Capstone Paper

The course provides a capstone experience by examining and finding alternative solutions for an existing business issue or for capturing a business opportunity with the use of concepts and knowledge gained in the prior courses taken in this degree program.

• Investigate an existing management issue for a publicly-traded company.
• Propose an original solution to the management issue. (The goal of the paper is to apply concepts learning throughout the Supervision and Management degree program through the analysis of the management issues and then proposing the original solution. The goal is not to report on how the company resolved the issue.)
• Use supporting research, rather than opinions, to support your assertions regarding the management issue and to support the proposed solution.
• The management issue and proposed solution should be the focus of the analysis and proposal.

Paper Sections:

1. Title page formatted according to APA style. (Do not include an abstract).
2. Introduction to the topic to include a clear and concise thesis statement and include the organization to be investigated.
3. Provide a brief history of the organization (one to two paragraphs).
4. Identify the organization’s primary competitors (one to two paragraphs).
5. Analysis and discuss the current management issue that needs to be resolved.
6. Propose and evaluate informed ethical approaches for dealing with the management issue.
7. Identify and discuss prior unsuccessful efforts that were previously attempted towards addressing the issue. Include an analysis of challenges that prevented other attempts from successfully achieving resolution. These methods could be from the organization being investigated or another organization in the same industry.
8. Develop a strategy to address the problem or issue and provide at least one alternative strategy.
9. Include a brief summary of your conclusions

• Please review the Rubric for additional information regarding grading criteria. Grading will be based on content, format, and demonstration of weekly reading assignments, learning objectives, and outside research. Direct quotes are not permitted. 

  • A minimum of 10 full pages – not including the title page and reference page.
  • A minimum of 10 peer-reviewed sources (not including the textbook) from the FSW library databases must be cited in the text of the paper. See the link to the Florida SouthWestern State College Library Research Tutorial.  Be sure to review how to find peer-reviewed (scholarly) articles. The FSW librarians and your instructor can also assist with researching the databases. 
  • Each page of the paper should include a minimum of one peer-reviewed source as support.
  • Do not use any textbook as a source.
  • Do not use direct quotes.   Be sure to paraphrase. Do not copy and paste. The FSW Writing Centers offer assistance with writing through virtual meetings. Grammarly.com is also helpful.
  • Use APA to properly cite all sources.
    • Make sure your paper begins with a Level One Heading: Introduction (Do not confuse an Introduction with an Abstract)
    • Include a properly formatted APA cover sheet.
    • Include a properly formatted APA reference page.
    • Use 12 point Times New Roman font.
    • Double-space the entire paper.
    • Accurate In-text citations must be included.
    • APA documentation and formatting style used appropriately (including in-text citations, reference entries, and format).
  • A thorough analysis of the topic in relation to management, leadership, and course learning outcomes.
  • Spelling, grammar, and writing style
  • Write in the third person - such as, “This researcher…”, “This student…”, Do not use “I”, “we”, “our”, “you”, or any other forms of indefinite you.
  • Avoid bullet points.
  • Submit your own original work. Do not submit work previously submitted to any course – including your own work, that of other students, or any work that is purchased or traded from the online cheating sites, such as coursehero.
  • Be sure to review your assignment after submitting it in Canvas in the assignment link. Submitting an assignment that cannot be viewed, or submitting the wrong file do not constitute valid excuses for re-submitting after the due date.