Using the case scenario provided, write a 3-4 page analysis of the organization’s political landscape,including formal and informal power structures at play and their impact on culture, policy, and
communications.
Introduction
Understanding the political landscape of an organization is key when developing strategic priorities.
Knowing the key players and how to leverage relationships will help you develop a strategic plan that is
meaningful to all stakeholders. Gaining stakeholder buy-in is the key to success when attempting to
meet the strategic goals outlined on a balanced scorecard.
This assessment provides an opportunity for you to gain insight into organizational power structures and
their effects on organizational culture, policies, and communications.
Preparation
Use the following case scenario:
You are a new nurse executive at a community-based hospital system in the southeastern region of the
United States. The system is not-for-profit and serves five rural counties. The system comprises one
flagship hospital, three smaller critical access hospitals, and a number of clinics and urgent care centers.
The health care system serves a diverse population of insured, Medicare, Medicaid, and uninsured
patients. The hospital is Joint Commission accredited and for three years in a row has been rated as a
Top 100 Hospital.
Historically, the hospital system has been physician-centric, meaning that the physician staff have had
the power to influence change, policy, and protocol. The current chief executive officer (CEO) was
recently hired from a large university-affiliated hospital system. The chief medical officer (CMO) started
the organization’s orthopedic program (one of the most lucrative service lines) and has been with the
organization for more than 25 years. He is well respected in the local community and serves on a
number of community boards. In light of this strong influence from the department of medicine, nursing
has struggled over the past five years. You are the second chief nursing officer (CNO) in four years. The
hospital board is applying pressure to seek Magnet designation, which was recently lost due to poor
leadership by your predecessor.
The hospital has recently adopted the hospitalist model to cover all in-patients. The hospitalist group
was developed by physician leaders in the organization and operates as a separate department within
the organization. The hospitalist group desires to become a limited liability corporation (LLC) to
maximize benefit offerings but needs a larger staff to make this happen. They have presented a proposal
to executive leadership to transfer all advance practice registered nurses (APRNs) working in the
organization (there are more than 50) to the hospitalist group, which is housed under the department of
medicine. The CMO is spearheading this initiative. Traditionally, ARPNs were hired and managed by the
department of nursing.
As the new CNO, you have been approached by a group of 15 APRNs who are against the transition as it
will severely impact their scope of practice, in addition to affecting their paid time off, salary, and work
hours. The CMO has offered to make APRNs eligible for the annual physician hospitalist bonus structure,
as an incentive. At the same time, the CMO has informally proposed that a new policy be created for
APRN hospital privileges. If the APRNs choose not to join the hospitalist group, they will not be eligible
for hospital privileges. In the state in which the organization is located, a supervising physician is
required for APRN practice.
Instructions
Analyze the organization’s political landscape. Examine formal and informal power structures at play
and how they affect organizational culture, policies, and communications at all levels.
Analysis Format and Length
Format your document using APA style.
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•
A title page and references page. An abstract is not required.
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A running head on all pages.
Use the following section headings to ensure thorough content coverage and flow.
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Formal and Informal Lines of Power.
•
Organizational Power Influences on Executive-Level Decision-Making.
•
The Impact of Power on Organizational Policy.
•
Sources of Power.
•
Provide a short conclusion to your analysis in the form of a summary or editorial.
•
Your analysis should be 3–4 pages in length, excluding the title and references pages.
Evaluation
The following tasks correspond to the grading criteria in the assessment scoring guide, so be sure to
address each point. Read the performance-level descriptions for each criterion to see how your work
will be assessed.
•
•
Analyze the formal and informal lines of power within the organization in the case study.
•
Describe the informal and formal lines of power within this organization.
•
What source of power is being used by the different stakeholders? For example:
authority, rewards, coercion, expertise, reputation, personal power.
•
Describe the effects of power structures on organizational culture, policies, and
communications at all levels.
Incorporate organizational power dynamics as a factor in executive-level decision making.
•
Based on your analysis of internal power structures and your perspective as CNO, what
would be the best way to respond to the concerns of the ARPNs in this scenario, and
why?
•
•
What support for your response can be found in the evidence-based literature?
•
What underlying assumptions might influence your decision making?
Assess the potential impact or influence of power on this change in organizational policy.
•
•
•
•
What is the basis for your conclusions?
Identify the appropriate source of power for achieving the CNO’s primary strategic objective.
•
For example: authority, rewards, coercion, expertise, reputation, personal power.
•
What evidence do you have to support your conclusion?
Articulate meaning relevant to the main topic, scope, and purpose of the prompt.
•
Write with a specific purpose and audience in mind.
•
Adhere to scholarly and disciplinary writing standards.
•
Proofread your writing to minimize errors that could distract readers and make it more
difficult for them to focus on the substance of your analysis.
Apply APA formatting to in-text citations and references.
Competencies Measured
By successfully completing this assessment, you will demonstrate your proficiency in the following
course competencies and scoring guide criteria:
•
•
Competency 2: Analyze formal and informal power structures in an organization.
•
Analyze the formal and informal lines of power within an organization.
•
Incorporate organizational power dynamics as a factor in executive-level decision
making.
•
Identify the appropriate source of power for achieving a primary strategic objective.
Competency 4: Recommend policy changes that support a strategic plan.
•
•
Assess the potential impact or influence of power on organizational policy.
Competency 5: Address assessment purpose in effective written or multimedia presentations,
incorporating appropriate evidence and communicating in a form and style consistent with
applicable professional and academic standards.
•
Articulate meaning relevant to the main topic, scope, and purpose of the prompt.
•
Apply APA formatting to in-text citations and references.
Political Landscape Analysis Scoring Guide
NONPERFORMANCE
BASIC
PROFICIENT
DISTINGUISHED
Analyze the
formal and
informal lines of
power within an
organization.
Does not
describe power
relationships
within an
organization.
Describes
power
relationships
within an
organization.
Analyzes the
formal and
informal lines
of power
within an
organization.
Provides an
astute analysis
of the formal
and informal
lines of power
within an
organization.
Accurately
identifies the
sources of
stakeholder
power and sees
the implications
and
consequences of
existing power
structures within
a broad context.
Incorporate
organizational
power dynamics
as a factor in
executive-level
decision making.
Does not
incorporate
organizational
power
dynamics as a
factor in
executive-level
decision
making.
Makes
executivelevel
decisions
without due
regard for
relevant
contextual
factors.
Incorporates
organizational
power
dynamics as a
factor in
executivelevel decision
making.
Incorporates
organizational
power dynamics
as a factor in
executive-level
decision
making.
Presents a clear,
unbiased
interpretation of
the issue and
relevant power
relationships
Articulates
underlying
assumptions that
influence
decision making
or provide the
rationale for
specific actions.
CRITERIA
CRITERIA
NONPERFORMANCE
BASIC
PROFICIENT
DISTINGUISHED
Assess the
potential impact
or influence of
power on
organizational
policy.
Does not
speculate on
the potential
impact or
influence of
power on
organizational
policy.
Speculates on
the potential
impact or
influence of
power on
organizational
policy.
Assesses the
potential
impact or
influence of
power on
organizational
policy.
Assesses the
potential impact
or influence of
power on
organizational
policy. Draws
well-reasoned
conclusions
from an
insightful,
impartial
synthesis of the
evidence.
Identify the
appropriate
source of power
for achieving a
primary strategic
objective.
Does not
identify sources
of power in an
organization.
Identifies
sources of
power in an
organization.
Identifies the
appropriate
source of
power for
achieving a
primary
strategic
objective.
Identifies the
appropriate
source of power
for achieving a
primary
strategic
objective.
Considers the
ethical
dimensions of
power.
Conclusions are
well supported
in the evidencebased literature.
Articulate
meaning relevant
to the main topic,
scope, and
purpose of the
prompt.
Writing is
unrelated to the
assessment
prompt.
Addresses a
specific topic
with unclear
intent or
insufficient
depth.
Articulates
meaning
relevant to the
main topic,
scope, and
purpose of the
prompt.
Articulates a
focused
response to the
assessment
prompt and
demonstrates a
thorough
understanding
of the main
topic, scope, and
purpose.
CRITERIA
NONPERFORMANCE
Apply APA
formatting to intext citations and
references.
Does not apply
APA
formatting to
in-text citations
and references.
BASIC
PROFICIENT
DISTINGUISHED
Applies APA
formatting to
in-text
citations and
references
incorrectly
and/or
inconsistently,
detracting
noticeably
from good
scholarship.
Applies APA
formatting to
in-text
citations and
references.
Exhibits strict
and nearly
flawless
adherence to
APA formatting
of in-text
citations and
references.
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Formatting
Title Page
Citation
Outline
