SECTION I: PRELIMINARY PAGES

Title Page

This is the first page of the ILP. It states the writer’s name; the name of the writer’s seminar leader; the name of the institution –Cambridge College; and the month and date the project is submitted.

Copyright Page (Optional)

This statement establishes ownership of the author’s work.

Acknowledgments Page (Optional)

This section is used to express appreciation to those who assisted and supported the author throughout the ILP process. This is not required. If included, it should be the third page of your ILP.

About 120 words, an abstract is a brief concise summary of the ILP. The abstract prepares the reader for the contents of the ILP. This is best written after the ILP is completed.

Table of Contents

This page lists the contents and page numbers of each section of the ILP  

SECTION II: INTRODUCTION & BODY

Introduction/Problem Statement  (Link)

An action research ILP focuses on understanding. solving; and making recommendations on an organizational or a managerial problem.

This section explains the issue or problem the organization currently faces;  provides the background to the problem; describes potential remedies for the problem, and proposes possible courses of action.

Rationale for Studying the Organizational or Managerial Problem

The rationale describes why this problem deserves in depth study and analysis.

This section should also describe the current manifestations of the problem;  the consequences for the organization and the people in the organization, if the problem is not resolved.

Background

This section describes in detail what occurred and who (anonymously)  was in involved. It also describes when the problem occurred; the organizational setting –including the organization’s current and past history. To ensure confidentiality, provide the organization a pseudonym

Literature Review  (Link)

The Literature Review for an Action Research ILP makes use of: articles; books; or research by other authors that address similar issues or problems; administrative documents – proposals; progress reports; letters; emails; faxes; notes; letters; memoranda; agendas; administrative documents; minutes of meetings; organizational and archival records and other internal documents.

Data Collection Methodology  (Link)

This section explains how the research was carried out.

 Action research relies heavily on interviews, observations and/or document analysis

Data Analysis  (Link)

The data analysis section describes the tools, strategies, and analytical approaches used to make sense of the data

Findings

Findings present and discuss the results of the data analysis

Recommendations

This section describes the needed corrective action based on the findings

Action Plan/Intervention

This section maps out a plan for the corrective action

SECTION III: CLOSING

In the Conclusion Section for an Action Research Project summarize key decision points.

Statement of Learning

This section summarizes what the author has learned personally as a result of this project and the MM degree.

SECTION IV: SUPPORTING MATERIALS

References

This section lists books, journal and magazine articles, pamphlets, brochures, archival and organizational records, etc. cited throughout the ILP.

Appendix (Optional)

The Appendix provides supporting documents for the ILP.

Tables (Optional)

Tables present quantitative data.

Figures (Optional)

Figures may be charts, graphs, photographs, drawings or other pictorial depictions.

Resume

The ILP requires a copy of the author’s current resume.