MIS 34180 Fall 2010 Tudor

HUMAN RESOURCES MANAGEMENT

MIS 34180

Fall Semester 2010

Kent State University; Kent Campus

Tuesday/Thursday; 2:15pm-3:30pm

Professor:        Jarrod Tudor, Ph.D., J.D., LL.M., M.B.A.

Office:                         415 College of Business Administration

Office hours:   Tuesday/Thursday, 3:30p-4:30p; also by appointment

Phone:                         Kent: 330-672-1204; Stark: 330-244-3442

Email:                          jtudor@kent.edu

Course description.

            This course will focus on the competitive advantage derived from the better management of a firm’s human resources. Issues related to managing people at work will be discussed from both practical and theoretical perspectives. Prerequisites: minimum 2.50 cumulative GPA; and MIS 24163 or BMRT 11009.

Course Objective.

            At the completion of this course, students should have a firm understanding of the internal and external factors that help advance a firm's human resources capability including factors such as the recruitment, selection, retention, appraisal, productivity, and compensation of employees.  As well, skills in ethical and legal decision making will be developed.

Course Mechanics.

This class will be taught in a very intensive manner. There will be two mid-term examinations and a non-comprehensive final exam.  Exams will be in multiple choice and essay format.  Students will be tested on material presented in class and material in the textbook.  Therefore, just because the instructor did not cover the particular topic, this does not mean that the student will not find it on the exam.  Indeed, if the student does not read the textbook, the student will not do well in this course.

Students are expected to engage in class participation which includes attendance, being prepared, engaging in class discussion and coming to class on time. Students will be expected to complete the reading assignments before class.  Indeed, this course will not work as planned if students are not prepared and the instructor should be able to assume that the student has read all of the assigned readings.   Most of the student's time for this course should be dedicated to exam preparation.  It is important for me to stress that you have an obligation to your classmates, myself and Kent State University to attend class. 

Policies.

1.) No whining.  This is the greatest opportunity of your life.  Embrace and cherish it!

2.) Do not bring cell phones, pagers, etc. into the class.

3.) Do not come late nor leave early unless the instructor is notified appropriately.  To do so is disrespectful of other students and the university.

4.) Do not solicit grades.

5.) I cannot discuss grades via email or phone.  I will not return emails or phone calls that request a grade or exam score.

6.) The grading scale employed in this class will be as follows:

A: 90-100

B: 80-89.999

C: 70-79.999

D: 60-69.999

F: 59.999 and below.

7.) Exam dates are subject to change and the instructor reserves the right to change the syllabus.

8.) Make-up exams will be given only at the discretion of the instructor and will be in essay format. Students may not miss exams unless the reason for the absence is substantial and can be supported by a doctor's excuse or a death in the family.  A student may not use the exam day sheet for the essay-based make-up exams.  All make-up exams will be given during the 15^th week of the semester.  

9.) The last day to withdraw from the course is November 7, 2010.  Withdrawal before the deadline results in a W on the official transcript; after the deadline, a grade must be calculated.

10.) Students attending the course who do not have the proper prerequisite risk being deregistered from the class.

11.) Students have responsibility to ensure they are properly enrolled in classes.  You are advised to review your official class schedule (using Web for Students) 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 September 12, 2010 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.

12.) The University expects all students, working or not, to manage their lives to attend class.  

Grade Breakdown.

Mid-Term Exam 1                               30%

Mid-Term Exam 2                               30%

Final Exam                                                      30%

Class Participation                              10%

Teaching Philosophy.

The purpose of higher education is to build better citizens for a lifetime and not for the sole purpose of getting a job.  The accomplished student will be able to participate in a democracy and know how to live well and smart.   I believe that the value of any course taken in higher education should not solely focus on "what will be covered on the exam."  I also do not believe that the sole value of an education is what is learned in the classroom.  It is my belief that the student should embrace all topics discussed or covered in the classroom as all topics will contribute to the growth of the student both intellectually and socially.  Additionally, education is a social endeavor.  I would encourage students in higher education to learn from each other, in and out of class, just as they learn from the instructor.  Without this dynamic, a great part of the educational journey and the college experience is lost.

Furthermore, the student in higher education should realize that a college degree, whether it is an associate's degree, a bachelor's degree, a law degree, a medical degree, or a graduate degree, gives him or her two vital possessions that can never be taken away: intellectual freedom and status.  Intellectual freedom is an asset that allows a student to be able to understand the world around them and to become a critical thinker in a fast, ever-changing world (In other words, the educated citizen will know how to sift through the b.s. to get to the truth.).  As well, there is an immediate status given to the college graduate.  This status tells the world that the graduating student has been able to accept a great amount of responsibility to complete a rigorous plan of study and manage their personal life at the same time.  It does not matter where the student receives the degree if the attended college or university does their job by requiring the student to pass this rigorous course of study.  It is my responsibility to ensure that the university fulfills its responsibility to the student, the taxpayer and society so that this status bestowed upon the student is rightly deserved.

Additionally, all students have a responsibility to other students to attend class on time and without disrupting other students.

Textbook.

The textbook we will use for this course is Human Resource Management, 5th ed.  by Lawrence Kleiman (ISBN: 1-426-64918-5) and can be purchased at the campus bookstore.  No other materials are necessary for this course.  However, articles may be forwarded to students via Flashline email that students are responsible for and would be test-eligible.

Plagiarism.

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 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.