. In this assignment you will learn how to apply a tool to a process situation. RAEW is an acronym for responsibility, authority, expertise, and work. Responsibility denotes ownership, authority involves decision making, expertise involves skill or knowledge, and work is the task assigned either to a group or an individual. Analyzing a process using the RAEW tool can help identify structural misalignments that impede strategy execution.

These misalignments include the following: Authority with no responsibility; Responsibility with no authority; Responsibility with no expertise. These misalignments can impede strategy execution by slowing decision-making, disempowering teams when there is responsibility without authority, or depriving processes of key skills when there is responsibility without expertise.

Tasks: To prepare for your discussion posting, review the RAEW analysis technique at the following link: Here are two examples to help check for understanding: YouSigma. (2008). RAEW Matrix. Retrieved from JISC InfoNet: RAEW Analysis. (n.d.). JISC Advance: Northumbria University. Retrieved from

Select an important process in your business unit that is performing poorly and perform a simple RAEW analysis. Based on your analysis, respond to the following: What is the process you analyzed? How is it performing poorly? Can you find any structural misalignments using the RAEW tool? Describe the misalignment and the consequences of it.

How would you fix this misalignment? Write your initial response in approximately 300 words. Apply APA standards to citation of sources. By Friday, February 15, 2013, post your response to the appropriate Discussion Area. Through Tuesday, February 19, 2013, review and comment on at least two peers’ responses.

Paper For Above instruction

The process I selected for analysis is the customer complaint resolution process within our customer service department. This process is crucial for maintaining customer satisfaction; however, it has been underperforming in recent months, resulting in delayed responses and unresolved complaints. An ineffective resolution process can damage the company’s reputation and decrease customer loyalty, impacting long-term profitability.

Using the RAEW analysis tool, I identified several structural misalignments contributing to the process's poor performance. First, there appears to be a misalignment between authority and responsibility. Customer service representatives (CSRs) are responsible for resolving complaints but often lack the authority to make decisions that satisfy customers promptly. For instance, CSRs may need to escalate issues to managers for approval, resulting in delays. This misalignment—authority without responsibility—is a common issue in organizational structures where frontline staff are tasked with resolving problems but lack decision-making power.

Another misalignment pertains to expertise and responsibility. Some CSRs lack sufficient training or knowledge about product policies, which hampers their ability to resolve complaints effectively. Responsibility is assigned without ensuring adequate expertise, leading to delays and customer dissatisfaction. The consequences of these misalignments include prolonged resolution times, increased customer frustration, and a higher rate of complaints escalated to higher management, further burdening leadership and creating bottlenecks.

To address these issues, the organization should balance authority with responsibility by enabling CSRs to make certain decisions independently within defined parameters, thus reducing escalation times. Providing targeted training will also enhance their expertise, empowering them to address complaints effectively without unnecessary delays. Implementing a structured decision-making protocol can further clarify the scope of authority and responsibility, minimizing misalignments.

In conclusion, the use of the RAEW tool illuminated critical structural issues within the complaint resolution process. Correcting these misalignments through empowerment and training can lead to faster resolutions, higher customer satisfaction, and improved organizational performance.

References

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