BU.152.735.XX- Strategy Consulting Practicum - Instructor - Page 1 of 13

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Strategy Consulting Practicum

2 Credits
BU.152.735.XX
[NOTE: Each section must have a separate syllabus.]
[Day &Time / ex: Monday, 6pm-9pm]
[Start & End Dates / ex: 3/24/17–5/12/17]
[Semester / ex: Spring 2017]
[Location / ex: Washington, DC]

Instructor

[Full Name]

Contact Information

[Email Address]

[Phone Number, ###- ###-#### (Optional)]

Office Hours

[Please specify the day and time of the 2 hours that will be dedicated to office hours each week. For evening classes, faculty may wish to hold their office hours by phone or email. While faculty are permitted to state “and by appointment,” office hours should not be held exclusively by appointment.]

Required Text(s)Learning Materials

Block, P. (2011). Flawless consulting: A guide to getting your expertise used(3rded.). Wiley. ISBN-978-0-470-62074-8.

Prahalad, C.K., & Krishnan, M.S. (2008).The new age of innovation. McGraw-Hill. ISBN-978-0-07-159828-6.

Articles (available via eReserves)

Bazerman, M. H. & Chugh, D. (2006). Decisions without blinders. Harvard Business Review, 84(1), 88–97.

Drucker, P. F. (1994). The theory of the business. Harvard Business Review, 72(5), 95–104.

Hamel, G. (1996). Strategy as revolution. Harvard Business Review, 74(4), 69–82.

Kaplan, R.S., Norton, D.P. (1996). Using the balanced scorecard as a strategic management system.Harvard Business Review, Jan.–Feb. pp. 75–85.

Mankins, M.C., Steel, R. (2005). Turning great strategy into great performance.Harvard Business Review, July–Aug. pp. 65–72.

Porter, M. E. (1996). What is strategy? Harvard Business Review, 74(6), 61–78.

Porter, M. E. (2008). The five competitive forces that shape strategy. Harvard Business Review, 86(1), 78–93.

Prahalad, C. K., & Hamel, G. (1990). The core competence of the corporation. Harvard Business Review, 68(3), 79–91.

Recommended Readings

Christensen, C.M. (2003).The innovator’s dilemma. Harper Business.

Hamel, G.,Prahalad, C.K. (1996). Competing for the future.

Harvard Business Essentials:Strategy.Harvard Business School Press, 2005.

Mullins, J. (2010).The new business road test (3rd ed.). FT Prentice Hall.ISBN-10:027373279X| ISBN-13:978-0273732792

Nassim, N.T. (2007).The black swan.Random House.

Nassim,N.T. (2001).Fooled by randomness:The Hidden role of chance in the markets and in life.Texere.

Sun Tzu.The art of war.Various publishers and editions.

Course Description & Overview

This course is concerned with the formulation and analysis and practical application of business strategy. Business strategy is the set of objectives and policies that collectively determine how a business creates value for stakeholders. Strategy is concerned with answering two central questions: "What businesses should we participate in?" and "How should we compete?" Students will learn analytical techniques for diagnosing the competitive position of a business, evaluatestrategies, and identify and analyze strategic options.

Students integrate and apply previous course work to strategic challenges addressed by organizational leaders. Analytic, integrative, and decision-making skills arealso developed as student teams confront these strategic challenges. Creativity and innovation are critical to achieve success; as to follow often-traveled strategic paths is unlikely to result in superior performance. Students are challenged to use both critical and creative thinking as they perform analyses and provide strategic recommendations to their clients.

Prerequisite(s)

Completion of 24 Credits.

Learning Objectives

By the end of this course, students will:

  1. Size up, quickly and accurately, complex and unstructured situations by identifying the core problems and issues.
  2. Analyze quantitative and descriptive data to identify strategies that are appropriate to each situation; evaluate alternatives; and recommend specific courses of action for creative solutions to problems/issues.
  3. Link theory and practice, and develop an understanding of when and how to use what "tools" in particular problem-solving situations.
  4. Sharpen analytical skills acquired in functional areas.
  5. Learn about strategy concepts, synthesized and integrated, in a pragmatic context.
  6. Present recommendations in a concise, framework-driven, and convincing manner with the appropriate research and arguments.

To view the complete list of Carey Business School’s general learning goals and objectives, visit the Carey website.

Attendance
Attendance and participation are part of your course grade.Participants are expected to attend all scheduled class sessions.Each class will include opportunities for teams to work together.Failure to attend class will result in an inability to achieve the objectives of the course.Excessive absence will result in loss of points for team participation.Full attendance and active participation are required for you to succeed in this course.

Assignments& Rubrics

Each component of the class requirement will be graded according to the following distribution:

Assignment / Weight
Personal Strategy Brief / 10%
Attendance and individual contributions to learning / 15%
Strategy Consulting Project (adjusted by a peer evaluation at the end of the project) / 40%
Contribution-to-Team Assessment (CTA) / 15%
Documentation of Learning (DOL) / 20%

Weekly Learning Updates

Each week you are to post something that you learned in each of three areas: 1) something that you learned about the client organization or industry, 2) something you learned about working on the project, and 3) something you learned in general.These postings in the learning updates forum on the Blackboard discussion board are due by midnight on the class date and may be in the form of bulleted lists.

Personal Strategy Brief

This initial individual assignment requires that you demonstrate an assessment of your personal strategic ability developed through your professional and academic experiences. You should also include a statement of personal vision for your career goals and current strategy for reaching those goals. This brief should be between 500 and 1,000 words in length. All written submissions should follow the following format: Arial, 11-point font, single-spaced (one space between paragraphs), block left justified (no indented first line and not right justified); use this syllabus as a format model.

Contribution-to-Team Assessment (CTA)

You will evaluate the quality and quantity of individual performance toward the team project deliverables.This will be performed by providing substantive “feed-forward” comments regarding 1) the strengths exhibited by each team member and 2) specific suggestions that could help each member to improve their performance on the next team.You will also spread 100 points among the team members based on the quality and quantity of their contribution to the team deliverables. Your ability to perform on this assignment and to provide substantive feedback and feed-forward is a graded component of this class.

Documentation of Learning (DOL)

The Documentation of Learning (DOL) is a final individual report that offers both substance and reflection regarding 1) what has been learned, 2) how it was learned, and 3) how you will apply this learning in the future. Keeping a journal or process notes during the course is advised.The DOL is to be submitted to the assignment page.There is no word limitation on this assignment, but you should use the format established as the standard on previous assignments in this course.

Rubric for Personal Strategy Brief

Assessment
Criteria / Not Good Enough
(0 score <6) / Good
(6 score <9) / Very Good
(9 score 10)
Previous experience /
  • The examples listed are not based on personal experience;
  • The examples listed are not clearly stated.
/
  • The examples listed are based on personal experience;
  • The examples listed are clearly stated.
/
  • The examples listed are clearly based on personal experience and elaborated explicitly;
  • The top examples are elaborated explicitly.

Personal Vision /
  • No vision is stated.
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  • Personal vision is stated.
/
  • Personal vision is explicit and clearly described;
  • Personal vision description is exemplary.

Career goals /
  • No career goals are stated.
/
  • Career goals are stated.
/
  • Career goals are explicitly stated and written in exemplary detail.

Current strategy /
  • No current strategy is provided.
/
  • Current strategy is provided.
/
  • Current strategy is explicit and exemplary.

Rubric for Presentation to Client

Assessment
Criteria / Not Good Enough
(0 score <6) / Good
(6 score <9) / Very Good
(9 score 10)
Content /
  • Does not address key text elements.
  • Does not provide clear overview.
/
  • Addresses key text elements.
  • Provides clear overview.
/
  • Extraordinary treatment of text elements using a creative approach.

Visuals /
  • Poor use of visuals (sub-optimal font, poor use of graphics, poor color choice).
/
  • Good use of visuals (optimal font, good use of graphics, good color choice).
/
  • Excellent use of visuals (super font, excellent use of graphics, excellent color choice – vivid and clear).

Verbal presentation style /
  • Unclear verbal presentation.
  • Disorganized structure.
  • Poor use of tone, volume, articulation, gestures, eye contact.
/
  • Clear verbal presentation.
  • Organized structure.
  • Good use of tone, volume, articulation, gestures, eye contact.
/
  • Exemplary verbal presentation.
  • Super-organized structure.
  • Exemplary use of tone, volume, articulation, gestures, eye contact.

Timeliness /
  • Well under or beyond the time constraint.
/
  • Slightly below or beyond time constraints.
/
  • Met the time constraints.

Rubric for Client Report

Assessment
Criteria / Not Good Enough
(0 score <6) / Good
(6 score <9) / Very Good
(9 score 10)
Definition & orientation /
  • No statement of purpose.
  • Missing or incorrect definition.
  • Irrelevant evidence used.
  • Minimal or no relevant research indicated.
/
  • Topic is only generally defined.
  • Definition is correct but basic.
  • Supporting evidence is used.
  • Good discovery research indicated.
/
  • Topic is clearly defined, focused, and supported.
  • Exceptional use of evidence and supporting details.
  • Extraordinary research analysis demonstrated.

Organization /
  • Report is disorganized with weak or missing introduction, conclusion, and summary.
  • Paragraphs and/or sentences are disjointed.
/
  • Report is clearly organized
  • Good use of sub-headings.
  • Solid inclusion of introduction, conclusion, and summary.
  • Paragraphs and sentences are appropriately integrated.
/
  • Excellent organization throughout.
  • Exemplary use of topic sub-headings.
  • Extremely clear and integrated paragraphs and sentences.

Style and grammar /
  • Numerous and consistent errors of spelling, usage, and punctuation.
  • Many typographical and/or grammatical errors.
/
  • Competent expression throughout.
  • Relatively clean from typographical and/or grammatical errors.
/
  • Composition is clear and easily digested.
  • Little or no typographical/grammatical errors.
  • Composition is a pleasure to read.

Format /
  • Does not meet format requirements.
/
  • Meets format requirements.
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  • Meets format requirements and employs innovative approach to composition.

Grading

Effective Fall 2017: The grade of A is reserved for those who demonstrate extraordinarily excellent performance as determined by the instructor. The grade of A- is awarded only for excellent performance. The grades of B+, B, and B- are awarded for good performance. The grades of C+, C, and C- are awarded for adequate but substandard performance.The grades of D+, D, and D- are not awarded at the graduate level (undergraduate only). The grade of F indicates the student’s failure to satisfactorily complete the course work.

Please note that for Core and Foundation courses, a maximum of 25% of students may be awarded an A or A-; the grade point average of the class should not exceed 3.3. For Elective courses, a maximum of 35% of students may be awarded an A or A-; the grade point average of the class should not exceed 3.4. (For classes with 15 students or fewer, the class GPA cap is waived.)

Tentative Course Calendar

The instructor reserves the right to alter course content or adjust the pace to accommodate class progress. We will adopt the latest edition of the textbook, so the chapter information might not be the same. The classroom instructors will make the adjustment to match the original reading assignments.

Week / Content / Readings / Homework Due
1 / Introduction
What is Strategy?
Strategic Thinking vs. Strategic Planning
Initial Client Visit
Logistics, team formation, and assignment of consulting project
Discussion of class requirements and performance standards / Chapter 19 Block (B)
Hamel (1996)
Porter (1996) / Personal Introduction on Blackboard Discussion Board
NDA signed (in class)
Weekly Learning Update
2 / The Transformation of Business / Overview: Ch 1–3 Block (B) 1
Contracting: Ch 4–6 (B) 2
Discovery: Ch10–13 (B) 3
Feedback: Ch 14–15 (B) 4
Resistance: Ch7–9 (B) 1
Implementation: Ch 16–17 (B) 2
Chapter 1Prahalad & Krishnan (P&K) 3
Drucker (1994) 4
Porter (2008)
Research on Client Project / Personal Strategy Brief
Weekly Learning Update
Team-Led Topic Discussions
3 / Business Processes: The Enablers of Innovation
Analytics: Insights for Innovation
Client Call/Visit / Chapters2–3 P&K
Prahalad & Hamel (1990) / Client Project Work
Weekly Learning Update
Readings Insights Post
4 / IT Matters:Technical Architecture for Innovation
Organizational Legacies:Impediments to Value Creation
Dynamic Reconfiguration of Talent / Chapters 4–6 P&K
Porter (2008) / Client Project Work
Weekly Learning Update
Readings Insights Post
5 / Developing Strategic Insights
Client Call/Visit / Kaplan & Norton (1996) / Client Project Work
Weekly Learning Update
Readings Insights Post
6 / Finalizing Strategic Recommendations / Mankins & Steel (2005) / Client Project Work
Weekly Learning Update
Readings Insights Post
7 / Final Client Conversation / Client Brief / Client Brief Due [Date]
Weekly Learning Update
8 / Project Debrief Activities / CTA Due [Date]
DOL

BU.152.735.XX- Strategy Consulting Practicum - Instructor - Page 1 of 13

Strategy Consulting Practicum Overview

Approach to Learning

The Strategy Consulting Practicum is based on the management education approaches of action learning, inquiry-based learning, whole person learning, and project-based learning. The idea is simple: Instead of providing lectures or reading material to cover well-defined content, students confront genuine, holistic, interdisciplinary problems. Course content is blended into the project activities on an as needed basis as the student teams address the client challenges. To fully address the client challenges, students perform research to discover necessary information, ask critical questions, and develop new ideas.

The course encompasses the following steps:

  • Constructing teams
  • Providing a project charge
  • Definition of ground rules to guide the team work
  • Identification of learning outcomes (what you need to know as a business leader)
  • Identification of learning issues (what you will need to know specific to the project charge)
  • Definition of an action plan
  • Working on the solution
  • Presentation of the solution
  • After action review (AAR) by the team
  • Reflection on your learning (journal and DOL)

The order of these steps is prototypical and may vary in action.

The nature of an action learning project holds several implications for you:

  • You may be confronted with problems outside your range of expertise.
  • You may be pushed out of your comfort zone and challenged to apply your learning in new ways.
  • Successful performance on the project and successful learning from the experience is not necessarily a one-to-one correlation.

Learning Outcomes

By the completion of this project you should be able to ….

  1. Use appropriate business tools to solve business problems
  • apply analytical tools of marketing, accounting/finance, information systems, human resources, economics, management, operations, and ethical leadership
  • use systemic principles, concepts, and tools
  • use business software tools
  1. Perform basic business research using primary and secondary sources
  • assess the strength of a company
  • perform an analysis of an industry
  1. Demonstrate capacity to serve as a consultant
  • establish relationships with clients
  • define a contract and conduct diagnosis
  • manage stakeholders
  • communicate and present in a professional manner
  1. Demonstrate proficiency with project management
  • develop a project action plan
  • coordinate and monitor the ongoing process
  • evaluate the project work
  • use appropriate software
  1. Communicate and collaborate effectively across a global environment
  • manage the team development process and group dynamics
  • manage different approaches and work styles
  • manage conflict situations
  • use the potential of intercultural diversity in the group
  • evaluate team and individual performance
  • use internet-based tools to collaborate over distances
  • manage challenges specific to virtual team work
  1. Exhibit confidence and self-competence
  • comprehend your personal strengths and weaknesses
  • manage ambiguity and unknown problems
  • plan, direct, and evaluate your own learning process

Establish personal learning outcomes
You are encouraged to define additional learning outcomes that you will target during this course.

Negotiating the Project Charge with the Client

All team consulting projects will be vetted by the Carey faculty. The information provided to potential clients is summarized in a document which will be made available to you. In general, the project charges have been defined between client representatives and Carey faculty before they have been assigned to the teams. This does not mean that you cannot specify or renegotiate the project charge with your client. You will continue to dialogue to discover what your client wants—or needs!

Faculty

Role of faculty

The role of the faculty in this course is to:

  • design and organize the course
  • develop and sustain a “presence” with the client
  • aid and guide teams if needed
  • conduct the debrief; facilitate the reflective process
  • monitor progress toward student achievement of learning outcomes

The role of faculty is not to:

  • research information for the students
  • systematically “cover content” via lectures or learning materials
  • tell the student teams how to do their job

Faculty liaison role

If you have questions or need help, ask yourself:

  • Can a member of your team help you or answer your question?
  • Can a member of another team help you or answer your question?

If neither is the case, contact your faculty liaison. In case your team experiences internal conflict that you believe you cannot solve yourself, please also contact faculty. In general, faculty will not intervene unless being asked for support.