GBUS 600
Analysis of Contemporary Organizations
SUBJECT TO CHANGE!
Time and Place:
Tuesdays 7:00 to 9:45 p.m. BB 4117 and ALL DAY Saturday, February 7 and February 21..
Instructors: This class is team taught by
Office E-mail Phone
Richard W. Moore, JH 4205 818-677-2416
Professor of Managmeent
William W. Roberts JH 4248 818-677-4582
Professor of Economics (email communication preferred)
Course web site: http://www.csun.edu/~vcoao081
Additional information may be posted at: http://www.csun.edu/~hceco009
Grades are posted at: http://webteach.csun.edu
Course Description
GBUS 600 is an interdisciplinary course that introduces new graduate students to the field of business. The course focuses on the nature of organizations and the interrelatedness of the functional areas of business. The intellectual and historic roots of management theories are explored through readings of primary source materials. Students will develop communication and research skills through individual and group projects that focus on organizations and their environment.
Learning Objectives:
By participating in this course students will:
1. Understand the intellectual strandards of the MBA program.
2. Develop a basic understanding of business strategy at the industry and company level.
3. Understand how the different functional areas of business work together to achieve success.
4. Write effectively in a business context.
5. Make effectrive presenatations in a busisness context.
6. Develop research skills needed to succeed in the MBA program.
7. Develop the skills to work successfully in teams.
The Approach
The course uses a variety of methods to achieve its learning objectives. Lecture will be held to a minimum. The focus will be a experiential learning through: business simulations, team projects and presentations, and individual work.
Expectations
A purpose of this class is to orient students to the expectations of graduate education. With that in mind you should pay careful attention to the expectations described here.
· Classes will begin promptly. Students should arrive prepared to discuss the assigned readings.
· All papers are due at the beginning of class on the due date. Emailed papers will be accepted, if they arrive before the start of class.
· Students and faculty will treat each other in a collegial manner at all times.
· Working cooperatively in teams is an important part of the MBA curriculum and a skill on which students will be evaluated.
· Students must attend both Saturday sessions to pass the class.
· Plus/minus grading will be used.
· All students should be familiar with the COBAE standards regarding academic honesty found at: http://www.csun.edu/busecon/students.
Readings:
Abelli, Heidi, Mountain Man Brewing Co.: Bringing the Brand to Light, Harvard Business School Press, Reprint 2069.
Thompson, Arthur A., Stappenbeck, Gregory S., & Reidenback, Mark A., The Business Strategy Game, Competing in a Global Market Place, http://www.bsg-online.com/ 2008 edition. (You need to wait until teams are assigned to subscribe.)
Anand, V., Ashforth, B.E. & Joshi, Machendra (2005). Business as usual: the acceptance and perpetuation of corruption in organizations. The Academy of Management Executive, Vol 19, n.4, p9-23.
Piper, Thomas K. Assessing a firm’s financial health, Havard Business School Press, reprint 201077.
Hirsh, S.K. & Kummerow, J.M. (1998). Introduction to type in organizations. Palo Alto, CA: Consulting Psychologists Press, Inc.
Natemeyer, W. E. & McMahon, J.T. (2001). Classics of organizational behavior, Third Edition. Long Grove, IL: Waveland Press, Inc.
Porter, M. E. (2008). The five competitive forces that shape strategy. Harvard Business Review. Reprint R0801E
Smith. A. (2001) The Wealth of Nations. http://www.gutenberg.org/etext/3300 Note this reading will be provided to you, but if you would like to read more of the Wealth of Nations it is available free at this website.
Tufte, E.R (2008)
PowerPoint Does Rocket Science--and Better Techniques for Technical Reports
http://www.edwardtufte.com/bboard/q-and-a-fetch-msg?msg_id=0001yB&topic_id=1
Corrupt Techniques in Evidence Presentations
http://www.edwardtufte.com/bboard/q-and-a-fetch-msg?msg_id=0001et&topic_id=1
Lousy PowerPoint presentations: The fault of PP users?
http://www.edwardtufte.com/bboard/q-and-a-fetch-msg?msg_id=0002PP&topic_id=1
A number of the above articles are from the Harvard Business Review.
Click on the link below to order the Harvard Business Review course materials.
http://harvardbusinessonline.hbsp.harvard.edu/relay.jhtml?name=cp&c=c27848
Wall Street Journal Daily (We will have a student rate subscription form available at the first class meeting.)
Recommended For Help With Writing and Referencing
Lanham, R. A. (1992). Revising business prose (3rd ed.). New York: Macmillan Publishing Company. ISBN 0023674652.
Publication manual of the American Psychological Association (5th ed.). (2001). Washington, D.C.: American Psychological Association. ISBN 1557982414.
Available online
The Writing Lab at Purdue University. The OWL at Purdue: Free Writing Help and Teaching Resources (online). Available: http://owl.english.purdue.edu/owl/
American Psychological Association. 2003. Electronic reference formats recommended by the American Psychological Association (online). Available: http://www.apastyle.org/elecref.html .
The Writing Center at the University of Wisconsin, Madison. (2006) Writer’s Handbook (online). Available: http://www.wisc.edu/writing/Handbook/ (Aug. 28, 2006) .
Profcomm at the University of Arizona provide a good resource for formatting you industry and company reports, except your report should be double spaced.
http://www.ic.arizona.edu/~profcomm/writing/samples/report_samp.htm
Assignments
All assignments must be completed on time to pass the course. More information about many assignments is available on the website.
· List server sign-up- Required Not Graded- Individual
Subscribe to the graduate list server. To do this, send an email to message will read: subscribe csunmba-l (note: the last figure is a lower case “L,” not the number 1. I know it’s ridiculously confusing. It wasn’t my idea.) The Graduate Office limits the messages they send to those they consider important. Please do not send messages to this list. If you need a message to go to all MBA students, please contact the Graduate Office for assistance.
· MBTI - Self Assessment- Required Not Graded- Individual
Complete the MBTI instrument and bring it to class with the booklet.
· Wall Street Journal Assignment – Graded- Individual (5%)
Most classes will begin with a discussion of the weeks business related events as reported in the WSJ. All students should be prepared to discuss the week’s events as written up in the WSJ. Each student will have an opportunity to lead one discussion as part of a panel. The panel should choose no more than three events covered during the previous week, which the group believes are most important to business people, to discuss with the class. The panel will begin by reviewing the events briefly then, engaging the class in a dialogue about the events their implications for business. In addition in the week the student leads the discussion, he or she will choose recent business news which affects either their current company or the industry their team is studying. The student will write a two page analysis of the events identifying the key implications for their company or industry. The report will be in memo form. Hard copy in class and electronic copy sent to http://www.turnitin.com .
· Power Point Assignment – Required - Individual
Complete the tutorial on-line: Effective Use of Power Point On-line tutorial
http://www.baruch.cuny.edu/dml/engine.php?action=viewAsset&mediaIndex=432
Send an email to Richard Moore (richard.moore@csun,edu) describing three things you learned about effective Power Point presentations you didn’t know before.
· Strategy Simulation- Graded- Team (15%)
Grade distribution:
Performance 50%
3-year plan 25%
Reflection piece 25%
As part of your grade you will submit a 2 page reflection piece on your team’s activities. This piece will include a description of how your strategy evolved, the process used to create this strategy, and a discussion of how decisions were made. In addition, this reflection piece will include a discussion of team lessons learned from this activity. NOTE: This is an essay, not a series of bullet points.
Financial Analysis: Individual Graded (7.5%)
Using data available from Mergent you will submit a 1-2 page analysis of a company’s current financial position and its future financial prospects.
Hard copy in class and electronic version to www.turnitin.com.
· Management Paper - Graded Individual (7.5%)
Each individual will take one of the required readings from the management classics and analyze it by answering the following questions: (1) How does this reading contribute to the larger stream of management thinking, (2) How are this author’s ideas the same as or different from previous or contemporary management thinkers (need references to at least two other articles from the book), (3) What is the value or lack of value of this article for managers today. Maximum length 3 double spaced pages.
· Industry Report Outline – Required Ungraded
To make sure you are headed for success each team needs to turn in a report outline. The outline should include:
o A complete final industry definition.
o Exemplar companies from the industry
o Five forces analysis in outline form
o PEST Analysis in outline form
o Key competitive strategies used by companies
o List of references used to-date
· Industry Analysis Paper- Graded Team (20%)
You have been hired by a large investor to evaluate an industry to see if it is a good target for a long term investment. You need to analyze the current and future state of the industry with the tools you have gained in class. In teams, students will use Porter’s model of industry analysis and a PEST survey to analyze an industry of their choice using the best publically available data from primary and secondary sources. Maximum length is 15 double spaced pages, not counting tables and figures. In the conclusion you need to make a recommendation about whether or not this industry is going to be a good investment opportunity in the long run and why or why not. After teams choose an industry, they must “pitch” their proposal to one of the faculty members.
Our business librarian’s home page will link you to a rich set of resources from which to begin you analysis: http://library.csun.edu/kbanderson/ .
· Industry Analysis Presentation – Graded Team (10%)
Each team will present the results of its industry analysis to the class in a professional panel presentation, with supporting visual aids. Presentations will be 30-40 minutes including a question session. Dress should be appropriate for the presentation.
· Company Paper- Graded Individual (20%)
You have been hired to evaluate the investment potential of a particular company in the industry your team studied. The analysis will use with the best publically available data from primary and secondary sources and must include at least one interview with a manager in the company. It may be a phone interview but face to face is preferred. In the analysis you should evaluate the company’s position within the industry, and evaluate its current position through a SWOT and PEST analysis. Evaluate the companies current strategies and make recommendation on whether or not your client should invest. You must choose a company for which you can access a basic balance sheet. Any company included in the Mergent database would be adequate. Maximum length is 5 pages, not counting tables, charts, and appendices.
· Class Contribution/ Peer Assessment- Graded Individual (15%)
You make this class a success through your participation. It is through engaging with the course material, the instructors and other students that you learn and contribute to the learning of others. Class contribution will be evaluated on a class-by-class basis and points will be posted on the course WebCT site (http://webteach.csun.edu). In addition your team members will evaluate your contribution to the group and that will be factored onto your participation grade.
The instructors will assign a class participation grade based on the following criteria:
A to A- Exceeds expectations, student is always well prepared, raises relevant issues and points, is respectful of other students, encourages others to participate, plays a leadership role in his or her team and in the class as a whole.
B to B+ Meets expectations, student is always prepared, makes relevant responses to questions raised, is respectful of other students and is an effective team member.
B- or Less Does not meet expectations, is not always prepared, sometimes can not make a relevant response to questions, is not respectful of other students, discourages others participation, is not an effective team member.
Each team will set team member expectations for its members. Members will evaluate each other performance based on those expectations. Faculty will weigh these peer evaluations in assigning a grade for you contributions to the class.
· Grades and information regarding this course will be posted on the course website:
http://www.csun.edu/~vcoao081
and
http://webteach.csun.edu
Access to the later (which will post your grades) is through the use of your CSUN email address and associated password. The webCT site gives your grades ONLY, along with statistics regarding the class.
· Directions for Submitting Assignments
ALL written assignments will be submitted in both hard and electronic format.
Electronic versions of all papers will be submitted to www.turnitin.com . This is an electroinc site, estabilshed for this course, to assess your unique contributions.
This site is: http://www.turnitin.com
The course is GBUS 600 Spring 2009.
The course id is: 2564144.
Password: bill
This is ONE submission per team or one for each individual submission. Additional infromation will be given in class.
GBUS 600 Tentative Course Outline
1/20 / Course introduction
Individual Introductions
Bafa Bafa Exercise
Course Overview
WSJ Assignment Dates Made / Collect Cards with personal info from students
1/27 / Working in Teams and MBTI Workshop
Read: Hirsh, S.K. & Kummerow, J.M(after completing instrument) and from Natemeyer & McMahon, Maier p. 153-161 and Tuckman & Jensen p. 241-248
Students assigned to strategy Simulation Teams
Strategy Introduction
Practice round assigned. / Complete and Score MBTI based on your behavior at work. Bring to class.
Sign up for Graduate list-serve.
2/3 / Strategy Introduction (Cont)
Introduction to Simulations
Read: Porter, Collis and Rukstad
Simulation Practice Round debrief and first round assigned. / Teams bring lap tops
2/7
9:00 – 5:00 / Saturday
Morning: BSG Simulation rounds.
Afternoon: Introduction to Industry Analysis
How to research in the Library
How To Do Financial Analysis with Mergent Data
Read: Assessing a Firm’s Future Financial Health / Teams bring laptops
2/10 / WSJ Presentations
Form Industry Analysis teams
Porter Industry Analysis
During this period, 2-3 BSG rounds will be completed. / Email Industry requests by Sunday
2/17 / WSJ Presentations
Industries Assigned / Schedule Industry Pitch with Professor
2/21
9:00 to 5:00 / Saturday
Morning: Debrief on Team Behavior and Effectiveness
Debrief on Strategy Choices
Afternoon
Ethics
Film Case: The Smartest Guys in the Room / Teams bring laptops.
Complete BSG.
Read: Anand, Ashforth & Joshi
2/24 / No Class Teams Meet
Professors Available by Appointment
3/3 / WSJ Presentations
Effective Business Writing
Para Medic Methods Workshop
APA Referencing / Simulation Reflection Papers
3/10 / WSJ Presentations
History of Management Thought
Review Industry Report Outline
Read: Smith provided, Roethlisberger 29-40, McGregor 41- 49, McClelland 73-80, Herzberg 81-95, Kerr 113-128, French & Raven 253-267, Weber 351-357, Peters & Waterman 464-467, Senge 468-472. / Complete Industry Pitches
Due One Page Financial Analysis Assignment Due
3/17 / No Class Teams Meet
Professors Available by Appointment
3/24 / WSJ Presentations
SWOT and PEST Analysis / Management Paper Due
Read: Mountain Man Brewing Co.:
3/31 / WSJ Presentation
Effective Presentations
Read: Tufte
Visual Display of Data / Complete Powerpoint Tutorial
4/7 / Spring Break
4/14 / WSJ Presentations
Presentation Planning
Report Workshop / Industry Report Outline Due
4/21 / No Class Teams Meet
Professors available by appointment
4/28 / WSJ Presentations
Team Presentations / Industry Papers Due
5/5 / WSJ Presentations
Team Presentations / Company papers due
5/12 / Course Debrief and
Wrap-up and Party / Peer evaluations due
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