Preparation

Suppose leadership in the organization where you currently work (or have worked) is considering changes to organizational structure—in particular, to the functional areas it currently has. Before making any changes, the leaders have asked several managers, including you, to develop a white paper that outlines the managers’ recommendations for three functional areas that they believe to be essential to the success of the company. Based on the recommendations of each manager, as well as the strength of each manager’s arguments and supporting references, leadership will make final decisions.

Different areas within organizations work together to achieve organizational goals. These areas are often referred to as functional areas and typically include:

• Human resources.
• Sales and marketing.
• Information technology.
• Production and operations.
• Finance and accounting.

Research functional areas of organizations and the purpose of these functional areas with regard to organizational goals. Use 3–7 reputable resources to support your writing in this assessment.

Requirements

Select the three functional areas from the bulleted list above that you believe to be essential to the success of your organization. For each functional area, describe the primary purpose of the area and then explain how that purpose works to promote and support the organizational goals.

Your white paper should have the following sections. You may use the Assessment 2 Template (attached) to create your white paper if desired.

Title page.

Introduction.

• Explain the type of organization the assessment is based on and its primary goals.
• Identify the three functional areas you believe are essential to the organizational structure.

Functional Area 1.

• Explain the primary purpose of the functional area of an organization and why it is essential in supporting the overall organizational structure.
• Explain how the purpose of the functional area supports the organizational goals in terms of continued organizational success.

Functional Area 2.

• Explain the primary purpose of the functional area of an organization and why it is essential in supporting the overall organizational structure.
• Explain how the purpose of the functional area supports the organizational goals in terms of continued organizational success.

Functional Area 3.

• Explain the primary purpose of the functional area of an organization and why it is essential in supporting the overall organizational structure.
• Explain how the purpose of the functional area supports the organizational goals in terms of continued organizational success.

Recommended Organizational Structure.

• Describe the type of organizational structure best suited for the functional areas you selected and justify your recommendation.

Conclusion.

• Explain how your recommendation will promote continued success of organizational goals.

References page.

Example assessment: You may use the Assessment 2 Exemple [PDF]  (attached) to give you an idea of what a Proficient or higher rating on the scoring guide would look like.

Additional Requirements

• Based on the intended audience, your white paper should be well organized and written in clear, succinct language.
• Target 4–5 double-spaced pages of content, in addition to a title page and references page.
• Include 3–7 reputable resources to support your ideas.
• Follow APA rules for attributing sources that support your analysis and conclusions.