BSNS 2550 - BUSINESS COMMUNICATION
Three Semester Hours, Fall 2008
Jerrald M. Fox, Ph.D., Instructor
Office: Hardacre
205 Ph:641-4361 Email:jmfox@anderson.edu
Office
hours may vary from week to week. An
appointment sign-up sheet is posted on my office door. I welcome your visits, so please come by
often to discuss this course, your future, or anything else of interest to you.
________________________________________________________________________
This course is designed to assist you in
developing the skills and confidence to communicate well in a variety of
business settings. Over the semester we
will examine the communication process, methods for dealing with communication
barriers, business etiquette and protocol, proper uses of contemporary
communications technologies, forms of business writing, and the preparation and
delivery of business presentations.
1.
To give you a clearer understanding of how important clear and
effective communication is to the success of all business activity (and all of
life!).
2. To
emphasize not only proper grammar and form when writing or speaking, but also
the critical elements of tone, style, context, and nonverbal communication.
3. To
give you opportunities to practice and improve your communication skills and to
develop your confidence as a speaker, listener, and writer.
Resources
Our primary resource will be the text Excellence
in Business Communication, 8th edition, by Thill and Bovee, 2008, Pearson
Prentice Hall.
ISBN 978-0-13-615456-3
You will also be expected to read The
Wall Street Journal regularly to help broaden your business vocabulary and
understanding of the business environment.
Additional resources will be presented and assigned during class
sessions.
1.
Attendance/Participation:
To paraphrase Woody Allen: Ten per cent of
success is due to talent and preparation; the other ninety per cent is due to
just showing up on time. I’ll argue with
his percentages, but he’s right that all of academic success comes from being
in every class, on time, prepared to discuss the topics of the day. I will take attendance and call on
students to lead class discussions. Your
final grade will be determined not only from your achievement on quizzes and
writing assignments, but also from my
subjective evaluations of your preparation and in-class
contributions. See the note below under
“Final Grading.”
2.
3.
Written
Assignments - For most sections you will also
be required to complete written exercises to practice the skills outlined in
your readings and in-class discussions.
These assignments will be made in class along with specific directions
and tips for doing them well. Note: These assignments are not included in this
syllabus. You must be in class to hear
the requirements and instructions.
4.
Oral
Presentations - Over the course of the semester
you will research, prepare, practice and deliver several speeches including a
formal business presentation. You will
also assist your classmates by giving written and oral feedback on their
presentations. Details will be given in
class.
Evaluation
and Grading
The two communication standards we will
emphasize throughout our study are clarity and effectiveness.
Clarity refers to the
level of accurate understanding achieved by the receiver of any
communication. It is audience-sensitive
and audience-focused. Clear communication
uses correct and appropriate formatting, grammar, style, and tone. A communication is clear only when it
is correctly comprehended by the receiver of the message.
Effectiveness is the
degree to which a communication accomplishes its purpose. An effective message fulfills the needs of
all concerned parties. Those needs may
include informing, persuading, forming agreements, or moving someone to take
some specific action.
All assignments will be evaluated by measuring your
fulfillment of these two criteria.
Quizzes (15 @ 4%) = 60%
Written assignments (4@5%) = 20%
Class presentations (2@10%) = 20%
* Instructor’s Evaluation +/- 5%
*Based
upon my subjective evaluations of preparation and participation as noted in requirement
1 above, I reserve the right to adjust a student's final average by up to 5% if
I believe it necessary to give an accurate final evaluation of overall
performance in this course. This will be used in unusual circumstances
only and does not mean that
all grades will be “rounded up” just because they are close to the next higher
grade.
A =
93-100% B+ = 87-89.9% C+ = 77-79.9% D = 60-69.9%
A- = 90-92.9% B = 83-86.9% C
= 73-76.9% F = below 60%
B-
= 80-82.9% C- =
70-72.9%
Tentative
Class Schedule
Date Topic Text Assignments
September
2 Intro,
materials Personal
Info Sheets
Interpersonal Communication
4-11 Oral
Presentations Ch 14 Notes for quiz
Brief
class presentations
16-18 Bus
Comm and Success Ch 1 Notes for quiz
23-25 Teams
& Nonverbal Ch 2
30 Intercultural
Issues Ch 3
October
2 Intercultural
Issues Ch 3
The Business Writing Process
7 Planning
to Write Ch 4
9 Writing
Ch 5
14 Completing
the Process Ch 6
Writing for Specific Purposes
16 E-writing Ch 7
21 Routine
and Positives Ch 8
Date Topic Text Assignments
October
23 Negative
Messages Ch 9
Reporting and Presentations
28 Persuasion Ch
10
30 Report
Planning Ch 11
November
4 Reports
and Proposals Ch 12 & 13
6 CBFA
– Hosting Major Events
11 Online
Research Meet in
Library Lab
Communicating to Get Hired and Get
Ahead
13 Career
Planning Ch 14
18 Job
Interviews Ch
15
20 Getting
Hired! Special
Guests
25 Final
Presentations
26-30 THANKSGIVING BREAK
December
2 Final
Presentations
4 Final
Presentations
9 Final
Presentations
11 Final
Presentations
13 Final
Presentations
Finals
Week
17 Business
Etiquette Brunch/Course Closing
Wednesday,
11:40 a.m. at