Name: __________________________________________________________________________________

 

B Mgt 341 – Behavioral Foundations of Management

Spring 2013

 

Section 3278, LC 2

T/Th 8:45-10:05 a.m.

Section 4582, LC 2

T/Th 10:15-11:35 a.m.

 

Whenever you need help…

Professor: Dr. M. Fogelman (fogelman@albany.edu, BA-324, 518/442-5545) personally handles all questions regarding course content, exam and clicker questions, or class policies.  Email messages and phone calls are welcome anytime and usually answered within hours—or minutes. Email the professor only at fogelman@albany.edu, not via Blackboard or some other address.

Graduate Assistants: Ms. L. Drozynski and Mr. C. Frederickson are students’ first contacts for questions about credit and grade recording for exams, quizzes, assignments posted on Blackboard, and the in-class participation exercise (the “Hotseat”).  Email the GAs at mgt341ga@yahoo.com, not via Blackboard mail!!

The Information Technology Service (ITS) Help Desk (LC-27, 442-3700) can help with any problems logging on to the UAlbany system, using Blackboard, or getting access to electronic reserve.

 

What this course is about…

 

Welcome to Management 341.  Here we discover how the knowledge and management of human behavior in enterprises makes some companies and people succeed while others struggle.  To prepare yourself for the changing world of work and the practice of management, you will analyze the history, research trends, and modern applications of a wide range of theories and practices.  We begin the term by examining (1) firm-wide and inter-organizational levels of management.  Then we investigate the role and effects of (2) individual behavior.  In the third course segment, we mainly assess ethical challenges and relate leadership, communication and other skill sets to (3) the management of work groups and teams. Key course policies and other information will be posted on the Blackboard homepage and the class blog:  http://mgt341spring13.blogspot.com/

 

 

Before taking this course, students should have completed APsy 101 and either ASoc 115 or AAnt 108. 

 

Our goals…

 

Through a combination of in-class presentations and conferences, examinations, quizzes, virtual sessions, written contributions, clicker questions, active individual and small group participation, and “flipped classes,” you will…

·           Identify the behavioral foundations of management in an increasingly diverse environment,

·           Describe how global socioeconomic and technological forces are affecting the theory and practice of management,

·           Assess the interpersonal, ethical and other challenges faced by today’s managers, and

·           Model effective small-group behavior in both face-to-face and virtual work relationships

 

 

The tools you will use…

Our primary text is Organizational Behavior: Core Concepts by Angelo Kinicki. Be sure you also get the premium online content, McGraw-Hill, 2008 (available locally as ISBN 007-818958-6). Students who purchase just the text (ISBN 978-0-07-353029-1) should get the online premium content at www.mhhe.com/obcore.  Before most classes, you need to read the required chapters, [bracketed] in the Topic and Assignment schedule at the end of this syllabus.

 

You should register and always bring to class your i>Clicker (either a 5-letter or newer version) for recording your choices to questions posed during class.  Using it conscientiously can contribute up to 15 points to your final course grade. Clicker credit is earned only through use of the clicker during class, so operating someone else’s clicker instead of, or in addition to, your own is a form of academic dishonesty that subjects both offenders to automatic course failure or other disciplinary action.

 

You should subscribe to BMGT341-L, a “listserv” distribution list for assignment reminders, exam advice, and other bulletins.    If you fail to subscribe to “the list,” you will probably miss opportunities to stay ahead on assignments and gain up-to-date information on exam topics and other important subjects. To subscribe, a student named “Jane Doe” with a local phone of all 5’s would send a one-line email to listserv@listserv.albany.edu. The complete message text of Jane’s email:  subscribe bmgt341-L Jane Doe 555/555-5555.

 

We will make extensive use of Blackboard and, linked to that system, Electronic Reserve (also known as  E-Reserve, ERes, and ARes) and the course blog.  Following this blog, which is primarily an archive of all listserv messages to the class, is a less reliable way to keep up on important course news.

 

Students should bring to every class session two teacher-provided 8.5 by 11 sheets (one pink/one green).  Photo IDs and 9-digit Student IDs (not SSNs) are required for all exams, with #2 Pencils and erasers strongly recommended.  Electronic dictionaries may not be used during exams.

 

 

 

Five things you need to do or know right away!

When you arrive for session #3, you will choose the seat for the whole term.

The course E-Reserve password is namlegof (after you enter the system using your own netid/password).

Cumulative clicker points earned are updated on E-Reserve each week.  Monitor your progress regularly.

You need to register here http://www.educreations.com/sr/3D2048 (our access code is 3D2048)

Subscribe to the listserv, forwarding any problem response to fogelman@albany.edu.

 

What we will do in and out of class…

 

Each of the following six session types is coded on the topic schedule by a category icon. (Each session will have an numbered outline or slide set on ERes. The best students usually print these items out in advance.)

 

5 More than half the sessions are traditional face-to-face lectures presented with slides, pretty much like those in other courses.  The main difference is that around ten students sitting in front of the room are called on to answer questions.  They constitute a small class within the larger lecture.  On occasion, what one of these hotseat participants says or does has been coached or scripted. 

 

2 Three or more flipped classroom sessions. These are a complete reversal of the traditional teaching pattern.  Instead of introducing a topic during class and practicing and applying it as a “homework assignment,” everyone watches image-and-voice video lessons as part of their required reading before class.  When in class, you apply the knowledge to real management problems.  Students on the hotseat, preferably volunteers for those days, will answer questions and also play a role as “linchpins,” connecting the instructor to the groups. 

 

. Three of our in-term class sessions are exams, each one consisting of 35 multiple choice questions.  Students whose last names begin with A through K come for the first 35 minutes of the class, and those starting with L through Z for the last 35. 

 

9 Each exam is preceded by an online exam review, which is a recorded audio or video talk by the instructor coupled with a set of review slides on the key topics to be featured on that exam. (Titled “Exam 1a,” etc.)

 

m     Each of these three or more sessions will feature a guest speaker, or possibly more than one from the same firm.  Each of these successful executives or other professionals is an expert in the topic(s) s/he will discuss.  They have all done this before and generally present along with the instructor.  The hotseat and clicker questions are managed just as they are in regular lecture classes.

 

7 Three virtual sessions are class session videos produced by the professor, and they resemble the lectures.  The difference is that there is no classroom component at all.  This time slot is often a good chance for students to meet privately or in groups with the professor—as volunteers or by invitation.

 

How grades are earned…

 

 

Course grades are based on 100%.  Since you can actually earn 108.75 points, a curve factor has been built in. 

 

Exams (75 course points)

You will take at least one exam for each of course segments 1, 2, and 3. Exams 1a, 2a, and 3a are given at intervals during the semester, and exams 1b, 2b, and 3b during the final exam session. You may take in-term exams only during the 35-minute period assigned to you.  Other than the three optional “second chances” you may select during our scheduled final examination period, there is no additional final exam. For each segment, students may take the in-term version, the “second chance” exam, or both. Only the higher one of the two exam grades for each segment—exam 1a or 1b, exam 2a or 2b, and exam 3a or 3b—will be counted in your average.
Attendance and Participation
(30 course points)

Class content is one key source of exam questions, but there are other reasons you need to come to class prepared to participate both actively and passively.

 

1.      Clicker points. (15 points) Your in-class responses to multiple choice questions serve several purposes: review concepts, provide feedback, reward attendance and promptness, and reveal how well students prepare for their flipped class sessions. You generally earn all 15 points by spending appropriate levels of effort preparing for class and operating a functioning clicker in class. Monitor your progress on E-Res.

2.      The Hotseat. (up to 5 points) During most classes, several students spend the full session in front of the class to discuss the reading assigned for that day.  Anyone up there can be asked any question at any time on any related topic.  So long as you prepare the topic assigned to be read for that class and sign the “hotsheet,” you will receive the full five points.  Students who do not perform satisfactorily or who miss their dates without a valid excuse (i.e., extreme circumstances) generally make it up by doing both of the last two class days. Expect the Hotseat Schedule to be posted to E-Reserve during week #2.

3.      Group and Individual Contributions. (10 points) are earned in two ways: (1) You can a  full point on each of at least four Blackboard discussion section contributions by writing an intelligent reaction to the video case assignment from the premium content that comes with the text, or you can earn up to a half point by submitting it within 48 hours past the deadline. (2) You will be able to earn one or more by answering questions asked of you in class, most often during flipped sessions.  How students earn the remaining 4 contribution points, including  Tweets, quizzes, additional voluntary flipped and regular session participation, and/or additional Blackboard discussion contributions will be announced on the Blackboard homepage, distributed via the listserv, and archived on the course blog.

 

 

 

SPECIFIC STEPS TO POST ON OUR CLASS BLACKBOARD HOMEPAGE: Select DISCUSSIONS and then CREATE THREAD. The subject header you create for your message will read "Asg## where ## is the assignment number. Please use this exact header format, with no spaces.  (ASSIGNMENTS WILL BE ANNOUNCED VIA THE BLACKBOARD HOMEPAGE, the listserv, and the course blog: http://mgt341spring13.blogspot.com/)

 

Grading and Criteria

Final grades will be based on a composite score using weighted criteria.

 

Grades:

 

How Grades are Achieved:

92-100+

A

 

77-79

C+

 

3 In-term Examinations and/or

 

90-91

A-

 

73-76

C

 

Optional Final[s] with name and ID number entered correctly

75%

87-89

B+

 

70-72

C-

 

10 items, including individual blackboard posts, and other contributions as formally announced.

10%

83-86

B

 

60-69

D

 

In-class participation (“the Hotseat”)

 5%

80-82

B-

 

Below 60

E

 

Individual Clicker Points (credit awarded proportionally).

15%

 

Academic Dishonesty will not be tolerated. Consequences of cheating, using any electronic device during an exam, representing another’s work as your own (plagiarism), or having one student operate another’s clicker include being issued a failing grade in the course, referral of the matter to a judiciary hearing for disciplinary probation, and suspension or dismissal from the University. See the “non-credit” versions of the tutorials at http://library.albany.edu/usered/plagiarism/page2.html if you are at all unsure of what constitutes plagiarism.  

 

Extreme Circumstances are evaluated by the Office of the Dean (Vice Provost) for Undergraduate Education in LC-30. When documented by the student, acceptable excuses include hospitalization or medical emergency involving the student, death/funeral in the immediate family, and delay due to an automobile accident—one officially reported to the authorities—on the way to class. Unacceptable excuses include ordinary transportation issues: flat tires; parking and mechanical problems; bus delays: broken alarm clocks; eye, dental, medical, or employment appointments which could be scheduled some other time; pre-/post-vacation extensions; and social occasions such as christenings, weddings, reunions, and Bar Mitzvahs. (See Undergrad Bulletin “Attendance” regulations for additional details.)

Extra Credit

Aside from a built-in course point total over 100%,” there are no opportunities to do additional work for extra credit during the semester. As indicated in the Undergraduate Bulletin, students may not “submit additional work or … be reexamined for the purpose of improving their grades after the course has been completed.”


Topic and Assignment Schedule

(This list or sequence of topics may change slightly!!!  Advance news of any modifications will be announced in class and also posted on the Blackboard Bulletin Board, emailed via the listserv, and archived on the class Blog.)

 

Session

Number

 

 

Date

Selected Topic(s)

(Students are advised to download and review notes from 

Electronic Reserve before each class.)

BEFORE CLASS:

[Kinicki Chapter]

**On E-Reserve

{Flip videos #s}

1.                

1/24

5 The Roots of Management Practice for Today and Tomorrow

**01 to read (ERes)

2.                

1/29

5 Organizational Behavior: Why People Matter to Organizations

 [1] and Read Syllabus!

3.                

1/31

5 Organizational Culture: How Organizations Create and Transmit a Culture

[12]

4.                

2/5

5 Change and Learning Organizations: How to Thrive in a Turbulent World

[14]  

5.                

2/7

 2 Organizational Design: How a Structure Connects Employees and Tasks 

[13] {5} (ERes?)

6.                

2/12

online

7 Additional Aspects of Organizational Culture and Design (Session attendance is not expected; streaming video of lecture content will be accessed on Electronic Reserve.)

**06 to read (ERes)

7.                

 

2/14

 

5 Globalism, Cross-cultural considerations, and Applied Global Performance Concepts in Today’s Environment

**07 to read (ERes)

 

online

9 Exam 1a Streamed E-Res Review Session:  Firm-wide, and Inter-organizational Segment

**Exam 1a

review slides

8.    

 

2/19

.  Exam 1a (Content from Sessions 1 through 7)

**Exam times posted on Electronic Reserve

9.                

2/21

5 Perception and Diversity: Why Viewpoints Differ

[2]

10.             

2/26

5 Individual Differences: What Makes Employees Unique

[3]

11.             

2/28

 m      Managing Yourself: Entrepreneurship and “Intrapreneurship                 SobelMedia

**11 to read (ERes)

12.             

3/5

 2  Motivation in Theory: What Makes Employees Try Harder

[4]  {12}  (ERes?)

13.             

3/7

5 Stress, Time Management, and  Career Life Cycles

**13 to read (ERes)

14.             

3/12

 m     Team Building and High-Performance Teams                                       1st investors

**14 to read (ERes)

15.             

3/14

5 Motivation in Practice: How to Bring Out the Best in People

[5]

16.             

3/26

online

7 Trust, Organizational Justice, and Privacy (Session attendance is not expected; streaming video of lecture content will be accessed on Electronic Reserve.)

**16 to read (ERes)

 

online

9 Exam 2a Streamed E-Res Review Session:  Individual Behavior Segment

**Exam 2a

review slides

17.             

 

3/28

online

7 Conflict and Negotiation: Why Conflict Arises and What to Do about It

…Includes Aspects of Decision Making (Session attendance is not expected; streaming video of lecture content will be accessed on Electronic Reserve.) – from EXAM 3a

[8]

18.             

4/2

5 Groups and Teamwork: How Groups Work and How to Lead Them  - from EXAM 3a

[6]

19.             

 

4/4

 

.  Exam 2a (Content from Sessions 9 through 16, not 17 or 18)

**Exam times posted on Elec. Reserve

20.             

4/9

 m    Decision Making: How Individuals and Groups Arrive at Decisions             Buxton

[7]

21.             

4/11

5 Communication: How to Get Messages Across—Online and Off

[9]

22.             

4/16

5    Power and Politics: How People Influence One Another                              Parinello

[10]

23.             

4/18

5 You Make the Call: Cases in Applied Business Ethics

**23 to read (ERes)

24.             

4/23

 2     Leadership: What Makes an Effective Leader            

[11] {24} (ERes?)

25.             

4/25

 2? Integrated Case: Working In And Managing Teams

**25 to read (ERes)

 

On-line

9   Exam 3a and 3b Streamed E-Res Review Session: Group Behavior Segment

**Exam 3a/3b

review slides

26.             

 

4/30

.  Exam 3a (Content from Sessions 17, 18 and 20 through 25)

**Exam times posted on Elec. Reserve

27.             

5/2

5 Other Topics in Organizational Behavior and Management

**27 to read (ERes)

28.             

5/7

m  Human Resource Management               Wishnoff

**28 to read (ERes)

 

 

online

9 Exam 1b and 2b Streamed E-Res Review Sessions – 2 separate videos

**Exam 1b and 2b

review slides

Exam Week

 

Appx 5/9

Final: Exams 1b, 2b and/or 3b, lasting a total of two hours, PROBABLY 5/9/13, but DEFINITELY **BEFORE** THE TIME IN THE EXAM SCHEDULE PUBLISHED ONLINE AT THE START OF THE TERM!!!

Room assignments to be posted on lecture hall doors.

 

 

SESSION TYPE

SYMBOLS: 5Traditional class format                                2 “Flipped” class                  . Exam  

        m Guest speaker                                 7Virtual session                  9 Review video (not a scheduled session)

 

**Required before-class “reading” materials to be available on Electronic Reserve, often including links to video and other content.