30061 In Class Diane
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Business 30061 - Business Professional Practices – LECTURE
Management & Information Systems Department
Kent State University
Fall, 2015
INSTRUCTOR: Diane DeRubertis, MEd, SPHR
OFFICE: College of Business - # A422
PHONE: 330-672-1149
OFFICE Tuesday & Thursday 1:30 pm – 3:00 pm
HOURS: I can also be available via SKYPE or Collaborate. Off hours, SKYPE and Collaborate sessions must be arranged by appointment via email
EMAIL: dderuber@kent.edu
Text: There is no text book for this class. Articles and videos are posted in Blackboard that supports class learnings and activities.
Student Learning Outcomes:
1. Be able to deliver professional oral presentations.
2. Be able to deliver presentations that are visually appealing.
3. Understand different organizational cultures and hierarchies.
4. Understand professional ethics and etiquette.
5. Be able to think critically about communication conflicts and convey messages that result in a professional outcome.
Course Prerequisites:
BUS 10123, COMM 15000, ENG 11011 and ENG 21011 Co-requisite: ENG 30061
Students in the course who do not have the proper prerequisites risk being deregistered from the class.
Course Description:
The purpose of this course is to help students develop appropriate approaches to oral communications given organizational cultures and hierarchies, proper business etiquette (regarding dress, dining and behaviors) and other professional business acumen. This course is linked with ENG 30061.
NOTE: This course and ENG 30061 give students instruction in, and practice with, business communication. Re-enforcing the link between the two courses, several activities from these courses are connected. These activities include:
a) Job application materials: Students will develop a resume and elevator pitch in the BUS 30061 course. In ENG 30061, as part of the correspondence portfolio assignment, students will develop an application letter based on the resume they develop for BUS 30061 and a specific organization/job of interest. The resume and application letter will be used as part of the Mock Interview assignment in BUS 30061.
b) Company research activity: In ENG 30061 you are encouraged to customize the application letter to a specific organization/job. To connect the courses and reduce the amount of work on your end, the organization selected for ENG 30061 can be used as the selected company you are required to research and present in the Group Presentation exercise in BUS 30061. You will need to coordinate as a group. c) Ethical dilemma: In ENG 30061 students complete a proposal or analytical report project on a topic of their choosing in consultation with the professor. This report topic can be on the same ethical issue and/or company you select for your Individual Presentation exercise in BUS 30061. You will have guidance from your English instructor on your written report and me on your presentation.
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Graduating Seniors:
If you are eligible to graduate, it is your responsibility to apply for graduation before the set deadline (May Graduation: Apply before September 15th August Graduation: Apply before December 15th December Graduation: Apply before March 15th). If you apply after the deadline you will be assessed a $200 late fee. Please see your academic advisor as soon as possible if you are uncertain as to your progress toward graduation. To apply for graduation complete the following steps: Log onto your Flashline account (1) Click on the Student Tools tab (2) Look in the Graduation Planning Tool Box (3) Click on Application for Graduation. If an error message appears, you must contact your advisor.
Class enrollment:
Students have responsibility to ensure they are properly enrolled in classes. You are advised to review your official class schedule (using Student Tools on FlashLine) during the first two weeks of the semester to ensure you are properly enrolled in this class and section. Should you find an error in your class schedule, you have until Monday, September 14th, 2015 to correct the error. If registration errors are not corrected by this date and you continue to attend and participate in classes for which you are not officially enrolled, you are advised now that you will not receive a grade at the conclusion of the semester for any class in which you are not properly registered.
Course Withdrawal Deadline: For Fall 2015, the course withdrawal deadline is Sunday, November 8th, 2015.
Students with disabilities:
University policy 3342-3-01.3 requires that students with disabilities be provided reasonable accommodations to ensure their equal access to course content. If you have a documented disability and require accommodations, please contact the instructor at the beginning of the semester to make arrangements for necessary classroom adjustments. Please note, you must first verify your eligibility for these accommodations through Student Accessibility Services (contact 330-672-3391 or visit http://www.kent.edu/sas/index.cfm for more information on registration procedures).
Academic Honesty:
Academic honesty: Cheating means to misrepresent the source, nature, or other conditions of your academic work (e.g., tests, papers, projects, assignments) so as to get undeserved credit. In addition, it is considered to be cheating when one cooperates with someone else in any such misrepresentation. The use of the intellectual property of others without giving them appropriate credit is a serious academic offense. It is the University's policy that cheating or plagiarism result in receiving a failing grade for the work or course. Repeat offenses result in dismissal from the University.
Plagiarism:
Plagiarism means to take and present as one’s own a material portion of the ideas or words of another or to present as one’s own an idea or work derived from an existing source without full and proper credit to the source of the ideas, words or works. This definition includes using another student’s work as your own as well as inadequately referencing other sources in your work. Plagiarism carries a variety of sanctions, ranging from lowering of the grade to dismissal from the University. The Universal Policy on Plagiarism is published in the KSU Phone Directory under “Student Cheating and Plagiarism.” You are responsible for knowing and abiding by this policy.
Extra Credit:
Generally throughout the semester there are outside speakers or other campus activities that provide a learning opportunity and are appropriate for the content presented in this course. These events would be considered extra credit opportunities for participants in this course. Extra credit activities will be announced as knowledge of these activities become available.
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Grading:
The points listed below for each assignment will be used to determine the final grade.
Assignment
Points
Grade
Points
Introductory Presentation
30
A
465 – 500
Class Participation
140
A-
450 – 464
In person format – Attendance
B+
435 – 449
WEB format – Online Activities
B
420 – 434
Required Resume Assignment
60
B-
400 – 419
Presentations:
240
C+
385 – 399
Elevator Pitch (60)
C
370 – 384
Group Presentation (100)
C-
350 – 369
Individual Presentation (80)
D+
325 – 349
Reflection Papers – In Class
20
D
300 – 324
F
Below 300
TOTAL POINTS POSSIBLE
500
This class is structured to assist you in your professional career. Therefore, you must maintain a professional mindset. In order to prepare, approach this class as you would a job. Your syllabus and book are tools to be considered as an employee handbook. Therefore, it will be your responsibility to know important assignment dates and other pertinent information. You are expected to conduct yourself in a professional manner at all times. Consider your classmates as co-workers and your instructor as the CEO of the organization.
Please do not expect points to be given to you – they must be earned – just as promotions are in a job. If you work hard, your grade will reflect it. If not, your grade will reflect that, as well. Bring your best self to “work” each day you attend!
“If you do what you’ve always done, you’ll get what you’ve always gotten.” (Anthony Robbins)
GENERAL INFORMATION:
TIMED PRESENTATIONS
All presentations will be timed. You will not be allowed to go over the amount of time allotted. If you run out of time during your presentation, that constitutes going over and the lowest grade on the rubric for that particular section will be assessed….NO EXECPTIONS. Therefore, it is in your best interest to practice your presentations in advance.
EMAIL NOTIFICATIONS
Emailing is regularly used for communication in the business world. Periodically, I will send emails as a way to communicate important information. Therefore, please start getting in the habit of checking your email regularly.
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ASSIGNMENTS:
PERSONAL INTRODUCTION (30 points)
The first assignment will be for each student to provide a personal introduction. Your personal presentation should be no more than 2 minutes in length and provide the audience a general overview of you. The information that would beneficial is to know your name, your major, interests you have, what you are planning to do in the future.
The information you provide will begin to provide a foundation for several of the upcoming assignments including your elevator speech, your resume development and selection of teams for group projects.
For students in the classroom sections, your personal introduction will be in class during the second week of school. For those in the WEB format, you will be required to video tape and post your introductory video to Blackboard at the end of the second week of school.
ELEVATOR PITCH PRESENTATION (60 points):
The elevator pitch is a handy tool business professionals use to help prepare for unexpected encounters with an individual who may have the ability to influence a situation or create an opportunity. First popularized in the 1980’s, the elevator speech is a short, persuasive presentation designed to spark an interest in the receiver.
The elevator pitch also known as the elevator speech was originally created as a “canned” presentation used by individuals who conveniently found themselves in the privacy of an elevator with a decision-making or person of influence i.e., an executive in the organization. The idea was to quickly present or pitch an idea in hopes of a positive outcome.
The concept of the elevator pitch has evolved from cornering the unsuspecting executive in an elevator to pitch a company-related idea to being used by entrepreneurs to introduce investment opportunities, sales persons to pitch a possible business opportunity or by individuals seeking a job offer.
For our purpose, the creation of the elevator pitch is to equip you with a tool to use as you are looking for an internship, summer job, or career / investment opportunity.
For students in the classroom sections, your elevator pitch will be in class. For those in the WEB format, you will be required to video tape and post your elevator speech to Blackboard.
RESUME ASSIGNMENT (60 points):
Having a current resume readily available is another tool for your professional tool kit.
To assure each individual has a current resume, students are required to make an appointment with the College of Business Career Services Office located in room #A 309 of the Business building (not to be confused with the Career Services Center located in Schwartz) and have their resume reviewed “in person” by a career counselor.
This “in person” experience can be completed by either physically coming to campus to meet face-to-face with a career counselor OR by electing to complete this activity via SKYPE. When you make your appointment, please let the counselor know whether you prefer face-to-face or SKYPE otherwise it will be assumed you are physically coming to the office.
To make an appointment, you will use a link provided in Blackboard
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Please note that all appointments must be scheduled two weeks in advance. DO NOT WAIT UNTIL THE WEEK THE ASSIGNMENT IS DUE TO ATTEMPT TO SCHEDULE YOUR APPOINTMENT. SAME DAY APPOINTMENTS OR WALK-INS WILL NOT BE GRANTED – NO EXCEPTIONS. If you miss the required dates listed above, 5 points for each day late will be deducted from your assignment grade. You will not need to turn in a hard copy of your resume. The completed appointment is all that is needed to obtain the points for this assignment.
GROUP PRESENTATION (100 points):
On occasion, groups or teams who worked closely together will be asked to present a finding, recommendation or potential solution to the management team. As a result, group presentations are a preferred skill in most organizations.
Another professional tool for your tool kit is having experience in working with and making a professional team presentation. To help you prepare, all participants will engage in a group presentation. Teams will choose an organization to present to the professor. Team members will select a company they would like to research and present. The company selected must be already in existence – not start-up companies.
Presentations will be 8 minutes in length (timed). During the presentation, each team member is required to take a significant role in the presentation providing relevant content about the selected organization including the following:
Organization name and why the group selected that specific organization
The core business of the organization
The organization’s Mission, Vision, Value, and Directional statements
The “culture” exhibited by the organization – explain expectations, how are employees supposed to behave
Explain the type of organizational structure of the company
Other information the group deems important to their presentation
For students in the classroom sections, your group presentation will be in class. For those in the WEB format, you will be required to present your group presentation in a Collaborate session through Blackboard.
PRESENTATION REFLECTION SUMMARY (15 points)
For in class sessions, each student is required to attend all group presentations and will write up a brief summary of what you learned from each as well as one follow-up question per presentation. The form will be provided to you.
FINAL INDIVIDUAL PRESENTATION (80 points):
Ethical business practices have become a major concern in American companies. An ethical dilemma, also called a moral dilemma, occurs when an individual is presented with a situation where he/she needs to make a choice between several options one or more of which will not resolve the situation in an ethically acceptable manner. Resolving a situation is an ethical manner assumes the individual will abide by societal norms such as code of law or ethical business practices such as a code of conduct.
Business owners and management teams indicate the importance of having employees understand the underlying principles of ethical business practice and be able to abide by the company’s code of conduct. The final professional tool for your tool kit is completing a final individual presentation about an ethical dilemma regarding a company your chose.
Each student is to research a company that experienced a real, documented situation regarding an ethical discretion the organization experienced. The organizational dilemma should be related to the industry in the
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students’ major field of study. Upon completing the research, each student will prepare and present their findings.
The individual presentation must include the following:
1. Describe the case
2. Define the ethical dilemma
3. Indicate the stakeholders involved
4. Provide a better alternative and the reason why it would be better
5. Provide a conclusion that summarizes your case and finishes the presentation
This final individual presentation is to be no more than 5 minutes in length.
For students in the classroom sections, your individual presentation will be in class. For those in the WEB format, you will be required to present your individual presentation in a Collaborate session through Blackboard.
INDIVIDUAL PRESENTATION REFLECTION SUMMARY (15 points)
For in class sessions, each student is required to attend all individual presentations and will write up a brief summary of what you learned from each as well as one follow-up question per presentation. The form will be provided to you.
CLASS PARTICIPATION (140 total points):
For in-class sessions - During class time you will participate in activities that support the learnings and prepare you for your various assignments and presentations. Students can earn up to 140 points (10 points per class) for participating in the class activities.
Attendance will be taken in each class which will verify your participation. Tardiness (more than 10 minutes late) may affect the participation grade. Arriving to any class meeting more than 25 minutes late or leaving with 25 minutes remaining in the class session will result in a full absence. Excessive absences could result in one grade lower or more.
For WEB sessions - There will be 7 discussion boards and other online activities (20 points per activity) throughout the semester corresponding to class activities of the in-class sessions. The open and closed dates for each activity / discussion are posted on Blackboard. Failure to participate in an activity or discussion by the due date will result in 0 credit.
Schedule of Topics (Schedule may change as necessary)
DATE
WEEK
TOPIC
Source
POINTS
08/31/15 thru 09/06/15
1
Lecture: Syllabus and Blackboard Review
Activity: 1) Selecting Teams for Group Assignment
(fish bowl)
Assignment: Read about Communicating Effectively in
Business & how to prepare your 30 sec
personal introduction.
Blackboard Links
30 Sec Intro
09/07/15 thru 09/13/15
2
Lecture: Communication
Activity: 1) Verbal / Non-verbal Communication;
2) 30 sec Personal Introductions
3) Review and Acknowledge Teams from
list for Group Assignment
Blackboard Links
10 points 30 points
10 points
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Assignment: Read information about Required Resume
Writing Assignment & Group Assignment
Labor Day - (No Monday Classes)
Resume Review & Group Pres
09/14/15 thru 09/20/15
3
Lecture: Career Center Presentation
Activity: 1) Attend Career Center Presentation –
Creating an Effective Resume
2) Submit resume review appt date
3) Access and test Collaborate system, if
using
4) Submit name of org for individual
Presentation and gain approval
Assignments: Read information about Developing and
Delivering an Elevator Pitch
Deliverable: Resume Review w/Career Advisor Opens
Blackboard Links
Elevator Pitch
10 points
10 points
10 points
09/21/15 thru 09/27/15
4
Lecture: Review Elevator Pitch Assignment
Activity: 1) Public Speaking in a Small Group
Assignments: Practice Elevator Pitch & Read about
Individual Presentation Assignment
10 points
09/28/15 thru 10/04/15
5
Lecture: None
Activity: 1) Elevator Pitch Presentations
2) Review and Acknowledge date / time
for Group Assignment presentation
Assignments: Read about Working in Teams,
Accountability & Relationships in the
Workplace
Blackboard Links
Group Present
60 points
10 points
10 points
10/05/15 thru 10/11/2015
6
Lecture: Review Group Presentation Assignment
Activity: 1) Team Work
2) Submit drafted resume
Assignments: Practice Group Presentation
10 points
10 points
10/12/15 thru 10/18/2015
7
Lecture: None
Activity: 1) Group Presentations
2) Submit Peer Evaluation
3) Submit Reflections Paper
Assignments: Practice Group Presentation
Deliverable: Resume Review w/Career Advisor Closes
10 points
60 points
20 points
15 points
20 points
10/019/15 thru 10/25/2015
8
Lecture: None
Activity: 1) Group Presentations
2) Submit Peer Evaluation
3) Submit Reflections Paper
4) Submit suggested revisions to resume
Assignments: Read information on “Business Dress and
Etiquette”
Blackboard Links
Individual Present
10 points
See Above
10 points
10/26/15 thru 11/01/2015
9
Lecture: Etiquette and Dress (Mon / Tue)
Activity: 1) Dress for Success
2) Review and acknowledge date / time
for individual presentation
3) Submit final updated resume
Assignments: Read information on “How to develop and
deliver a Professional Presentation”
Blackboard Links
Individual Present
10 points
10 points
10 points
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11/02/15 thru 11/08/2015
10
Lecture: Etiquette and Dress (Wed / Thu)
Activity: 1) Dress for Success
2) Review and acknowledge date / time
for individual presentation
3) Submit final updated resume
Assignments: Read information on “How to develop and
deliver a Professional Presentation” &
Continue to Practice Individual
Presentation
Blackboard Links
Individual Present
See Above
11/09/15 thru 11/15/2015
11
Lecture: Business Presentations
Activity: Conducting a Professional Presentation
Assignments: None
Veterans Day (No Wednesday Classes)
10 points
11/16/15 thru 11/22/2015
12
Lecture: Use of Technology with Remote Teams
(Mon / Tue)
Activity: 1) Final Speech Presentations (Wed/Thu)
2) Submit Reflections Paper
Assignments: None
10 points
60 points
15 points
11/23/15 thru 11/29/2015
13
Lecture: None
Activity: 1) Final Speech Presentations (Mon/Tue)
2) Submit Reflections Paper
Assignments: None
Thanksgiving
(No Wednesday / Thursday Classes)
10 points
See Above
11/30/15 thru 12/06/2015
14
Lecture: None
Activity: 1) Final Speech Presentations (ALL)
2) Submit Reflections Paper
Assignments: None
10 points
See Above
12/07/15 thru 12/13/2015
15
Lecture: None
Activity: 1) Final Speech Presentations (ALL)
2) Submit Reflections Paper
Assignments: None
10 points
See Above
Finals Week:
16
NO FINAL EXAM
12/14/15 thru 12/20/2015
Assignment Key:
Introductory Presentation = GREEN
Elevator Speech = TEAL
Resume Review = RED
Group Presentation = GOLD
Final Individual Presentation = PURPLE
