IIMB Managerial Communication Term 1 PGP 2021-23

PGP 2021-23 Managerial Communication 1

End Term Individual Take Home Assignment

Instructions: Read carefully before you begin work

1. You are being issued this question paper with all the necessary instructions,
information and content that you need for the assignment. Please read the
instructions very carefully and then begin your work. Failure to adhere to
the guidelines specified herein could make you liable to lose marks.
2. The weight for this written assignment is 40% of the MC1 overall grade.

3. The time allowed for this individual assignment is 1.5 hours, from 2.30 pm
till 4.00 pm on 14th September 2021 (4.30 pm for students with
disabilities) including time to upload your submission on Dropbox.

4. The word limit for the proposal is 1500 words. The word limit that has
been given is the upper limit. This does not mean that you must write 1500
words. There is no penalty for writing fewer words. However, you will need to
touch a minimum of 1200 words for adequate depth in your writing.

5. Clearly indicate the word count at the end the exercise.

6. Please use only the information given in the question paper. You can
make any other assumptions required. Please note all the
assumptions made, if any, must be separately stated at the start of
the exercise.

7. You may use your laptop or desktop computer to prepare your answers.
Create your answer document on your computer using the file format and file
naming scheme that is mentioned in the instructions below.

8. You must create your answer in the form of a Microsoft Word Document
and use Arial 11 point or bigger regular font to key in your answers. Bold
and Italics of the same font family can be used where required for highlights,
sub-headings, etc. For any tables or charts, you can use embedded MS Excel
or MS Word pieces as part of your answer document. Before submission of
your answer, you will be required to convert your answer document
into PDF.

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9. Your answer document will begin with a clear top section (which can be either
in the header portion or at the top of the first page. This top Section will have
the following information neatly arranged in one row, as shown below:

Section: Roll No: Name:

10. The file name of your document should be – “Sec X-Roll No-Full Name”.
For example: Sec A-2011845-Rohit Sharma.

11. Please follow the file naming specs strictly else your answer document may
not get tracked appropriately and become liable to be lost.

12. Once you complete your answer document and have saved it as a PDF, you
are required to upload it to the Dropbox link provided in the covering mail.
Please do not mail your submissions to the faculty, they will not be
entertained.

13. Please upload your document only after you are completely done and have
reviewed, edited and formatted your answers and are sure that you have
complied with all submission guidelines. In case of duplicate submissions,
your first submission will be considered for evaluation.

14. Plan your work and time; do not wait till the last minute to submit. The strict
deadline for your submission is 4.00 pm on 14/9/2021 (4.30 pm for
students with disabilities). Late submissions are liable to be rejected. In
your own interest please ensure you upload your submissions well ahead of
the deadline. Please remember that the system will start shutting down 2
minutes before the deadline.

15. Kindly note that your submissions need to be your original work and
not plagiarized from any material available on the internet. Your
assignments will be scanned using Turnitin software and any
plagiarism reports will be taken very seriously.

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IIMB Managerial Communication Term 1 PGP 2021-23

Exercise (maximum 100 marks):

The Proposal Brief

You are the Manager in charge of Executive Education Programs at the Indian
Institute of Management, Bangalore.

You need to write a proposal to the Director, Training and Development of Hero
Motocorp, Mr Bhanu Kumar (name changed), persuading him to nominate 25 of
his senior level managers for the Future Leader Transformation Program being
conducted by IIMB. You have found out through your sources that Hero
Motocorp, is in the process of undergoing a complete organizational
transformation because of the growth of digital technology, the pandemic
situation and the slowdown in the automotive industry.

You are proposing a specially created program by IIMB for the managers of Hero
Motocorp to help them manage the transition from a brick-and-mortar company
to an omni-channel one.

The IIMB Program that you are proposing is detailed below:

Name of the program:

Creating change-ready leaders

Program Objective:
To ensure that the leadership team of Hero MotoCorp are ready to deliver in an
environment of ever accelerating change, which has become a leading imperative
for enterprises.

Background:
To compete and thrive, organizations need agile leaders who are proactive in the
face of change, adept at navigating unpredictable situations, and capable of
thinking in bold new ways. They need leaders who can guide this transformation
journey, and this is what this program delivers. Companies must build a firm
foundation for leading organizational change and harnessing opportunities
unleashed by digital transformation while maintaining their current businesses.

Program Details:
Customised program for the leadership team of Hero Motocorp to help build a
change-ready culture to deliver maximum impact on the organization.

The Program will cover:

• Digital transformation
• Aligning digital strategy with business strategy
• Leadership succession
• Mergers and acquisitions
• Hypergrowth
• Next-generation strategy
• New markets
• Launching new products
• Business model shifts
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IIMB Managerial Communication Term 1 PGP 2021-23

• New regulations
• Building and sustaining an agile workforce
Recommended cohort size:
25 across different disciplines

Faculty:
Renowned faculty from IIMB who are engaged with companies around the
country and draw on real-world experience, extensive research, and proven
frameworks to disrupt traditional ways of thinking and address today’s complex
business challenges.

Pedagogy:
Case studies, lectures, business simulations and small-group discussions with
guest lectures by senior executives from renowned organizations.
An immersive living and learning experience at our campus in Bangalore as well
as online sessions. Participants will collaborate extensively with one another and
with our faculty in the pursuit of new strategies.

Duration:
6 weeks. 2 weeks per month for 3 months.
Weeks 1, 3, 6: will be residential at our Management Development Centre in the
IIM Bangalore Campus.
Weeks 2,4,5: will be conducted online on Zoom.

Cost:
INR 200,000 per participant, includes residential accommodation and boarding
for 3 weeks.

Instructions:
• Neither a covering letter nor an executive summary is required as part of this
exercise.
• Kindly ensure that you do not cut and paste either from this document or
from other sources. You need to demonstrate your written communication
skills. You will be evaluated on the way you structure your content, the logic
flow, the quality of writing and the persuasiveness of your proposal. Please
refer to your class notes, my slides, the reading material shared with you and
the exercises done in class.
• Assume any information that is not available in the brief to make your
presentation more persuasive. List all the assumptions you have
made while developing the proposal.
• A generalized listing of the components of a proposal is given below. You may
use this list to help you select and incorporate in your proposal those line
items that you consider relevant. All line items may not be relevant or
required. You are free to decide upon the structure, contents and flow of your
proposal as you see fit.
• The upper word limit for the proposal is 1500 words.

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Business Proposals: Generalized Structure

Select and use the relevant components only. Use these as a guideline and
customize as required or as relevant to the specific instance at hand. You do
not need to use all the components mentioned.
Introduction
• Your understanding of the recipient’s business needs and/or requirements
• The Hook or Key Benefit that you offer
• Proposal background: Explain your interest
The Body
• Description of proposed project:
− A persuasive outline of what you are proposing to do to address the
‘Problem’ or ‘Opportunity’ that you have identified
• Methodology/Implementation Strategy/Plan to be adopted
• Scope and deliverables of project by both parties:
− Tangible steps and actions that are included and excluded in the proposal.
− Project plan
• Schedule with milestone dates:
− Timelines, deadlines, review meetings
• Mutual responsibilities:
− The roles each party will play and the resources to be committed by both
parties.
• Parameters for acceptance or evaluation of success, if any:
− Performance based yardsticks
• Financial information
The Conclusion
• Recap of the main points/benefits of your proposal
• Highlight key payoffs
• Conclude with a call for action
The Appendix
• Detailed terms and conditions of doing business
• Profile of organization and other information
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[Read and follow the earlier general instructions for creation and submission of
answers]

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