Assignment 4 is a critical analysis assignment. For this assignment, we are assigning the company W.L. Gore and asking that you think of, research and consider a”Corporate Social Responsibility” (“CSR”) problem or opportunity facing W.L Gore.

Exactly
what corporate social responsibility is, is not 100% clear and is the
subject of some controversy. Some research on this topic at the outset
might help. However, the most common definitions of CSR define CSR as a
responsibility of businesses to behave ethically and contribute to
economic development of the business while also improving the quality of
life of the workforce and their families as well as of the community
and society as a whole. There are some “laissez faire” capitalists who
will say that there’s no such thing as corporate social
responsibility and that the responsibility of a business is to maximize
profits for its shareholder. For our purposes, we’re assuming that there
is at least some level of corporate social responsibility. The extent
to which you think there ought to be such responsibility can (and
probably will anyway) influence your analysis.

First, you will need a research basis for your essay. NPC is providing you with 2 sources to start you off:

1. Innovation: The Classic Traps

Author: Kanter

2. W. L. Gore – Culture of Innovation case

Author: Rao

Both resources can be accessed from the “slides and documents” page for this course on the NPC student website.

You
may find and use any additional academically reliable resources you
like. The NPC virtual library can be used to gather additional research
material. The precise amount of research and the extent to which you use
additional outside sources (other than the above two) is left to your
discretion. A good paper can be written with just the 2 sources above,
but additional sources may be helpful.

Once you’ve done your research, the next step is to write your
paper. The over-all goal of your paper is to present the corporate
social responsibility problem or opportunity. (This can be one you think
of by yourself or one that you read about, though remember that
citations are necessary whenever quoting another source.)

While
there is not necessarily one “best” way to write a critical analysis
paper and you can still earn a good grade with another format, we
strongly suggest the following structure:

• Start
with an Introduction discussing: a brief description of the background
of the corporate social responsibility (CSR) problem or opportunity
facing Starbucks, the stakeholders impacted; what organizational
environments are relevant (external, task, and internal), and the
current situation (the nature and dimension of the problem/opportunity).
Your introduction must end with a specific one-sentence statement of
the management problem/opportunity that your paper will address. The
one-sentence statement is critical because is it frames the rest of your
paper. 

• Two Alternative Solutions: Each solution must
address the CSR problem/opportunity you stated in your introduction – do
not address a different problem or opportunity than the one stated.
State the solution first, and then explain what the solution involves –
your discussion of a solution should also clarify what specific steps
that W. L. Gore must take and what specific managers should be involved
in the implementation of the solution. Use academically sound sources
(example: scholarly or peer-reviewed articles) to support your solutions
– with quotes and/or paraphrasing.

• An Evaluation: Each alternative solution must be
evaluated separately, using a pro/con structure. Then your evaluation
should explain how the solution is feasible and what aspects of the
implemented solution the organization must monitor to make sure
implementation of the solution stays on track. 

• Your Recommendation:
Discuss with well-reasoned arguments why one of your two stated
solutions is the best course of action at this company as compared to
the one you did not choose, and support your choice with academically
sound sources.

• A list of References must be
attached, as a separate page to the critical analysis paper. The
Reference list should be APA formatted (as an alternative, MLA or
Chicago style formatting is also acceptable). If you are unfamiliar with
these citation styles, the Purdue Online Writing Lab can be of great
help. https://owl.english.purdue.edu/owl/section/2/ 

Length: The minimum length is 750 words. There is no maximum length. The exact length is left to your discretion.

Please
review the Sample Critical Analysis Paper with comments (accessible
from the slides and documents page) to get a visual picture of how your
paper should be structured.