1. Personnel Assignment
To: Director of Analytical Department
From: Russella Lucien, SMG Director
Date: April 3, 2016
Re: Manager for New Analytical Department Workflow

2. Situation/problem in organization: The Analytical department is changing the method which
authors and editors exchange manuscripts. The department is moving from hard-copy based
manuscripts to a cloud-based system.
Analysis: The Analytical department needs to select a manager within a month out of three
candidates who can educate authors and editors on the new system of exchanging manuscripts.
This manager needs to have publishing experience, management/leadership skills and
knowledge of cloud-based technology to complete this workflow change with the goal of
December 2016.
Addressed: Director of Analytical Department
Introduction
The Analytical department is changing how authors and editors exchange manuscripts. The
department will move from a hardcopy-based manuscript exchange to a cloud-based system.
The Analytical department needs to hire a manager out of three candidates within a month
who can educate authors and editors on the new system of manuscript exchange. This manager
needs to have publishing experience, management/leadership skills and knowledge of cloud-
based technology to complete this transition for December 2016. The ideal candidate has a
four-year degree and a minimum of five years in publishing. This candidate must have
leadership experience such as training new hires or leading a team. In addition, the candidate
must show they can tolerate working in stressful situations and manage different personalities.
Time line of new workflow
April 2016-Meetings with SMG and IT to determine the construction of the cloud-based system
May 2016-Discussions with editors and authors on what they would like in this new system
June 2016 to August 2016-Cloud System built with SMG and IT
June 2016 to August 2016-Develop the new workflow of authors submitting manuscripts, then
editors accepting documents to correct for grammar and if necessary, to send to research to
update legislation. If necessary, send documents back to authors for further corrections.
August 2016 to September 2016-Educate editors and authors on new submission system
through seminars at corporate plaza for in-house employees and webinars for editors and
authors that live too far to train in-office.

3. September 2016 to November 2016- Test cloud-based system with five small (less than 500
pages) products to run through the new workflow. In addition, this will be the time to work out
any bugs in the system.
December 2016- Expand new workflow for most products in Analytical department.
Analysis
The three candidates currently work at Carswell. Each candidate will be graded on a points
system within a range of 1 to 5. The candidate with the highest points total is the most
appropriate choice.
Table 1 –Comparison of Candidates’ Education and Current Position.
Robert Jones Jane Mitchell Kathleen Ryan
Education B.A. in English B.A. in Computer
Science
B.A. with majors in
Classics and Political
Science
Diploma in Publishing
Current Position Content Editor Analytical Editor Analytical Editor
For the purpose of brevity, this report will refer to the candidates by their initials.
Publishing Experience
The manager must have publishing experience to understand and coordinate the different roles
and multiple steps needed to get a manuscript from first draft to the finished product. The
manager must have the ability to multi-task publishing a product while transitioning to a new
workflow.
Table 2-Comparison of Candidates’ Publishing Experience
Robert Jones Jane Mitchell Kathleen Ryan
Publishing Experience 7 years ; 5 years at
Carswell
7 years; 2 years at
Carswell
8 years; 4 years at
Carswell
Points 5 2 4

4. RJ has the most experience at Carswell. This makes him knowledgeable on the work culture at
Carswell and familiar with the company policies.
JM has the same amount of publishing experience as RJ but she is less familiar with the
Carswell environment.
KR has slightly more publishing experience that the other two candidates but has more
experience at Carswell than JM and slightly less than RJ.
Management/Leadership Experience
The manager must provide leadership and direction during this critical time. The ideal manager
must direct and motivate the authors and editors to use the new workflow. In addition to
providing direction, the manager must troubleshoot program hiccups and ease the transition to
the new workflow.
Table 3-Comparison of Candidates’ Management Experience
Robert Jones Jane Mitchell Kathleen Ryan
Trained new
employees in
research and
publishing techniques
at Carswell
Assistant to
Supervisor and
provided back-up
when supervisor was
on an extended leave
for 6 months at Lexus
-Nexus
Managed small group
with adopting new
workflow at CCH
Points 2 4 5
RJ’s gained his leadership skills from training new employees. RJ guided new employees in their
positions and helped them to become successful employees. However, RJ’s trains new
employees 3 to 4 times a year.
JM supervised employees for a long period of time and managed different personalities. She
also provided technical assistance to her employees.
KR has the exact experience that mirrors our project. She managed a small group while they
moved from an old to a new workflow at her previous employer.

5. Technical/Cloud-Based Experience
The potential manager must understand the new technology. The cloud-based industry
generated $100 billion in 2012 and it’s expected to grow to $270 billion by 2020.1
The manager
must know how cloud-based computing works since there is little lag time for training. In
addition, the manager must be a source of knowledge and guidance for the editors and authors
will learn this new workflow. If the manager doesn’t understand the technology, their
leadership will be compromised in the eyes of the editors and authors.
Table 4-Comparison of Candidates’ Technical Skills
Robert Jones Jane Mitchell Kathleen Ryan
Technical Skills SGML, XML,
Author/Editor,
SharePoint2
SGML, XML, InDesign,
SharePoint,
SGML, XML,
SharePoint
Points 3 4 4
RJ knows the company standards of SGML and XML. In addition, RJ has extensive experience in
the old system of Author/Editor and recently took courses in SharePoint, the cloud-based
system from Microsoft. However, Author/Editor is used by fewer people and the program will
be discontinued in a year.
JM has knowledge of SGML, XML and SharePoint. In addition, JM has a degree in Computer
Science and can provide more assistance in troubleshooting the new workflow. JM gained her
experience on SharePoint through her volunteer experience outside of work. Her knowledge of
InDesign is nice to have but not necessary for this new workflow.
KR has knowledge of SGML, XML and SharePoint. KR’s experience with SharePoint comes from
collaborating with our Tax department to transition their workflow to a cloud-based format. KR
lacks familiarity with our legacy program Author/Editor; A/E is still used by some members of
the analytical department.
Conclusion
1
http://www.pcmag.com/article2/0,2817,2372163,00.asp
2
https://support.office.com/en-us/article/Get-started-with-SharePoint-909ec2f0-05c8-4e92-8ad3-3f8b0b6cf261

6. Table 5-Final Scores of Candidates
Robert Jones Jane Mitchell Kathleen Ryan
Final Scores 10 10 13
RJ has the minimum amount of publishing experience and firmly immersed in the Carswell
culture. In addition, RJ has experience in training other employees. However, RJ’s training
experience is sporadic and he has not managed a team for an extended period of time. His
knowledge of Author/Editor is less meaningful since Carswell will retire this computer program
in the next year.
JM has the publishing experience and management skills with leading a team for an extended
period of time and the technical background. JM’s experience at Carswell is limited with just
two years at the company and this might make the editors and authors have less trust in her
than the other candidates.
KR has the same amount of publishing experience as JM. Her experience managing a group
while they transition to a new workflow illustrates her ability to manage a team during a time
of upheaval and transition. Her computer experience isn’t spectacular but closely matches the
other candidates.
Recommendation
For this project, I will have to recommend KR for the management position. She has the
publishing background, management experience and technical skills needed to lead the change
of the Analytical Workflow. Her weakness in the technical criteria is minor since it matches the
other candidates. Her experience successfully managing a team during a period of transition
proved that she can work in a difficult environment.
If KR can’t accept the position, it should be offered to JM since she has the experience of
managing a team and a strong technical background. RJ has a trainer background and this lack
of management experience will make it hard for him to balance the different needs of the
group.