Unit 16 MCKI Assignment Solution

Unit 16 MCKI Assignment Solution

Introduction

The report has been prepared for London’s Heathrow airport for the decision making for increasing the capacity of the airport. Various aspects related to communication knowledge and information have been covered in the report. Based on the study conducted for the London’s Heathrow and other aspects the following aspects have been covered in the report

• Assess information and knowledge needs
• Create strategies to increase personal networking to widen involvement in the decision-making process
• Develop communication processes
• Improve systems relating to information and knowledge

All these aspects have been discussed in the report. The conclusion provides a summary of all the aspects mentioned above.

Task 1: Assessing information and knowledge needs

Discuss the range of decisions to be taken by the Heathrow Authorities and Management

Based on the information that has been provided, the decision that has to be taken is whether to build a new airport or increase the capacity of the existing airport by building the 3rd runway and a sixth terminal. Both the options will have to be analysed based on the feasibility. However there might be other options that the airport might consider. This may be associated with the operations management. In other words, looking at the strategic location Heathrow its connectivity with domestic airports may be planned wherein more number of passengers can be handled within the same infrastructure.
For the decision taken based on the various options that are available, various other decisions may have to be taken by the authorities and the management. These decisions will have an impact on the option that is selected from the given options. With respect to the development of the new airport, the cost associated with land, infrastructure and regulatory compliance will have to be considered. On the other hand increasing the capacity will require the decisions to be taken with respect to the capacity of the expansion and the customer satisfaction or the impact on the operations. The key issues with respect to both the decisions will be different. Further the impact of the two decisions will have to be accessed. This is to say that the development of new airport will take a longer time period but will cater the needs in the long run while the expansion plans will need to be assessed and will not have much long term preview but will have lower cost.
The decisions will have to be taken not only with respect to the two options but also the impact and implementation of the two options.

Examine the information and knowledge needed to ensure effective decision taking based on the scenario

The Heathrow airport authorities may require different types of information and knowledge in order to ensure effective decision making in this case. These information may range from qualitative (descriptive information), quantitative (statistical data), official and unofficial information, policy and opinion, tacit and explicit knowledge. These have been discussed below

• The forecast of the number of passengers from different regions that have to be handled
• The impact of decision on environment and other safety factors of local public
• The expected cost of development for both the options
• The cost benefit analysis of both the decisions
• The role of government in the development that will take place
• The impact of the decision from the long term perspective
• The regulatory aspects associated with the development and expansion of the airports

Certain information that is required will be available from the specific government offices and bodies. For example the tourism department can certainly assist in forecasting the number of visitors that may visit London and use the airport. Further the regulatory aspects and the compliance information will also be available in the form of legal documents in the associated government bodies (Thorton & McGlashan, 2011). For the cost benefit analysis, the complete research will have to be conducted. The airport can employ a different organization to conduct such research and provide information that is required. Thus the information that will be required has to be collected from different department, bodies and sources.

Assess internal and external sources of information and understanding based on the scenario

The Heathrow airport authorities will have to consider various sources of information for assessment of the two options that are available. However the information that will be available will be in the two forms, i.e. information available readily from other sources and the information that need to be developed based on the analysis and certain assumptions & expectations (forecasting) With respect to the information on the regulatory aspects, environmental impact and security of the public the norms set by the government will have to be considered and ensured that the compliance of these norms is there.
For development of New Airport the information with respect to cost of land, cost of development of infrastructure, the profitability and operations will require feasibility study analysis (Thorton & McGlashan, 2011).  This report will require information from both internal and external sources. The internal sources will provide information on the trend in the increase number of visitors, the current capacity, the expected capacity and the operational aspects. On the other hand the external sources will provide information on macro level. The feasibility study will be conducted which will be important from the perspective that the information that will gathered will have to be processed effectively for making decisions.

Task 2: Stakeholders, Personal networking and Decision-making process

Identify both internal and external key stakeholders of Heathrow airport who should be involved in the decision-making process in the issue highlighted in the scenario.

There are various stakeholders, both internal and external, that will have huge influence on the decision making for increasing the capacity of the airport in handling the increase in number of passengers.
The key internal stakeholders are the shareholders and the employees of the company (Cooper, 2004). The department head will serve as the representative of the employee and will certainly provide additional information that will be helpful in developing the strategy based on the factors that impact the operations, financing and the customer satisfaction.
The key external stakeholder that need to be included in the decision making process is the government. The representatives of the key government bodies, both local level as well as at national level, will form part of the team representing the external stakeholder. The government will play a key role in the decision making process as the various aspects will have to be considered such as

• Support in having access to additional land for increasing the capacity or development of new airport.
• Ensuring the development of safety measures for the local public
• Support for developing facilities that will reduce the environmental impact and discontent of the people, particularly those living on the area close to the airport.
• Assisting in the funding as airport infrastructure requires huge investment

The above points with respect to the role of the government show that the government has a huge role to play in the business sustainability. So it is important that the government or the authoritative body is involved in the decision making process.

Explain how Heathrow authorities can make contact with their internal and external stakeholders, and develop business relationships

Developing relationship and contact with both internal and external stakeholders is quite important for the development of business relationships as the decision making will have a long term impact on the business sustainability. The way the relationship with the stakeholders is maintained is dependent on the type of stakeholder i.e. internal or external. The contact with the external stakeholders (like government in present case) is maintained by submission of the petitions and the project report. The petitions and project report contains the key aspects of the project under taken such as vision, requirement, financial aspects, limitations and the role of the stakeholder (Sinclair, 2012). Further advertisement and meetings is also another way where the key personnel may exchange ideas.
The communication with the internal stakeholders is in the form of MIS (Management Information System), minutes of meeting and the memo. Such methods of contacting the internal stakeholders are quite effective as it provide the clarity on how the idea has been initiated and the key personnel who are involved. The other methods of contacting the internal stakeholders is by developing action plan with regular updates, scheduled reporting in standard templates and clinical lead for audit and board champion for escalation (Post, Preston & Saschs, 2002). These are important and it has to be ensured that these are followed as it will have an impact on the decision making as well as making the plan operational.

Explain how Heathrow authorities can involve the identified stakeholders in the decision-making process, as appropriate.

The stakeholders that have identified are shareholders (internal stakeholder) and government (external stakeholders). The Heathrow authorities can involve shareholders of the company by sharing the project details, expected benefits and profitability by developing the reports and forecasting of the future business aspects. Further the MIS, memos may also be developed for the effective decision making. The shareholders, in the form of investors, who are external to the company, are involved by communicating the business plans. This communication is made either in the annual report, hosting the details on the websites or advertising in the newspaper. These documents or communication may also be used for the fund-raising for the proposed project. The Initial Public Offer (IPO) is one such example wherein the project details are shared in order to generate funds from funds raised by the investors.
As mentioned above, the petitions and project reports are prepared and shared with the government. The petitions and project reports contains the key aspects of the project under taken such as vision, requirement, financial aspects, limitations and the role of the stakeholder. Further advertisement and meetings is also another way where the key personnel may exchange ideas.

Design strategies for improving personal networking and involvement of stakeholders in the decision-making process based on the scenario and, justify your recommendations for improvement.

Personal networking and involvement of stakeholders in the decision-making process is very crucial for smooth development of the project and execution of the decision. It is very important that strategies are developed which can ensure this. As per the above discussion it is quite evident that the government has a very major role in the decision that will be taken. In view of this it is very important that the government is involved and suitable steps are taken such that government understands the importance of the execution of the decision that is taken.
One of the strategies is that, giving special consideration to the government as the external stakeholder, the communication being made to the internal stakeholders is also shared. This will ensure that there is interaction with the government on the key milestones. Further the assistance is required at every step and thus the government has to be kept informed. The internal stakeholders may be kept in network by organising meetings at regular intervals to provide an overview on the current situation. Lastly, it is very important that key aspects of the project undertaken are highlighted to the other stakeholders. For this the benefits that will be there for the other stakeholders will have to be communicated either by advertisement or promotional activities (Koppich, Prince, Guthrie & Schuermann). For examples the benefits for the public and the initiatives taken to reduce the impact on environment will be highlighted. The association of the government is a huge boost as well as challenge in maintaining the network. However regular updates, follow-up and association will ensure the government is involved.  This will further get boosted by advertising and highlighting the benefits in the public domain.

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Task 3: Communication Processes in an Organisation

Report on existing processes of communication that you have researched and observed in your selected organisation

Internal and external communication processes are quite important for the communication between management & employees and between the organization & its customers respectively. There are various ways in which the companies communicate with the customers and employees. The level at which the external and internal communication takes place may vary based on the industry of operation and the type of organization.
Considering Unison, biggest trade union in Britain, the internal communication involves employees whereas external communication with customers involves members of Unison. The organization has developed many forms of internal communication. These include
Workshops:To make employee familiar with the organization and get involved in various tasks
Project Groups:These look at the issues that are being faced and assist employees in putting policy into action
InsideOut:This is the in-house magazine of Unison which highlights a range of challenges and issues that the staff members of Unison might have to face such as equal pay issues etc. The magazine also includes information of different areas as Unison has several local branches and thus location specific information is included.
The website of the company is the face of the organization for external communication. It has information on range of matters which can be easily downloaded. Apart from this the organization runs various local campaigns to assist the members in issues centric to their location. Lastly the organization has also get involved in various advertisement campaigns, such as “Ant and Bear”, highlighting the need for the members to join the organization.

Design ways to improve the appropriateness of the communication processes

Currently the organization is using the IT systems to communicate at the broad level. This is to say that website has been developed which is the only source of information. However IT systems may be implemented which will ensure the high level of effectiveness of the system which will make the system more relevant for the members. For example the system may be developed wherein the legal updates and other range of matters related to the local areas may be developed. The same can be accessed by members as well as non-members from any location by just putting some filters. Such aspects would certainly improve the communication process. Another important point is that the magazine that is being circulated should also be available in the electronic format. This will make the communication much faster. Currently the magazine is available on the websites but this gives less utility. The utility will be more if the members get access to the magazine without searching for the same.
The internal communication may be improved by implementing integrated system which will ensure that the strategic information is available to the senior management as well as the analysis of the impact can be studied. Such systems need to be developed which will ensure that the better quality support is provided by the employees to the members.

Explain how the improvements to the ways and IT systems can be implemented to ensure greater integration of systems of communication in the organisation.

The improvements to the ways and IT systems, which have been suggested above, can be implemented to ensure greater integration of systems of communication in the organisation. Firstly the same system can be utilised for the members and staff with different level of access. Further it will make it easier for sharing the information, preparing analytical reports and provide assistance to the members. For example it will become easier for the employee to share cases with employee in other location and get advice. Such system isn’t available in the present case. Further the need for formal communication will reduce as the IT system will ensure the relevant information is shared.

Create a personal plan to improve your own communication skills.

The personal plan has been developed for improving the communication skills. The five communication skills that are relevant to the current role are presentation, body language, personality, client interaction and letter drafting. The client interaction can be categorized as verbal communication while presentation, body language and personality are nonverbal communication. Letter drafting will come under written communication skills.

The strength of my communication skills is that the nonverbal communication skills are quite effective. At the same time the verbal communication are also positive. Lastly the verbal and nonverbal communication are well correlated and thus ensures that the positive message is delivered.

The weakness associated with the communication is related to written communication skills. These skills are quite important as these skills matter the most. There is a huge need to improve the written communication skills. Further the vocabulary needs to be improved which will certainly add to the effectiveness of the written communication. Lastly the other skills need to be improved by highlighting the small factors that may not go well with the other skills or is essential from the perspective of profile. The plan needs to be developed for improving the communication skills.

Firstly the consideration will be to develop certain level of proficiency in the vocabulary. For this at least five new words will be learnt every day and implemented in the tasks that will be assigned. Further the personality development will be considered with respect to specific job profile so as to gain proficiency. Lastly the various writing skills considering the different letters will be developed. Based on these aspects the skills that will be developed will be evaluated regularly. This evaluation will be important in order to ensure that the effectiveness is there.

The development of personal communication development plan has been very useful as it has not only resulted in identifying the key areas which needs improvement but has also ensured that step by step approach is adopted in order to ensure that the plan is implemented appropriately. Further the key specific areas have been identified that can be introduced in the areas of strengths so as to gain proficiency.

Task 4: Improving Access to Systems of Information and Knowledge

Report on existing approaches to the collection, formatting, storage and dissemination of information and knowledge to support the teaching and learning at the University.

Different information technology systems (IT) and other approaches are being used by the University particularly for collection, formatting, storage and dissemination of information and knowledge available to support their teaching and learning process. The information system has been implemented at various levels in different universities. Some universities have developed database of learning materials as well as journals. The teaching exercises, assignments and tests are conducted on online system (Sabau, Lungu, Bologa & Bologa, 2010). The students also have to submit the assignment online through the system. The system also includes facilities such as forums where the discussion on the various topics can be done in order to resolve the issues or doubts that might be there.

Carry out appropriate changes to improve the collection, formatting, storage and dissemination of information and knowledge involving the teaching and learning at the University.

Appropriate changes may be carried out to improve the collection, formatting, storage and dissemination of information and knowledge involving the teaching and learning at the University. Firstly the central database may be developed that integrates various universities. The second aspect is to develop a pool of research studies that are being conducted. This will ensure that the like studies can share the ideas and ensure that the study is being conducted effectively and efficiently.

Suggest one possible way which you think can be used more effectively to improve access to information and knowledge for students, lecturers, management, employees and other stakeholders within and outside the University.

Based on the study it can be said that the information system is being implemented very effectively within the college and universities. However the need is that central database may be developed wherein several colleges may have the access to the information. This will reduce the database storage requirements. Currently similar data related to study material is uploaded by different colleges. The central database of learning material will have a huge impact on this and will be quite effective.
Further the research subjects will also be supported if the information system is developed for integrating various colleges and universities. This will be helpful in sharing ideas resolving doubts by experts that may be situated in different colleges.

Conclusion

The report discusses the various aspects related to knowledge, communication information. The first two sections highlight the importance of assessing the information and knowledge needs. These will be helpful for taking suitable decisions and in developing the plan. Further the strategies for increasing personal networking to widen involvement in the decision-making process have been discussed. Later the importance of developing the communication process been discussed. This has been beneficial in identifying the strengths and weaknesses of the communication process. Based on this the strategies have been discussed to improve the communication process and eliminate the weaknesses. The reflective summary highlights how the complete process been beneficial in developing the communication process. Lastly the importance of information system has been discussed further the strategy to improve systems relating to information and knowledge have been discussed. Overall the complete report has been important from the viewpoint of developing system and strategies relating to communication, knowledge and information, which are instrumental in the decision making process.

References

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[Online] Available At: http://www.deakin.edu.au/arts-ed/apprj/articles/12-sinclair.pdf. [Accessed On: 07th November 2014]
Thorton, J. & McGlashan, V. (2011). Effective communications with internal and external stakeholders. [Online] Available At: http://www.hqip.org.uk/assets/Conferences-Summits/2011-conference-presentations/HQIP-Conference-2011-Workshop-5-James-Thornton-and-Vivienne-McGlashan.pdf. [Accessed On: 07th November 2014]