BAD 64271 Fall 2009 DuBois
HUMAN RESOURCES MANAGEMENT
BAD 64271, Fall 2009, Wednesday 6:15 – 8:55 pm
INSTRUCTOR
Name: Dr. Cathy DuBois
Office: Business Administration Building, A412
Phone: 330-672-1157 fax: 330-672-2953 (use a cover page with my name)
E-mail: cdubois@kent.edu
Office hours: Tuesday, Thursday 10:00-12:00; Wednesday 5:00-6:00 by appointment
TEXT (required)
Noe, Hollenbeck, Gerhart & Wright (2008). Human Resource Management (6th Ed.). McGraw-Hill.
Additional professional readings from the web are required. These readings are posted on the course website. Pay close attention to due dates on these readings.
COURSE WEBSITE
You must register on this website by the end of the first week of classes. Penalty for not doing so will result in a loss of 5 points from your final class participation grade.
OVERVIEW
This course will examine techniques, practices and policies necessary to most competently carry out the management of human resources within an organization. In all areas of management functions, success is largely dependent upon obtaining and appropriately utilizing a variety of resources. Managing the people, or the human resources, who carry out all organizational functions underlies all of the other functions.
The basic premise of this course is that people are the most valuable resource an organization has. By now you should know this from your own experience. It is people who conceive of organizations, own them, manage them, and dissolve them. People perform the myriad organizational jobs required to produce goods and services, and ultimately it is people who consume these goods and services.
Because this is a survey course, we will cover to some extent the whole spectrum of content areas associated with HRM: impacts of organizational factors, government regulations, and environmental conditions on the evolution of HRM, as well as the many functional activities of human resource management. We will cover a mix of prescriptive and descriptive approaches to HRM, in that we will compare the ideal of research-based practices with the range of current practices used by organizations.
Anyone who has worked has had some array of experiences with HR policies and procedures. As employees, you are on the receiving end of these policies and procedures. Most of you are in the MBA program. As managers, you are/will be the individuals who deliver a large percentage of HR policies/procedures to your employees (HR employees do relatively little delivery, in comparison; they focus on system design, record keeping, and troubleshooting).
The focus of this course will be how you, as managers, can positively influence the effectiveness of your employees through your own actions to improve and implement organizational human resource management policies and procedures.
COURSE OBJECTIVES
The overarching objective of this course is to make you a more intelligent administrator and consumer of HRM practices for your organization's benefit as well as your own personal gain. At the end of this course you should be able to:
1. understand how the HRM function can enhance an organization's business strategy.
2. comprehend the perspective of those who work in the HRM function, which should help you work more effectively with them.
3. discern "right from wrong" HRM practice, based on 2 separate considerations: government regulation and scientific research. Ignoring the former can result in costly, time-consuming litigation for your organization. Ignoring the latter can lead to decisions about people that are potentially sub-optimal.
4. develop and more effectively utilize HRM practices to improve your own work performance, as well as the performance of those who report to you.
COURSE FORMAT
Lecturing at length to a silent audience does not create the most effective learning environment. A lively learning environment is available for everyone when we are engaged in a dynamic dialogue that is structured around the essential knowledge you should take away from this course. Class time will therefore include lots of discussion. Thus, it is imperative that you come to class having read all assigned material. Also several layers of exposure will help you grasp and retain the wealth of new information you will encounter in this course.
GRADING
Final grades will be comprised of the following:
Class preparation / participation 25%
Exams (2) 50% (25% each)
HRM-in-the-News Presentation 5%
Team Project 20%
I will use +/- grades for this course. Assignment of final grades will most likely be: 92+ A, 90-91 A-, 88-89 B+, 82-87 B, 80-81 B-, 78-79 C+, 72-77 B, 70-71 C-, 68-69 D+, 60-67 D, 0-59 F. I reserve the right to curve these final grades, up or down, based on overall class performance.
Class Preparation / Participation
Once again, class discussions will be much more meaningful if you have read and thought about the appropriate material prior to class. Come to class with notes on chapters and readings, as well as questions to ask. Also, use this opportunity to bring up salient work experiences that we can all learn from. We cover a great deal of material every class period, so keep up with your readings. Be prepared to be called on to state the main points of the current chapter or readings at any time. Your responses will significantly impact your grade.
Recognize that class participation is a subjective thing – I can’t tally how many times you speak or the quality of what you say in some objective manner. It's your responsibility to make sure I notice your contributions. It’s your responsibility to take the initiative to speak (rather than my responsibility to call of you if you do not raise your hand). If you don’t volunteer, I still might call on you, so be prepared to answer.
You will turn in mid-semester and final self-evaluations for your class participation. Please keep track of the number of classes you miss, and have a good idea of how frequently you participate in class, as well as the quality of your participation. Failure to submit these forms on time will result in a 10 point subtraction from your earned class participation/preparation grade.
As people who are or aspire to be managers, your oral communication skills are or will be an essential part of your effectiveness. I expect you to practice and display them in class. Even introverted people can develop excellent communication skills. It is worth your while to learn how to be a contributor to a group, not just a spectator.
HRM-in-the-News Presentation
The purpose of these presentations is to make you aware of how many HR-related articles routinely appear in the popular press. We will see how they reflect HR issues that are of current interest to employers and employees, and how they shed light on the evolving nature of the field.
Your presentation will consist of a brief summary of the *highlights* of an HR-related article that appeared in the recent popular press (articles no older than 3 months past; from newspapers, internet news sites, magazines like Business Week or Newsweek, or non-HRM professional publications). Do not use articles from HRM research or practitioner journals (Workforce, Training Magazine, etc.) or HRM web sites. I encourage the International students to present articles from publications in their home countries.
Important! As you identify an article you want to use, go to the Discussion section of the course website to check whether anyone has already claimed it. If no one has, follow directions to post your article title and source, along with your name. No duplications will be allowed, either on a single day or throughout the semester.
Keep in mind that presentation style has a significant impact on the effectiveness of your presentation. I expect this to be a professional presentation. Use PowerPoint to summarize main points (use 30+ point font). Do not chew gum, read from the article or from notecards, or do anything else that makes you look unprepared. Do dress appropriately, look at and connect with your audience, “own” the material you are presenting, monitor your time, smile and seem interested! See the Evaluation Forms section on the course website for grading criteria.
We will have 1 or 2 presentations each class period. The presenter has 5 minutes to speak; you cannot receive an A if you exceed this, nor can you receive an A if you speak less than 4.5 minutes. Practice your talk so you can keep it to 5 minutes. Do extra related research if your article has less than 5 minutes worth of material.
Exams
There will be 2 exams that cover primarily non-overlapping content. They will consist of short/long answer questions that are integrative and application oriented. Each exam will have a solo section (20-30 points) to be completed by each individual, and a partner section to be completed when working with a partner (70-80 points). You must work with a partner to write the first exam; you have the option of working alone or with a partner on the second exam. My rationale for partner exams is based on two factors: people rarely work in isolation in the workplace, and discussing ideas with another knowledgeable individual is a terrific way to reinforce and extend your learning. The purpose of these exams extends beyond determining what you know; I also want the examination process to reinforce your learning.
When appropriate, International students who feel their English language skills are not well developed enough to support a complex, fast-paced dialogue, may arrange with me to take all exams solo. Such arrangements must be completed 1 week prior to each exam.
To insure that everyone studies all material covered on the exam, partners will be randomly assigned in class just before the exam. Please be conscientious in your preparation, for your partner as well as for yourself. Partners will receive the same exam grade unless the partner evaluation form indicates a need for adjustment (I do make adjustments as appropriate).
Advice: Do not write lengthy paragraphs for test answers; answer concisely and clearly with the correct terminology; incorporate the use of bullet points / lists and sentences as appropriate (see writing guidelines in this syllabus). Tests will cover material from the textbook, extra readings and class discussions. Mastery of all material will be necessary to earn an A on exams. Take lots of written notes during each class on your copies of the PowerPoint slides. Key themes, recommendations and overarching points will often be stated by the professor in class, but won’t appear on the PowerPoint – these will be needed for tests.
Important! Exams from previous semesters for this class may not be used as study guides. If you obtain current or previous exams for this class in any manner, you are hereby informed that this is considered to be cheating and appropriate disciplinary action will be invoked.
Team Project
You will work in teams of 5 students to complete this project. This project has 4 goals:
1. Determine the components of best practice in an area of HRM through research
2. Collect information from several organizations about their practices in this HRM area
3. Compare/contrast the company’s practices with recommended practices; draw conclusions and make relevant recommendations
4. Deliver a professional presentation that summarizes your findings
Each team will select an area of HRM practice. Because every team must investigate a different HRM area, register your area with the professor early to ensure it is available.
Teams: Project teams will be diverse (fe/male, inter/national); they will include a mix of FTMBA and PMBA students. Teams have the right to fire a team member who does not follow through with their responsibilities
Research: Consult a variety of resources: professional organizations (e.g. SHRM); HRM practitioners and consultants; research and practitioner journal articles, etc. Advice: Finish your research and develop your outline of best practice before you obtain information on organizational practice from your organizational contacts. This will ensure that the information you obtain on organizational practice addresses all components of best practice.
Organizations: Select 3 organizations with roughly 100 or more employees. They can be in the same or in different business sectors, and can be either for-profit or not-for-profit. Most teams will have access to HR contacts in area organizations. If you anticipate difficulty connecting with organizations, let the professor know as soon as possible.
Presentation: 20-25 minutes, plus 5 minutes for questions/answers (30 minute max). All group members must participate in the presentation. Make it educational and interesting/enjoyable!
Deliverables: Penalty for late delivery is 5 project points per item
1. Project timeline Due September 16
Include the following task areas (at minimum – add others that you deem helpful): doing research, developing your data collection protocol, contacting organizations, summarizing findings, developing presentation
* You must outline who does what tasks, as well as start and end dates
2. Outline of ‘Best Practice’ with references Due November 4
A bullet-pointed list will suffice, with added explanation as necessary; use detailed references
3. Presentation PowerPoint Due at the time of presentation
Copies for class members are not required; if any sort of handout will be useful, include it.
4. Team member evaluation Due the day after your presentation
Form is available on the course website. There will be a 10 point deducation from your
individual project grade if this is not turned in on time or filled out thoroughly.
Writing Guidelines
Effective written and oral communication skills are highly influential in selection and promotion decisions. Professional writing used in organizational communications is concise and well organized. Communications that contain rambling paragraphs or lack clear sections are simply not effective (and often not even read!).
Class requirements include written assignments and short/long answer exam questions. Your writing style is a critical element of the grade you receive.
Please incorporate the following elements in your writing for this class: make liberal use of “bullet points” – phrases that effectively summarize ideas (if you really know the material, you can use appropriate terms and be succinct), subheadings, numbered lists, outlines, and Tables of Contents. Write full sentences when needed, when your message cannot be clearly communicated in more abbreviated form; avoid complex sentences and lengthy paragraphs. Say a lot with little writing; use page space wisely and attractively; make every word count. Quality of writing is superior to great quantity of writing.
For some of you this will come easily, because you already incorporate these elements in your writing. For others it will be challenging, for you are accustomed to being ‘long-winded’ because you have previously been rewarded with high grades when you turn in lengthy prose. However, because it is not appropriate in a business setting, lengthy prose will earn low grades in this class!
Be sure to proofread projects several times – poor grammar and spelling errors will lower grades considerably!
Information from the KSU College of Business Administration
The Following Policies Apply to All Students in this Course
A. 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 Sunday, September 6, 2009 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.
B. 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. 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 (0 points) for the work or course. Repeat offenses may result in dismissal from the University.
C. For Fall 2009, the course withdrawal deadline is Sunday, November 8, 2009. Withdrawal before the deadline results in a "W" on the official transcript. After the deadline a grade must be calculated and reported.
D. Students with disabilities: University policy 3342-3-01.3 requires that students with disabilities be provided reasonable accommodations to ensure their equal access equal access course content. If you have 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 through the Student Disability Services (contact 330-672-3391 or visit www.kent.edu/sas <http://www.registrars.kent.edu/disability/> for more information on registration procedures).
BAD 64271 Human Resource Management
DuBois, Fall 2009
PART 1: HRM, Organizational Environments, & Employee Acquisition
September 2 Introduction to HRM, HR Environment Chapters 1 & 2
September 9 Legal Context of Employment Decisions Chapter 3
September 16 Legal Context of Employment Decisions Chapter 3
Project timeline due!
September 23 Analysis of Work & Job Design Chapter 4
HR Planning & Employee Recruiting Chapter 5
September 30 Employee Selection Chapter 6
October 7 Employee Selection Chapter 6
Separation & Retention of Employees Chapter 10
Mid-term class participation self evaluation form due
October 14 Part 1 Exam (partner is mandatory)
PART 2: Managing Performance for Organizational Success
October 21 Performance Management & Assessment Chapter 8
October 28 Workplace Training Chapter 7
Employee Development Chapter 9
November 4 Compensation: Pay Structures Chapter 11
Recognizing Employee Contributions with Pay Chapter 12
Project ‘Best Practice’ outline due!
November 11 No Class; Veteran’s Day
November 18 Labor Relations Chapter 14
International HRM Chapter 15
November 25 No class; Thanksgiving
December 2 HRM & High-Performance Organizations Chapter 16
December 9 Part 2 Exam (partner is optional)
December 16 Project Presentations Mandatory attendance
Mid-term class participation self evaluation form due
We cover a great deal of material every class period. I do not have a set of written notes to give you if you miss class – please do not ask me what you missed. Instead, if you must miss a class, check with a class member to find out what transpired in your absence.
