The Goal - Case Study

Case Study Paper: The Goal

The first paper you will write will be a communication analysis of The Goal.

The Goal is a novel about a manufacturing plant managed by Alex Rogo. Rogo's plant is not currently successful and his superiors are impatient with the performance of his plant. Rogo is given an ultimatum that demands performance or the loss of the plant and all the jobs that it supports. The novel is about how Rogo goes about saving his plant and ultimately his relationship with his wife and family. Although the book is not specifically written about communication issues, you will find many events and incidents that can be best understood from a communication perspective.

In this paper you will analyze the events in the novel from an organizational communication perspective. My goal in asking you to write this paper is to emphasize the connection between the theories and concepts that we are studying in class and the practical world of events. You will discover that learning theory for the sake of memorizing theory is of very limited benefit. Theory is most useful when it helps you to be able to do something, see something, or understand something that was impossible without the theory. So, of key importance in this paper is the connection between the events described in the book and the theory and concepts you are learning about in class.

It is impossible to write about every connection between the book and what we're learning and doing in class. However, you can write a very effective paper by focusing on one or two key issues that you think are most important. So, for example, you could write about the communication problems faced by Rogo's plant (Bearington). You might describe one or two problems and then discuss some solutions that you would recommend based on what you've learned in class. An outline of that paper might look like this (remember, this is just an example).