| Course | MGT 362 Change Management and Implementation (MGT/362) |
|---|---|
| Week | 3 |
| Paper type | Integrated project and change plan |
| Length | about 1,110 words, 4 double-spaced pages plus title page and references |
| Format | APA 7 student paper |
| School | University of Phoenix |
| Program | BS in Business |
| Updated | October 2026 |
Free sample paper for MGT 362 Week 3
A Project Plan That Manages People as Well as Software: Integrating Change Management Into Cardinal Freight Lines' Dispatch Rollout
[Student Name]
University of Phoenix
MGT/362: Change Management and Implementation
Week 3 Assignment
[Instructor Name]
[Date]
Cardinal Freight Lines, its budget and schedule are composites written for a model paper.
Cardinal Freight Lines, the composite carrier from Indianapolis, has chosen a cloud-based routing and tracking system and adopted a change approach that combines Kotter's steps with individual coaching. Leaders now need a single plan that brings together the technical rollout and the work of helping every dispatcher, driver and terminal manager change how they work. Most failed technology projects do not fail in the server room; they fail at the desks and in the cabs where people decide whether to use what was built. This paper integrates change management into the project plan.
Project Scope and Objectives
The project will deliver route optimization, real-time truck tracking, a driver mobile app and automated customer updates at all 14 terminals within 15 months. The objectives carry over from Week 1: five fewer points of empty miles, at least 95 percent on time at each of the 14 terminals and half as many status calls. Out of scope are changes to billing and the warehouse system.
Project and Change Management Together
According to the Project Management Institute (2021), project management is about delivering value, not merely producing outputs, and the standard recognizes that value depends on stakeholders adopting what is delivered. A project manager is responsible for scope, schedule, budget and quality. A change lead is responsible for readiness, communication, training and reinforcement. Both report to the same sponsor and work from one plan.
Work Breakdown: Technical Work
Technical work packages include cleaning customer and location data, configuring routing rules for each terminal, integrating the system with the order and billing systems, installing tablets in 1,100 trucks, testing and cutover. Data cleanup is the largest, because inaccurate addresses and dock hours would undermine route plans.
Work Breakdown: Change Work
Change work packages include interviews with veteran dispatchers to capture routing knowledge, a readiness survey, communication planning and delivery, dispatcher training and coaching, driver app training, terminal manager preparation, support during cutover and reinforcement afterward. Capturing veterans' knowledge also feeds technical configuration, linking the two streams.
The Schedule
Months one through three cover data cleanup, configuration and dispatcher interviews. Months four through six pilot the system at Fort Wayne and Columbus with intensive coaching. Months seven through 13 roll out to the other 12 terminals in three groups of four, each with two weeks of training before go-live and four weeks of on-site support after. Months 14 and 15 are for stabilization and evaluation.
Milestones Linking Both Streams
Each technical milestone has a matching change milestone. Data cleanup is not complete until dispatchers have reviewed their terminals' customer notes. A terminal does not go live until at least 80 percent of its dispatchers pass a practice assessment and its readiness survey shows majority support. Rollout to the next group does not begin until the previous group's status calls drop by at least 25 percent.
The Budget
The total budget is about $2.8 million over three years: $1.4 million for software subscriptions, $520,000 for tablets and installation, $380,000 for integration and data work, $420,000 for training, coaching and communication and $80,000 for contingency. Change activities account for about 15 percent of the total, a share that reflects their importance.
Why Ease and Usefulness Matter
Venkatesh et al. (2003) combined earlier models of technology acceptance and found that people's intention to use a new system depended mainly on expected performance gains, expected effort, social influence and supporting conditions such as training and help. The plan addresses each: showing dispatchers how the system reduces their calls, designing training around real routes, having respected veterans endorse the system and providing on-site support.
Training Design
Dispatchers will train on their own terminal's routes in a practice environment, then plan the next day's routes in parallel with the old method for one week before switching. Drivers will learn the app in 45-minute sessions during paid time, with quick-reference cards in each cab.
Roles and Responsibilities
The operations vice president sponsors the project. The project manager runs schedule, budget and vendors. The change lead runs readiness, communication and training. Terminal managers lead change locally. Veteran dispatchers serve as super-users who coach peers. The IT lead manages integration and data.
Risk Management: Technical
Technical risks include poor data quality, integration failures and tablet connectivity in rural areas. Responses include early data cleanup, integration testing during the pilot and offline mode in the driver app.
Risk Management: People
People risks include dispatchers distrusting route plans, drivers fearing monitoring, terminal managers prioritizing daily operations over training and overload during peak season. Responses include having veterans help configure rules, a written policy limiting use of tracking data, scheduling training outside peak months and adding temporary dispatchers during go-live weeks.
Keeping the Coalition Involved
The guiding coalition from Week 2 continues during the project. Kotter (2012) stressed that short-term wins must be planned rather than hoped for, and the pilot is designed to produce them: fewer status calls within a month and lower empty miles within a quarter. Coalition members will visit pilot terminals, collect stories from dispatchers and drivers and share results with the rest of the company before the next rollout group begins. This keeps urgency alive during the long middle of the project, when attention often fades.
Communication Calendar
Communication is scheduled like any other task. Each terminal receives an introduction from its manager and a coalition member eight weeks before go-live, a demonstration four weeks before, weekly updates during training and a results briefing six weeks after. Drivers receive messages through the app and terminal meetings. A shared question log ensures the same answers are given everywhere.
Governance
A steering group meets every two weeks to review both technical and change progress against milestones. A single dashboard shows schedule, budget, readiness scores, training completion and early results by terminal.
Defining Success
The project succeeds not when software goes live but when dispatchers plan routes in the system, drivers use the app and empty miles, on-time delivery and status calls meet targets. These measures will be tracked in Week 5.
Lessons From the Pilot
The pilot is designed to learn. If dispatchers override the system often, the team will study why and adjust routing rules or training before rollout. If drivers resist the app, the team will gather their feedback and simplify it.
Conclusion
An integrated plan treats Cardinal's dispatch change as one project with two streams of work, technical and human, joined by shared milestones, budget, governance and measures. A pilot, veteran super-users, realistic training and attention to acceptance give the project the best chance of producing results rather than just installed software.
References
Kotter, J. P. (2012). Leading change. Harvard Business Review Press.
Project Management Institute. (2021). A guide to the project management body of knowledge (PMBOK guide) (7th ed.). Project Management Institute.
Venkatesh, V., Morris, M. G., Davis, G. B., & Davis, F. D. (2003). User acceptance of information technology: Toward a unified view. MIS Quarterly, 27(3), 425-478. https://doi.org/10.2307/30036540
What the MGT 362 Week 3 instructions ask
In Week 3, MGT 362 students usually integrate change management into a project plan. Typical requirements include defining project scope and objectives, a work breakdown structure, a schedule with milestones, a budget, roles and responsibilities, a risk plan and change management activities such as stakeholder engagement, communication, training and reinforcement built into the project rather than added afterward. Some prompts ask how project and change roles differ. Show both the technical and the people side of the plan, use a table or timeline, tie change activities to project milestones and cite sources in APA format.
How this MGT 362 Week 3 example is built
Software can be installed on schedule and still fail if dispatchers do not use it, and the paper shows how to plan for both. It defines scope: route optimization, tracking and customer updates at 14 terminals within 15 months. The work breakdown includes technical work, such as data cleanup and integration, alongside change work, such as dispatcher interviews, coaching and reinforcement. A phased schedule starts with two pilot terminals. The budget of $2.8 million includes about 15 percent for change activities. Technology acceptance research guides training. Risks such as poor data and driver resistance are managed. The project manager and change lead share a single plan, and readiness gates decide when each group of terminals goes live.
MGT 362 Week 3 grading rubric: where the points go
Effective integrated plans treat adoption as part of project success, not an afterthought. Instructors credit a clear scope and objectives, a work breakdown that includes change activities, a realistic schedule and budget with resources for people-side work, a risk plan covering both technical and human risks and defined roles. Using research on technology acceptance or change readiness to shape training and communication shows depth. A table or timeline makes the plan easy to follow. Measures that define success as use and results, not only installation, complete a strong paper with APA citations. Instructors also notice gates that stop the rollout when people are not ready, because a schedule that moves forward regardless of readiness shows that adoption was never really part of the plan.
MGT 362 Week 3 help: mistakes to avoid
Students often write a project plan and a change plan as two separate documents. Integrate them, with change tasks tied to project milestones. Another gap is budgeting nothing for training and communication. Show the cost. Students also define success as going live. Define it as people using the system and results improving. Avoid ignoring risks on the human side, such as resistance or workload during training. Clarify who does what, since project managers and change leads have different jobs. Use a timeline or table. Finally, plan a pilot, which reduces both technical and adoption risk. Make readiness a condition for moving to the next phase, not just a hope.
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MGT 362 Week 3 questions, answered
What does MGT 362 Week 3 usually cover?
It usually covers integrating change management with project management: scope, work breakdown, schedule, budget, risks, roles and change activities built into the project plan.
Where can I find a free MGT 362 Week 3 sample paper?
This page presents a complete integrated project and change plan for a trucking company's dispatch system, with notes beside each part. You can ask for a free draft of your own integrated plan.
How is change management different from project management?
Project management delivers a solution on time, within budget and scope. Change management prepares and supports people to adopt the solution so it produces the intended results.
What is a work breakdown structure?
A hierarchical breakdown of a project into deliverables and smaller work packages, used to plan tasks, assign responsibility, estimate cost and schedule work.
Why include a pilot in a change project?
A pilot tests the solution and the change approach on a small scale, reveals technical and adoption problems early and produces results that build support for wider rollout.
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