BSNS
2710 PRINCIPLES OF MANAGEMENT
Three Semester Hours, Spring 2007
Section 02 (Call#1633), MWF 8 a.m., Hardacre
232
Jerrald M. Fox, Ph.D., Instructor
Office: Hardacre 205 Ph:641-4361 E-mail: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 come by often to discuss this course, your future, or anything else of interest to you.
Course Description
This is an introductory course in management theory and practice. Areas of study will include: the historic development of management thought; decision making; the management functions of planning, organizing, leading, and controlling; and the skills demanded of contemporary managers. An international context and consideration of ethical issues in managing people and resources will be emphasized throughout the study.
Required Text
Robbins, Stephen P. and David A. DeCenzo, Fundamentals of Management, 5ed., Pearson Prentice Hall, 2005
Current
The Wall Street Journal, Business Week, Forbes, Fast Company, Internet sources
Objectives of the Course
1. To acquaint you with the challenges and opportunities you’ll face when managing your own life, the time and skills of other people, and the resources of an organization.
2. To assist you in developing an informed personal philosophy of management and the ability to articulate it to others.
3. To help you develop and then practice using a diverse toolbox of managerial skills.
4. To consider the implications of contemporary management theory and practice from a perspective of biblical faith in Jesus Christ as creator, sustainer, and judge of life. To then examine Christ’s mandate that His followers live as “salt” and “light” in the world.
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. If he’s right, all academic success comes from being in class, on time, prepared to discuss the topics of the day. To help you succeed I will regularly take attendance and call on you to lead class discussions. Your final grade will be determined not only from your achievement on objective exams, but also from my subjective evaluations of your preparation and your contributions to the learning environment of our class.
2.
3.Quizzes, etc.: Over the course of the semester we will have a number of graded assignments. These may take the form of projects done outside of class, quizzes over the terminology and concepts introduced in reading assignments, or in-class exercises. As noted above, you may use your notebook for any in-class assignments. There will be no make-ups for missed assignments, but the lowest two quiz scores will be dropped in final grading calculations.
4.Exams: There will be six unit exams given over the semester. Your text, class lectures and discussions, videos, guest speakers, and assigned supplementary readings are all sources that may be covered on exams. Dates for exams are noted on the class schedule at the end of this syllabus.
5.Organization Analysis Project: This project may be completed alone or, if you prefer, in a group of no more than three persons from our class. Your assignment is to do an in-depth study of the operating environment and managerial practices of an organization which you admire and might want to work for. You should, then, choose your organization carefully and plan to impress the firm’s managers with your skills in research, analysis and communication.
Your research should include several well-structured interviews of managers, employees, and perhaps even customers. These interviews and other research should be completed over the entire semester. We will discuss topics and research methods each week in class.
Think about it. Managers that you hope to impress will only be impressed if you call early to make an appointment, show up on time, dress professionally, and speak maturely. You should have an interview sheet prepared with the questions you need to ask and space available to briefly write your notes.
The best project reports (those wishing to earn an A, take note) will also include library research of the industry trends, challenges and opportunities for your organization. Ask the reference librarians to help you find resources. Search the internet. Think broadly and creatively. Make this project a central part of your professional portfolio that you will be proud to show to potential employers in the future.
Anytime before the beginning of class Friday April 20, 2007, you may submit your project report. It must be in the following format:
Cover Page:
Overview of the Management Practices of (name of
organization studied)
Prepared for Dr. Jerrald M. Fox
Principles of Management Course
Falls
A Study Conducted by (names of members of your
group)
Submitted April 20, 2007
Section I. General description of the enterprise and its environment. Discuss the organization’s legal name, its form of ownership, its management and reporting structures, its workforce size and demographics, its products and services, its location(s) and layout of facilities, its important resources and technologies, its competitors, its customers and clients, and any other information necessary to make the operating environment clear to your reader.
Section II. Description of managerial functions. For each of the four management functions below, give a detailed description of the issues this organization faces and the procedures its managers use to deal with those issues:
A. Planning - This function includes defining the organization’s goals, establishing an overall strategy for achieving these goals, and developing plans to coordinate their activities. In this organization, what must managers plan for? (Products, personnel, inventories, financing, facilities, advertising, seasonal demand, etc.) What information and procedures do they utilize to do this planning? Who is involved?
B. Organizing - This function includes determining what tasks must be done to meet their goals, how the tasks are to be grouped into jobs, who is to do them, who reports to whom, and where decisions are to be made. It also includes the location and layout of facilities and equipment. In this organization, what issues must managers consider when they design their structures of people and facilities? How have they chosen to delegate authority? In this section be sure to demonstrate your understanding of the six basic elements of organization structure.
C. Leading - This function includes the tasks of communication, motivation, and conflict resolution. In this organization, how are leaders identified, recruited, selected, trained, developed, and supported? How is the workforce motivated? How are performance appraisals used? How do leaders communicate? How are conflicts resolved? What disciplinary structures do they use?
D. Controlling - This function includes monitoring activities to ensure that they are being accomplished as planned and correcting any significant deviations from the plans. In this organization, what things must be monitored (sales levels, inventory, productivity, employee satisfaction/morale/turnover, expenses, etc.) to ensure the firm’s success? What control tools and procedures do they utilize?
Section III. Analysis and Recommendations. Using information which you have gained from our text, class discussions, other business courses, and additional research, analyze the management practices employed by this enterprise as you've described them in Section II. Comment specifically on their fulfillment of the three goals of effectiveness, efficiency, and stakeholder satisfaction. Make at least three recommendations for improving this organization’s operations and/or work environment. For each recommendation you make, discuss the potential costs and benefits that could be expected from making the changes you suggest.
Bibliography - This project, like all research, requires using interviews and library and internet resources for information. Cite all of your sources. For interviews, note the name and title of the persons interviewed along with the date and location of the interview.
PLEASE NOTE - This is a “term project” and should demonstrate the best of your entire semester’s learning. Begin your research now and plan to turn in your project well before the final acceptance time at the beginning of class Friday April 20, 2007.
No projects will be accepted late for any reason. This is a course in management. Manage this project so that you can to turn in your best work on time or, even better, turn it in early. Because projects may be submitted early, no excuses for missing the deadline will even be considered. Plan, organize, lead, and control yourself (and your group if you choose to work with one) and achieve the results you desire.
Unit Exams, 6 @ 10% each 60% A= 93%+ A- = 90-92.9%
Term Project 20% B+ = 87-89.9% B= 83-86.9% B- = 80-82.9%
Cases, Quizzes, Exercises 20% C+ = 77-79.9% C= 73-76.9% C- = 70-72.9%
Instructor’s Evaluation* +/- 5% D = 60-69.9%
*I reserve the right to adjust your final average by up to 5% if I believe it necessary to give an accurate final evaluation of overall performance in this course. This is for special circumstances and does not mean that all grades will be "rounded up" if you "get close" to the next higher grade.
TENTATIVE CLASS SCHEDULE
____________________________________________________________________
January Chapter
10 Course introduction, student info sheets
12 Strategies for Success
15-17 Managers and Management 1
19-22 Historical Roots pp. 29-45
24-26 Managing Today 2
29 Exam
1
31 Foundations of Planning 3
February
2 Foundations of Planning 3
5-7 Foundations of Decision Making 4
9 Quantitative Tools pp. 147-157
12 Exam Review, In-class exercises
TENTATIVE CLASS SCHEDULE
____________________________________________________________________
February
19-21 Basic Organization Designs 5
23-26 Staffing and HRM 6
28 Managing Change and Innovation 7
March
2 Managing Change and Innovation 7
5 Exam 3
7-9 Introduction to Leadership
10-18 Spring Break
19-21 Individual and Group Behavior 8
23-26 Understanding Work Teams 9
28 Exam 4
30 Motivating and Rewarding 10
April
2-4 Leadership and Trust 11
6 Good
Friday (our reason for hope). Class cancelled.
9 Class postponed to tomorrow for travel day
10-11 Communication and Interpersonal Skills 12
13 Exam
5
16-18 Foundations of Control 13
20 Term Projects due by beginning of class. None accepted late.
23-27 Operations and Value Chain Management 14
May
3 Exam 6 - Thursday, 9:30 - 11:10 a.m.