Many secondary schools in Utah have adopted the Project Lead the Way (PLTW) pre-engineering program. Little research has been conducted in Utah to show how successful these programs are or what factors are perceived to contribute to that success. This research is about defining PLTW program success and identifying factors perceived to improve success. This was accomplished by interviewing career and technical education directors in Utah who have the PLTW program in their districts. Questionnaires were also developed to question PLTW teachers, school administrators, and counselors with PLTW in their schools about factors that might contribute to PLTW program success. A successful PLTW program in Utah was found to be a program that was perceived to meet the goals of implementation, had the ability to attract adequate student enrollment, and was perceived to promote scholarly student achievement. It was found that successful PLTW programs (a) utilize dynamic teachers taking advantage of teacher professional development, (b) capitalize on student interest in the subject and differentiate learning models and environments, (c) utilize a collaborative effort between schools, industry, and community, (d) advertise class offerings and program benefits so students can make wise class choices during registration, and (e) make sure resources and facilities are available for all the curriculum requirements.

As market conditions constantly change in today's competitive landscape, businesses must invest in organizational changes to stay relevant. Despite the high frequency of change projects worldwide, multiple sources state that 70% of all change projects fail. Consequently, change management has become a highly researched area to understand and propose strategies to organizations to increase the chance for successful change implementation. The literature reviewed in this study indicated a gap in current research in understanding the feasibility of managerial strategies and employee preferences. Therefore, the research purpose was to address what preferences can be identified amongst the employees and when assessing the appropriate timing for incorporating employee preferences throughout the implementation stage of a change project. To provide practical implications to managers, the research question addressed was formulated as “How do management utilize employee preferences in preparing for a strategic change project?" To address the research question and purpose, the study conducted an employee survey to identify employee preferences in a strategic change project. Additionally, semi-structured interviews were conducted with first-line managers to evaluate their current strategies in change projects. The sample consisted of employees and managers from a large 200-year-old multinational organization in finance. The study indicated that employees and managers preferred transparent and frequent communication. However, employees highlighted that the possibility to provide feedback and input was higher than the ability to impact the change project. This discrepancy indicates a misalignment of whether the feedback and input can reach the project leaders or if the preferences are neglected for other reasons. To address the appropriate timing of when management could consider employee preferences, a framework has been developed in relation to the data collected and best practices according to the literature reviewed. The framework proposes a practical implication to management when preferences are to be considered in terms of what type of change project is performed to increase the likelihood of the change project implementation. / Eftersom marknadsvillkoren ständigt förändras i dagens konkurrensutsatta landskap krävs det att företag investerar i organisatoriska förändringar för att fortsätta vara relevanta. Trots den höga frekvensen av förändringsprojekt runt om i världen, hävdar flera källor att 70\% av alla förändringsprojekt slutar i misslyckande. Som en följd har förändringsledning blivit ett mycket forskat område, för att förstå och föreslå strategier till organisationer och ledare om hur man kan öka chansen för en lyckad förändring. Litteratur-genomgången i denna studie indikerade en brist i nuvarande forskning i förståelsen av genomförbarheten av ledningsstrategier och anställdas preferenser. Därför var syftet att undersöka vilka preferenser som kan identifieras bland de anställda och när det är lämpligt att ta hänsyn till de anställdas preferenser under implementeringen av ett förändringsprojekt. För att ge praktiska implikationer till chefer formulerades forskningsfrågan som "Hur använder chefer anställdas preferenser i förberedelsen av ett strategiskt förändringsprojekt?" För att adressera forskningsfrågan genomförde studien en enkätundersökning bland anställda för att identifiera deras preferenser i ett strategiskt förändringsprojekt. Dessutom genomfördes halvstrukturerade intervjuer med första linjens chefer för att utvärdera deras nuvarande strategier i förändringsprojekt. Urvalet bestod av anställda och chefer från en stor 200-årig multinationell organisation, verksamma inom finanssektorn. Resultaten av studien visade att både anställda och chefer föredrog transparent och frekvent kommunikation. Anställda betonade att möjligheten att ge feedback och input var högre än förmågan att påverka förändringsprojektet. Denna diskrepans indikerar en brist på överensstämmelse, där feedback och input inte når projektledarna eller att preferenser försummas av andra skäl. För att adressera den lämpliga tidpunkten för när chefer kan överväga anställdas preferenser har ett ramverk utvecklats utifrån den insamlade datan och den granskade litteraturen. Ramverket föreslår en praktisk tillämpning för chefer när preferenser ska beaktas i relation till vilket typ av förändringsprojekt som utförs, detta för att öka sannolikheten för genomförandet av förändringsprojektet.

The purpose of this study was to gather information from Project Lead The Way (PLTW) partnership team experts. This project follows the methodology of a modified Delphi study. A review of literature in the areas of curriculum development, pre-college engineering, and the Delphi research technique provided the background for the structure utilized. Top programs from across the country were questioned to identify and come to a consensus on top components essential to developing and utilizing a successful PLTW partnership team. The components were categorized into two lists: effective practices utilized to make a program successful and effective practices employed by team coordinators to make a leadership team successful. The initial information provided was revised through the blind collaboration of 17 experts. Information gathered between each revision was coded and analyzed to achieve two final lists.

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