Instructional design/BADL/Business Challenges

Challenge Characteristics
BDAL seeks change in the business and change in the individual. Through participation in Learning Sets and Business Challenge Teams, individuals address individual, team, and organizational development needs.

Business challenges originate with and are sponsored by senior leadership. The complex nature of the business challenges, create an environment where participants existing mental models are challenged and new knowledge is incorporated. The real-world experience builds individual, team, and organizational capabilities.

Business Challenges
Business challenges are complex issues without a clear and obvious solution that force senior leaders to question pre-existing values, beliefs and assumptions. By nature of their complexity, business challenges are usually strategic in nature.

Personal Challenges
Personal Challenges – are daily dilemmas, problems or seemingly unresolvable matters especially around leadership and management behaviors in situations characterized by:
 * High levels of internal and external conflict
 * Constrained resources
 * Rapidly changing labor market
 * Rapidly changing technology

Business Challenges Quiz
Before continuing, let's verify that you understand what types of challenges are best for BDAL. Examine the 7 challenges below and choose the 4 challenges that are most appropriate to tackle with BDAL. Check your answers with the feedback given.

{Legislation + You are an electric utility whose main source of energy is coal. Proposed legislation to introduce a carbon tax threatens to make you uncompetitive with a new start-up using clean technology. The cost of switching to alternative sources of energy would weaken an already overburdened balance sheet. High rates have turned public opinion against you.
 * type="[]"}
 * Correct. Complexity is represented by multiple disciplines (finance, public relations, technology, and legal)

{Manufacturing + You are a manufacturing company that currently relies on a shrinking domestic supply of a precious metal. The only remaining supplier is from China. You have no experience in the global market or how to manage currency risk Your marketing campaign has centered around being an American company.
 * type="[]"}
 * Correct. The nature of this challenge is strategic in that the very ability to provide their product to the market is threatened. The competencies required to deal with the challenge do not currently exist in the company

{Backorders - Increases in customer demand have strained production capacity resulting in backorders. Sales data also indicates increases in returns due to minor quality issues. Company maintains a healthy quality control analysis capability.
 * type="[]"}
 * Not this one. Problem is narrow in scope.  Capacity and quality issues are part of ordinary business and have been resolved quickly and satisfactorily in the past by following defined processes to investigate the issue and arrive at a root cause.

{Labor + A low cost foreign competitor has entered your market, threatening your market share. You have new products under development that are three years away from being ready for market. Your current labor contract with a union is about to expire. Half of your workforce is eligible to retire in five years.
 * type="[]"}
 * Correct. The challenge is strategic. How to respond to new competition in the marketplace while at the same time dealing with an aging workforce.

{Recruitment - Your company has been having trouble finding new employees with the skill sets you need. You want to evaluate your benefits package compared to competitors.
 * type="[]"}
 * Not this one. This is a common problem that many companies are facing today. The possible solution set to the problem is known to experienced human resource professionals.

{IT Problems - Your company has been experiencing problems in the performance of its IT systems. Employees have reported numerous problems with computers locking up and poor response times. Internet bandwith seems to be insufficient for your operations.
 * type="[]"}
 * Not this one. This challenge is limited to one specific function, although it can effect everybody. The solution resides within the IT functional organization, commonly involving equipment, software, or training.

{Market change + Your company is a manufacturer of consumer electrics products in a highly competitive market. Sales have been declining for products that have been on the market for more than three years. Products that have been on the market for less than three years have received mixed reviews for not adding new features fast enough. Profit margins in the industry have been declining over the past year.
 * type="[]"}
 * Correct. The challenge described indicates a problem with innovation and getting new products to market fast enough.

Now that you understand challenges, you can see if BDAL is right for the Organizational Culture