MIS 44285 F05 Franquesa

M&IS 44285: INTEGRATED BUSINESS POLICY / STRATEGY

Section 002 Call #13961 Classroom 210 BSA T/Th 10:45 am – noon (Honors section)

Section 004 Call #13963 Classroom 108 BSA T/Th 9:15 – 10:30 am

PROFESSOR:   Dr. Jaume Franquesa

Office:                 BSA 407

Telephone:           67-21161

E-mail address:    T.B.A.

Office hours:      T/Th. 1:00 – 3:30 p.m.

COURSE PREREQUISITES: 

M&IS 24163, and permission.

Students who do not have the proper prerequisite risk being deregistered from the class.

READING MATERIALS:

Required:        1.- Strategic Management: Competitiveness and Globalization –Concepts, 6^th edition, 2005, Michael A. Hitt, R. Duane Ireland, & Robert E. Hoskisson.

2.- Course pack with cases.

Optional:         A general business magazine or newspaper such as Business Week, Fortune,

or The Wall Street Journal is recommended.  Selected materials from these sources may be assigned from time to time.

COURSE DESCRIPTION:

            The aim of this course is to improve your ability to understand how organizations choose to compete in a given marketplace, why some succeed and others fail, and what can be done to improve a firm’s competitive position.  In short, this course is about business success and failure.  Our objective is to identify the sources of competitive advantage and disadvantage of individual business firms, in their respective marketplaces, and to devise ways in which they could enhance their strategic positioning.  We will also explore sources of long-term shareholder value created by large diversified corporations.

            The course takes the perspective of a practitioner general manager.  Two main implications derive from this.  First, this course is not only about concepts, but also about applying those concepts to real-life business situations.  Second, the emphasis of the course is on making the total organization successful, rather than concentrating into any single business function.  As such, the course is designed to build upon previous work in the business program, providing a "total business" perspective.  You will be able to integrate, and build upon material you have learned previously in your economics, finance, marketing and organizational behavior classes.

LEARNING OBJECTIVES:

This course provides students with the opportunity to:

(1)   Learn about a number of strategic management concepts, principles, and analytical tools.  The list of topics that will be covered is presented in pages 9 to17 below.

(2)   Apply these concepts, principles, and tools to real-life business cases.

(3)   Develop your analytical skills and practice your ability to think as managers.

(4)   Develop and practice the ability to structure, present, and sustain arguments in front of your colleagues, as well as the ability to listen and react to the arguments of others.

CLASS FORMAT:

The course is a broad survey of several topics of interest.  For each topic you are assigned one book chapter and a case to prepare.  Book chapters introduce concepts, principles, and managerial tools related to the week’s topic.  Cases provide a real-life business situation that will be used to apply the concepts and tools learned for each topic.  We will meet during class periods to discuss these materials.  Accordingly, class time will be evenly split between theory sessions and case analysis sessions.

During our theory sessions, I will review and extend what you have read in the assigned book chapters.  Beyond reinforcing main ideas, these sessions are designed to provide an opportunity for you to clarify misconceptions and to ask further questions on the topic. 

During case analysis sessions, the focus will be on diagnosing what is critical in a complex business situation and on finding realistic solutions to the strategic and/or organizational problems at hand.  We intend to benefit from group thinking and to learn from each other during these sessions.  I will take on a discussion facilitator role, expecting students to introduce their own ideas and points of view, and to draw, challenge, and build upon ideas expressed by others.  The liveliness of the class during these sessions will largely depend on the extent to which students engage the material and take ownership for the discussion in class.

WORK EXPECTATIONS:

Pages 9 to 17 of this syllabus contain a detailed course schedule, with reading assignments and study/discussion questions for each of our meeting times this semester.

For each class session, it is expected that:

(1)   Students will be prepared.  For a theory session, this means having read the assigned chapter and being familiar with the concepts and tools contained therein.

For a case-study session, it means having read and analyzed the case, and coming to class with a set of personal notes containing your best thinking.  Study questions are provided to highlight key issues and to guide your analysis.

If students are unprepared for class, written assignments based on chapters or cases will be assigned on the spot.

(2)   Student will be active participants.  During theory sessions this means answering questions presented by the professor, asking your own questions, and volunteering experiences or insights related to the topic.  You may also be called upon to talk about an issue. 

During case sessions, it means contributing your own ideas as well as building upon, or disagreeing with, ideas expressed and positions taken by others.  You may also be called upon to present your analysis or to lead a discussion.

Realize that you cannot be an active participant unless you are fully prepared for class.  Given this, here is my estimate of what it will take for you to be successful in this course:

(1)   Assigned chapters are about 30 pages each.  Accordingly, you should plan on about 2 hours of reading and writing notes to prepare for a theory session.

(2)   Assigned cases are also about 20 pages each.  However, preparing a case is a bit more involved and it will require a minimum of 6 hours distributed as follows:

(i)                  A first read of the case, highlighting important information and making notes on the margins.  The objective here is to learn about the case’s facts and to identify those that are most relevant.   (2 hours).

(ii)                Review of assigned discussion questions (to be found in pages 9 to 17 of this syllabus) followed by a focused second read of the case (mostly you go over your prior marks and notes).  The objective now is to gain further familiarity with issues pertinent to the required analysis.   (1 hour).

(iii)               Your critical analysis.  Typically, you will be asked to identify and characterize the roots of problems, which will call for you to apply tools, concepts, and models introduced in the preceding theory session(s).  Often, you will also be asked to propose appropriate solutions as well.  Use your best thinking and try to come up with practical recommendations that make good business sense.   (2 hours, minimum).

(iv)              Producing a minimum set of notes containing your analysis and final conclusions.  (1 hour).

You should bring your case notes to class with you, to support your arguments during our discussion.   To the extent possible I also recommend that you meet in small, informal groups to further discuss cases before class.  Experience shows that students in large class groups tend to participate more when they have adopted a position before walking into class, and when they have some smaller group that they identify with.  Create a study group that meets after everyone has become familiar with the case’s facts/issues*.  This will provide an opportunity for you to present your preliminary analysis and positions and have others react to them.  This is also an opportunity to learn about aspects of the problem you may have missed, as well as to encounter different approaches and points of view regarding the most appropriate solution.  The small group context allows you to learn about and argue different positions in a relaxed, exchange-intensive setting.  The point is not to reach an agreement (although it is OK if this happens), but to practice conveying your ideas, and to begin refining and enriching your thinking!

In sum, you should plan on investing a minimum of 8 hours per topic to prepare for class (work loads are lighter for the first 5 weeks and heavier afterwards).

EVALUATION:

Class Participation and Write-ups:      25%

Examinations:                                     75%

Midterm:                      35%

Final:                            40%

GRADING SCALE:

Final course (letter) grades will be assigned using the new plus/minus grading system adopted by the University.  Also, numerical grades for all course components will be expressed in a 4.0 scale.  The equivalence between numerical and letter grades will roughly follow the same scale used by the University to award academic honor points.  Specifically, the grading scale for this course will be as follows:

                                    3.6 – 4.0   =  A

                                    3.4 – 3.5   =  A-

                                    3.1 – 3.3   =  B+

                                    2.7 – 3.0   =  B

                                    2.4 – 2.6   =  B-

                                    2.1 – 2.3   =  C+

                                    1.7 – 2.0   =  C

1.4 – 1.6   =  C-

1.1 – 1.3   =  D+

0.7 – 1.0   =  D

                                    0.0 – 0.6   =  F

PARTICIPATION:

Participation in class discussions is instrumental to one of the four learning objectives of the course.  Also, the active participation format of the class provides incentives for you to be prepared for each and every class.  Steady work over the length of the semester will prove the most important factor in your ultimate degree of success in the course.  Correspondingly, participation is an important component of your overall course grade.  You should be ready and try to participate every single class.

Participation points are awarded each session.  I will jot down participation during the class session itself, with the help of a seating chart.  I will also review my record right after each class, while memory is still fresh, and make any necessary corrections.  I am counting on your help as well to make sure that I keep an accurate record.  You are invited to check the participation record with me after every class; and are encouraged to do so if ever you suspect that your contribution may have been overlooked by mistake.

Credit for participation will be earned as follows:

(-1) Unprepared student.  Students are expected to be prepared for class.  This is an absolute requirement, not a source of credit.  If called upon and found unprepared, a point will be subtracted from your participation record. 

        Also, students’ personal case analysis notes (to be prepared and brought to the case discussion session) may be collected for the professor’s review at any time; or short exercises be assigned in class at the professor’s discretion.  Evaluation of these will also be reflected in the form of preparedness points (i.e., 0 or –1).

If, for some unexpected reason, you could not prepare for a one class, you should approach me at the beginning of the session and let me know about it.  I will excuse you of participation for that day and make sure not to call upon you.  I will also exempt you from any preparedness check that might take place that particular day.

(0)    No guts no glory.  You receive no points unless you contribute.

(1) Contributor.  When you contribute your thinking (either voluntarily or prompted by the professor), or pose interesting questions, you get one point for the session.

      To encourage broad participation, students don’t receive multiple points for multiple contributions during a single session.  You can only gain one point per session.

REMEMBER:  You don’t need to be “right” to get participation points.  First of all there is typically more than one reasonable alternative solution to managerial problems, so that the very idea of a “right” solution is often an oxymoron in the context of this course.  Second, a bold idea, or a somewhat faulty argument, often make most valuable contributions to our discussion:  The former may open a new line of thought and argument, while the latter gives us something to work with and may trigger a clarifying an enriching debate.  So, just come to class prepared and share your best thinking with us!

Your final participation score at the end of the semester will be the sum of your participation points in all sessions.  A student must be prepared and be an active and persistent contributor to get a good participation grade.  We will meet for a total of 27 class sessions this term (not counting today’s).  The opportunity to contribute is unequal, depending on the session (theory versus case).  Given the size of our group, I will consider a score above 16 to represent outstanding participation.  Thus, I envision the correspondence between participation points and letter grades as follows:

WRITE-UPS:

            There is a required write-up for the “Cadbury-Schweppes” case, which is due on Tuesday, October 25.  See page 12 of this syllabus for details.  Furthermore, there will be an opportunity to turn-in three additional case write-ups for extra-credit.  Materials subject to this opportunity are extension cases (i.e., not part of the required materials for the course) and write-ups are optional.  For each case, discussion questions are provided which constitute your assignment.  For details see the detailed course schedule [pages 10 (week 4), 14 (week 11), and 16 (week 15)].

Write-ups will receive 0, 1, or 2 points.  To receive credit, write-ups must tackle and complete the required analysis.  Therefore, please make sure that you understand the assignment and that you fully execute the task(s) at hand.  Beyond that, submissions will receive either 1 or 2 points depending on “quality”.  The latter means the depth and precision of the analysis, and the judiciousness of conclusions and recommendations.

The lion’s share of your time should be spent going over case information and thinking about and analyzing the issues assigned.  When you finally reach your conclusions, you should simply report on your analysis and recommendations in a direct, brief, and persuasive manner (e.g., use bullet points!).

Your report should be written as if you were a consultant working for management.  Several implications follow:  First, you should refrain from wasteful repetition of the case’s framing and/or unnecessary case facts.  Your reader is very familiar with the firm and its industry (i.e., very familiar with the case).  Second, your reader is very busy and won’t have the time to read a very lengthy document.  Therefore, try not to be verbose, and think about the most effective way to present your ideas (may be a table?).  Finally, your reader is most interested in the bottom line of your arguments, conclusions, and final position statements (i.e., your analysis and advice on the issues brought to your attention).  Therefore, do not write about anything that is not directly pertinent to answering the assigned question(s).  In sum, your report should be focused, and your writing-style should be succinct and to the point.

Write-ups should be typed, using 1 inch margins and size 12 font.  There should be a cover page with the case title and student name on it.  After that, assigned discussion questions should be addressed, one at a time, and in the assigned order.  Number and repeat each discussion question (as it appears in your syllabus) at the top of a new page, and submit your best arguments after that.  Format is important and it also affects your grade.

EXAMINATIONS:

There will be two in-class examinations during the semester (a mid-term and a final).  Test dates are provided in the course schedule (pages 9 to 17).

LATE ASSIGNMENTS:

            Assignments may be turned in prior to the due date for full credit.  Late work without prior arrangements due to special circumstances will receive no credit.

MISSED TESTS:

            It is your responsibility to be in class at the assigned date and time for each exam (unless arrangements were made in advance for an alternative time –see Test Make-up Policy bellow).  In order to adhere to standards of professionalism and academic rigor, as well as out of fairness to students that meet course requirements, there will no make-up tests for missed exams.

The only exception to this policy might be under the rare circumstance of a last minute emergency (i.e., accident, sudden illness, etc.) –see unplanned absences bellow.

TEST MAKE-UP:

Since tests are scheduled during regular class periods or during the exam week, there should be no time conflicts with other classes.  Hence, make-up tests will be arranged only under extenuating circumstances that justify your absence.  There are two types of justified exam absences:

·          Planned absences:  If you do have an unavoidable time conflict (e.g., job interview trip, intercollegiate sports team travel), speak to me well in advance of the scheduled test date to make arrangements for an alternate time.  There will be no make-up tests provided, due to planned absences, unless arrangements are made with me at least a week in advance of the test date.  Also, no makeup test will be permitted more than one week after the regularly scheduled test date.

·          Unplanned absences:  If an unplanned circumstance (i.e., illness or medical emergency) were to occur that makes you unable to attend an exam, you (or someone on your behalf) must get in touch with me as soon as possible, via phone or e-mail (indicating a phone number where you or the contact person can be reached).  You will also need to provide a doctor’s note or other proper verification of the confining emergency.  Make-up tests will be provided only if and when your inability to physically attend the scheduled exam has been established.

The following University and/or College policies apply to all students in this course:

ACADEMIC HONESTY:

            Academic honesty and integrity are upheld as fundamental principles of scholarly conduct and are, thus, expected of students and faculty in all of their work.  Accordingly, cheating and plagiarism will be handled as severe infractions of the University’s ethical standards.

            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 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.

ENROLLMENT / OFFICIAL REGISTRATION:

Students have the 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 section.  Should you find an error in your class schedule, you have until Friday, September 9, to correct the error with your advising office.  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:

For Fall 2005, the course withdrawal deadline is Sunday, November 6, 2005.

STUDENTS WITH DISABILITIES:

University policy 3342-3-18 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 through Student Disability Services (contact 330-672-3391 or visit http://www.registrars.kent.edu/disability/  for more information on registration procedures).