Solving Problems in an Organization

Introduction
As a business leader, you will be required to solve problems. In order to effectively solve a problem, you must be able to accurately identify it and formulate a clear problem statement. For this assessment, you will develop a business report where you will formulate three potential business problems that justify the need for a project related to leadership, information systems, and marketing management. The objective is to identify the problems and explain the possible root causes. You want to have a good understanding of these three problems, but you are not being asked to solve them.
Preparation
For this assessment, you will be acting as a consultant to the fictitious company, CapraTek. To begin, read the following information about the company.
About CapraTek
CapraTek has a long history as a leader in the design and manufacture of computer server components, and continues to provide innovative solutions to industry needs. Now, CapraTek is leveraging this culture of innovation to expand into emerging wireless technologies. As part of that diversification, CapraTek is developing advanced smart-home technology. CapraTek recently announced that it will begin the development of an integrated wireless system that will provide seamless integration of virtually all home electronics and appliances, all controlled through a single wireless device and a simple web-based interface.
Vision
CapraTek will provide excellence in everything we do as we define and deliver technology solutions for tomorrow’s problems.
Mission
To measurably contribute to the goals of our customers—both direct consumers and resellers— by providing extraordinary products at a fair and competitive price. CapraTek will focus on enhancing the success of its partners, employees, and investors by enacting the values of teamwork, respect, accountability, integrity, and innovation.

• For business customers, we will create value through efficiency, reliability, and flexibility both in our products and our customer service.
• For resellers, we will offer unique products that create sales and profit opportunities, including valuable vendor relationships, sales programs, access to credit, and training and development.

Values
These are the values that should shape every decision made at CapraTek from the board room to the assembly line.

• Teamwork: We work together as a unified team to meet our goals.
• Respect: We strive to bring the highest degree of dignity, equality, and trust to every interaction with our co-workers, our customers, our shareowners, our manufacturers, and our community.
• Accountability: We take responsibility for our actions, decisions, and products. We accept our individual, team, and corporate responsibilities, and we meet our commitments.
• Integrity: We employ the highest ethical standards, demonstrating honesty and fair- mindedness in all our interactions.
• Innovation: We consider innovation crucial to our mission and to our ability to continually live our values. We welcome change and the many opportunities that change brings.

Complete the following to prepare for this assessment.
Readings
Read the following articles. You will be assessing the needs of CapraTek for improving organizational effectiveness in the areas of leadership, information systems, and marketing management. You will develop a business report where you will formulate three potential business problems that CapraTek may experience that justifies the need for a project related to leadership, information systems, and marketing management. Your audience for this business report is senior executives of CapraTek who will decide whether to sponsor and support the project.
Instructions
Write a 4-page business report in which you provide the following:

• Write a one-page executive summary that highlights your report.
• Formulate three potential business problems that the leaders of CapraTek may experience that justifies the need for a project.
o Develop a potential business problem for each of the following three areas: leadership, information systems, and marketing management, for a total of three business problems. A good way to start each problem statement is, The potential business problem is…..”

o Describe how each business problem relates to concerns that businesspeople in the larger industry, field, or area care about.
o Support your problem statements by presenting evidence from scholarly literature. In other words, state your potential business problems that CapraTek leaders may experience, and then follow with cited facts to support your claims regarding the problems. Do not simply make up the problems but draw from the readings and your own independent research to substantiate that these problems exist in the larger industry and are potential problems that the leaders of CapraTek may experience.
• For your leadership problem, include an illustration that shows how the problem was narrowed down using a fishbone diagram (Ishikawa diagram) or a cause-and-effect diagram, where you identified the problem, worked out the major factors involved, and identified possible causes, of the leadership problem. You can search the Internet using the search term “fishbone diagram template” to find a variety of free templates to use. You might find the need to take a screenshot of the completed diagram using your computer’s snipping tool, copy the screenshot, and then paste it into your paper.

Your report must include the following headings:

• Executive Summary.
• Potential Leadership Business Problem and Fishbone Diagram.
• Potential Information Systems Business Problem.
• Potential Marketing Business Problem.
• Summary.