| Course | HRM-5700 The Effectiveness of a Market-Connected Culture |
|---|---|
| Module | Module 4 |
| Paper type | Module 4 written assignment: problem solving and project and risk management |
| Length | About 711 words, 5 pages |
| Format | APA 7 student paper |
| School | Thomas Edison State University |
| Program | Master of Science in Human Resources Management |
| Updated | October 2026 |
Free sample paper for HRM 5700 Module 4
When the Expert Retires: Root Causes and a Knowledge Loss Risk Register
Student Name
Master of Science in Human Resources Management, Thomas Edison State University
HRM-5700: The Effectiveness of a Market-Connected Culture
Mentor Name
Month Day, Year
When the Expert Retires: Root Causes and a Knowledge Loss Risk Register
Introduction
In March, a bioanalytical study for one of Meridian's largest clients slipped eight weeks. The method for measuring the client's compound in plasma had been developed by a senior scientist who retired in January. Her successor, working from the written method, could not reproduce the validation results. The client was not told about the delay until the original deadline had passed. This assignment applies problem solving and risk management to the incident and to the broader risk it revealed.
Root Cause Analysis
The five whys technique asks why a problem occurred and then asks why again of each answer until a root cause appears.
The root cause is not the successor's skill or the method document but the absence of any process for identifying and managing knowledge risk. DeLong (2004) describes this pattern as lost knowledge: organizations notice what an expert knew only after the expert is gone, when recovering it is slow and costly.
| Question | Answer |
|---|---|
| Why did the study slip? | The method could not be reproduced on schedule |
| Why could it not be reproduced? | Critical steps were not in the written method |
| Why were they missing? | The developer adjusted sample preparation by experience and never wrote the adjustments down |
| Why was this not caught before she retired? | No process identified her knowledge as critical or arranged transfer |
| Why was there no process? | Knowledge loss was not treated as a project or business risk |
A Second Failure: Communication
The analysis also found a communication failure. The project manager hoped the problem would be solved quickly and delayed telling the client. This turned a technical problem into a relationship problem, damaging the relational capital discussed in Module 2. Problem solving in a client service firm must include early, honest communication. The episode also confirms research on project learning: knowledge that is not captured while a team is together tends to be lost when the team breaks up (Schindler & Eppler, 2003).
Knowledge Loss as a Risk
Project risk management identifies risks, assesses their likelihood and impact, and plans responses (Project Management Institute, 2021). The same approach can be applied to knowledge. Meridian's HR and scientific leaders reviewed six roles and scored each on a five-point scale for the likelihood of losing the role's knowledge in the next two years and the impact of that loss.
Scores above 12 require an active transfer plan within three months. The responses mix the strategies DeLong describes: transferring knowledge through pairing and mentoring, codifying it through documents and recordings, and retaining people through phased retirement or consulting arrangements.
| Role | Likelihood | Impact | Score | Response |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Senior bioanalytical scientist | 4 | 5 | 20 | Pair with successor for six months |
| Quality assurance lead | 3 | 5 | 15 | Document audit history; cross-train deputy |
| Stability testing specialist | 4 | 3 | 12 | Record methods on video with commentary |
| Laboratory information system administrator | 2 | 5 | 10 | Vendor support agreement and runbook |
| Statistician for clinical assays | 3 | 3 | 9 | Shared code repository with notes |
| Client relationship manager | 2 | 4 | 8 | Joint client meetings with a second manager |
The Role of Human Resources
Knowledge risk is a workforce issue, and human resources owns many of the tools. HR can identify retirement eligibility and flight risk, build succession plans that include knowledge transfer rather than only job titles, design phased retirement so experts can work part time while mentoring successors, and include knowledge transfer goals in experts' performance plans. HR can also make exit processes include structured knowledge capture interviews. At Meridian, the retired scientist would have been willing to work two days a week for six months; no one asked.
Recommendations
Meridian should maintain a knowledge loss risk register reviewed quarterly by HR and scientific leaders, require transfer plans for high-scoring roles, add knowledge risk to the risk assessment of every major study and adopt a rule that clients are informed of any expected delay within two business days.
Conclusion
The delayed study was a symptom of an unmanaged risk. Root cause analysis showed that the lab had no way to identify and transfer critical knowledge. Treating knowledge loss as a risk, scoring it and assigning responses, with HR leading the workforce side, would prevent the next expert's retirement from becoming the next client's delay.
References
DeLong, D. W. (2004). Lost knowledge: Confronting the threat of an aging workforce. Oxford University Press.
Project Management Institute. (2021). A guide to the project management body of knowledge (PMBOK guide) (7th ed.).
Schindler, M., & Eppler, M. J. (2003). Harvesting project knowledge: A review of project learning methods and success factors. International Journal of Project Management, 21(3), 219-228. https://doi.org/10.1016/S0263-7863(02)00096-0
HRM 5700 Module 4 instructions, in plain terms
The fourth HRM-5700 written assignment covers problem solving and project and risk management. Expect questions that ask you to analyze a problem using a structured method, identify and assess risks and propose responses, and some versions use a case study. In this course the focus is on knowledge and people, so expect to consider how knowledge loss, communication and culture create project risk. Apply scholarly sources and recognized methods, such as root cause analysis and risk registers, to a specific incident or organization. Write in APA style. Choose an incident with a clear consequence, such as a delay or error, so the root cause analysis has a definite starting point. If the assignment uses a case, apply the methods to the case facts rather than to your own organization.
How this HRM 5700 Module 4 example is built
The paper begins with a specific incident and its consequences. A five whys table traces the delay to a root cause, and the paper explains it with research on lost knowledge. A short section identifies a separate communication failure. A risk register table scores six roles and assigns responses, with a threshold for action. A section defines human resources' role, and recommendations close the paper. The structure moves from one incident to a system for preventing similar ones. The register uses a defined scale and a threshold for action, which makes the scoring transparent and repeatable.
HRM 5700 Module 4 rubric: what earns full marks
This paper is judged on the problem solving and risk methods used, how far the analysis digs, whether the recommendations could be carried out and how well the sources support them. Answers that reach a systemic root cause, rather than blaming an individual, show the analysis expected. A risk register with clear scoring and responses demonstrates applied skill. Connecting the problem to human resources practice reflects the program's focus. Clear tables and APA citations help the grade. Mentors also credit answers that separate technical and human causes and address both. Responses that combine transfer, documentation and retention show an understanding of the range of options. Including communication with clients or stakeholders in problem solving shows awareness of the organization's market, the theme of the course. Sources on knowledge loss and project risk should both appear.
Common HRM 5700 Module 4 mistakes, and how to avoid them
Students lose points by stopping root cause analysis at a person's error, by listing risks without scoring them or by proposing responses with no owner or deadline. Others ignore communication with clients or stakeholders. Ask why until you reach a process or system cause. Score likelihood and impact on a defined scale. Assign responses and thresholds. Name HR's tools. A free first sample using your own HRM-5700 Module 4 incident is available on request. Avoid ending the five whys at a person's mistake. Score risks consistently. Assign every response an owner and a deadline. Explain how HR's tools, such as succession planning and phased retirement, fit into project risk management rather than sitting apart from it.
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HRM 5700 Module 4 questions, answered
Where can I find a free HRM 5700 Module 4 sample paper?
You can read the whole risk paper above, including the five whys table and a knowledge loss register covering six roles.
What is the five whys technique?
A root cause method that asks why a problem occurred, then asks why again of each answer until a system cause appears.
What is a risk register?
A record of identified risks with their likelihood, impact, score, owner and planned response.
What is knowledge loss risk?
The risk that critical knowledge leaves an organization when employees retire, resign or move, often noticed only afterward.
How can HR reduce knowledge loss?
Through succession plans that include knowledge transfer, phased retirement, mentoring, knowledge goals and structured exit interviews.