BU121 Spring 2020 Course Outline PDF

Preview

Summary

BU121 Spring 2020 Course Outline...

Description

BUSINESS 121 FUNCTIONAL AREAS OF THE ORGANIZATION COURSE OUTLINE Spring 2020

Instructor:

Brandon Van Dam [email protected]

Office Hours:

Tuesdays 10-11AM or by appointment (via Zoom)

Teaching Assistants: Abbey Bibbings ([email protected]) Abby Loewen ([email protected]) Faculty Assistant:

Indera Singh: [email protected]

Course Website:

www.laurierbiz.com http://mylearningspace.wlu.ca for text and quizzes, lab prep quizzes, pre-lecture videos, synchronous Zoom lectures, and digital assignment dropboxes

1

Course Objectives: By the end of this course (BU121), students should be able to: 1. Explain how the integrative framework/model works and how all of the pieces of the ‘puzzle’ fit together in today’s fast paced and ever-changing business environment. 2. Apply the integrative framework to the development of a business model and execution plan for turning a new venture idea into a successful business. 3. Summarize the different functional areas of a business and describe how decisions in those areas are both interrelated and lead to achieving the Critical Success Factors in the model. 4. Develop essential skills that are necessary for success in both business and personal situations 5. Communicate in oral and written forms using basic business vocabulary. 6. Develop a clear understanding of the level of professional conduct expected in the business world; which will also be expected of you in this course.

Course Materials: Business, Pride et al. Toronto: Nelson Education, 2020 Business 121 Lab Manual, 35th Edition. Toronto: Captus Press, 2020. *NOTE: Access to 2 assessments that are required for the course (EQi and DISC) is included with the lab manual. Used lab manuals therefore are not allowed, unless it is your own lab manual and you are retaking the course. *There is a unique access code at the bottom of the very first page of the Lab Manual that will give you access to these assessments. This code must be entered on the course survey (www.laurierbiz.com/survey) in order to gain access to the assessments. REEF iClicker will be used in the course for class attendance, participation and engagement.

2

Methodology: In Business 121 we will be using four approaches to learning: 1.

Readings – The text, lab manual, and online readings are designed to provide you with the base knowledge needed to understand the ‘threshold’ concepts and terminology required for the course. These ‘threshold’ concepts are needed to understand the richer classroom material. It will be expected that you have done the readings prior to class and labs as they will form part of your engagement grade (see Assessments/Grading below).

2.

Pre-Lecture Videos – The pre-lecture videos posted on MyLearningSpace each week cover content that you need to review before lecture each week. The pre-lecture videos are a way for you to engage with content at your own pace to gain an understanding of the course concepts. These concepts will be tested on the examinations and to ensure you are keeping up with them, you may be asked to complete pre-lecture quizzes and/or answer questions during our synchronous lectures via iClicker.

3.

Lectures – Power Point slides will be available ahead of time on MyLearningSpace. Do not assume that these slides are a substitute for watching the pre-lecture videos or coming to our synchronous class, as they do not completely cover the material. They are provided simply to give you a base upon which to take complete and organized notes while having some breathing room to reflect on the material as it is being discussed. Unlike a traditional lecture, these lectures will focus on applying course concepts and making connections to the content discussed in the pre-lecture videos. The class will be divided into two groups, based on lab and will be placed into breakout groups during the lecture time to work on concepts.

4.

Weekly Labs* – All students are required to attend mandatory weekly labs. Labs will be synchronous (live) during the scheduled time slot you register for. Labs start the second week of class. Students must register for any lab time that fits your schedule. Lab registration will take place on the course website (www.laurierbiz.com) starting at Friday May 15th at 8AM. * NOTE: Attendance in labs is compulsory, to allow you to further apply theory and to develop and practice essential skills, as described in the course objectives. Although it is strongly recommend that you do not miss labs for any reason - the following rules apply to lab attendance and participation grades. Read carefully: •

You are allowed only one (1) un-validated absence from labs. An un-validated absence means you did NOT attend a "make-up lab" during the same week, or complete a selfdeclaration form and e-mail * to validate your absence.

*If you must miss a lab due to illness or extenuating circumstances, you will need to fill out a self-declaration form at (web.wlu.ca/illness), as well as send an e-mail to your Professor (not your TA) either before the lab or the same day as your lab if you want the absence to be considered for exemption from the above absence policy as a validated absence. We strongly recommend that you still attend a ‘make-up lab’ during the same 3

week (see below), unless your circumstances extend for the entire week, so that you don’t miss critical course material. In the instance, that a number of self-declarations forms are submitted, alternate course arrangements may need to be made at the discretion of the Professor, including, but not limited to failure of the lab component of the course. •

You are allowed only one (1) ‘make up’ lab. If you must miss a lab and do not want it to count as your un-validated absence, you must attend a different lab in the same academic week (see the course website for a list of labs). You must e-mail the TA for the lab you will be attending ahead of time so they can give you the Zoom link for the lab (if possible you are encouraged to attend another lab run by your current TA). That TA will then confirm your attendance to your regular TA (if not attending the lab of your current TA).

NOTE: This ‘make-up lab’ is meant to give you some flexibility in unavoidable circumstances, but should not be used unless absolutely necessary. It is also important to note that there are a limited number of labs operating this term, so if not planned out ahead of time this may be impossible to do. You will receive a mark of zero (0) on all lab assignments (44% of your final grade) if you have more than 1 un-validated absence or attend more than 1 make-up lab, unless this is validated with your Professor. You will be assigned an in-lab contribution mark for each lab, as explained below under Lab Engagement Grade. Because you need to attend your lab to contribute, you will lose 0.5 marks for each lab you miss that is not validated with your professor. Therefore, if you have one un-validated absence in one week, and attend one make-up lab in another week, you will not be able to attain an in-lab contribution grade above 3/4. The only way to have an absence excused/validated and not subject to this rule, is by completing a self-declaration form and sending an e-mail to your Professor (not your TA) for consideration, as explained above. •

If you join your lab 20 minutes after the start time AND/OR if you arrive at your lab after attendance is taken three times (3x), you will be penalized by the loss of 0.5 participation marks for each occurrence. You should be logging into the Zoom meeting well before the start of lab to ensure your technology is working. Lab Zoom meetings will be open 15 minutes before the start of lab. If you are experiencing any issues, please contact your TA right away. Given that grade points are a minimum 3 percentage points apart, not paying attention to these rules can mean that you could lose an entire grade point or more.

Lab Engagement Grade / 8 4

Engagement in labs and team meetings is important for several reasons: • It brings fresh new insights and perspectives, and contributes to your own learning and the learning of others. • Your ideas and analysis are constructively challenged by others, leading to improved rigour and quality. • It helps build confidence in your ability to express your views and provide input in a large group, a skill that is critical in the workplace for being recognized and valued. • It demonstrates that you are “part of the team” and can add value both as a leader and as a team player. • In a virtual environment, participation and engagement helps create a sense of community that is more challenging than when in a physical classroom. This is also a great opportunity to prepare for your future workplace, which in many cases is moving to more virtual environment. Your engagement in team meetings, and as a team member in general, will be assessed through use of a peer evaluation on each group assignment, as explained in more detail under Assessments/Grading below. Pay careful attention to this as your grade on group assignments can differ from other team members depending on this evaluation, and serious issues with your engagement can and will be referred to the teaching professor, which in extreme situations can have you ‘fired’ from your team, leading to a 0 on the assignment. Your engagement in labs will be assessed from the perspective of both preparation and contribution, and assigned a mark worth 8% of your final grade, assessed as follows: 4 marks for Pre-Lab Preparation Pre-lab preparation will be assessed as the average of the marks you earn for lab preparation handin assessments and pre-lab online quizzes. Read the lab instructions in the lab manual carefully so that you come prepared for each lab (starting in the first lab). These quizzes count as individual assessments. Any authorized collaboration on the quizzes is therefore considered academic misconduct. You may feel you have ‘gotten away’ with something if no one can see you collaborating, however there is a direct correlation between this preparation and understanding the material for exam purposes, and hence exam marks. Doing the quizzes by yourself also helps you to be more capable of contributing in the lab for the other 4 engagement marks – see below. Don’t cheat yourself on this. Quizzes will be graded according to the number of correct answers out of the total questions asked, and are due Mondays at 11:59PM. You have only one attempt at the quizzes and some are timed, so prepare accordingly. Hand-ins will be graded as indicated below. TAs will not give detailed feedback on the hand-ins themselves, but you will be able to see your hand-in prep mark on MyLS on a weekly basis. • Excellent effort = 1 mark • Acceptable effort = .5 marks • Poor/Incomplete = 0 marks 4 marks for In-Lab Contribution – graded on effort and quality 5

● 4 marks – made a significant effort to contribute and add value without dominating discussions; very engaged; quality was exceptional – insightful and stimulated class discussion ● 3 marks – made a good effort to contribute and add value; normally engaged; good quality comments that often added value but always demonstrated preparation and understanding ● 2 marks – made an average effort to contribute and add value; average engagement; average quality comments added little value, demonstrating preparation but not much insight ● 1 mark – made a minimal effort to contribute and/or contributed in small group discussions only; minimal engagement including missing some poll questions; minimal quality – answers demonstrated lack of preparation and/or no insight, were repetitive or added minimal value ● 0 marks – did not contribute – no verbal/written participation, no participation in poll questions, and/or consistently or significantly disruptive (inappropriate comments in chat function, off-task in main Zoom room or breakout rooms) A grade will be given each lab using the above criteria as a guide. Students will do a self-assessment in virtual ‘contribution booklets’, which will then be assessed by the Teaching Assistant. The contribution booklets will be submitted to a dropbox on MyLearningSpace every week and need to be submitted no later than 11:59PM on the day of your lab. A template is provided on MyLearningSpace and included in the dropbox folder. NOTE: Students are expected to check in with their TA if they are concerned about their engagement grades during the semester vs. at the end of the semester. Extra Resources – As much as setting high expectations for engagement is necessary to prepare you for upper year courses and the corporate world, it is also necessary for you to take responsibility for your own learning and engage in appropriate university level strategies to ensure your success. There are many resources available at the university to help you succeed and specific assistance has been created for this course. •

Remote Learning Student Support Hub: Laurier recognizes that the current remote learning environment has its challenges and wants to ensure you are setup for success. The Support Hub provides students with links to academic support, mental health support, and ways to stay connected to the Laurier community. For more information visit the website at https://students.wlu.ca/academics/support-and-advising/study-skills-and-coursesupport/assets/resources/remote-learning-student-support-hub.html?ref=remotelearning

•

Supplemental Instruction (SI): Each week the SI Learning Assistants will facilitate virtual sessions where you and your peers will work together to develop ways to learn the material presented in lectures and prepare for exams. Regular engagement with SI sessions is strongly correlated with overall course grades. To encourage you to attend you can earn up to a total of 1.5 bonus participation marks by taking responsibility for your own learning and engaging in the weekly SI sessions. It is important to understand that although SI can significantly enhance your ability to learn in this course it is only designed to be supplemental and does NOT replace lectures or labs. 6

For more information visit the website at https://students.wlu.ca/academics/supportand-advising/study-skills-and-course-support/peer- led-support.html We encourage you to participate in as many sessions as possible, but only one nonexam review session per week will count for 0.25 bonus participation marks each to a total of 1.5 marks. To qualify for the bonus participation marks students must participate in the sessions, be fully engaged for the entire time (not doing other homework or being disruptive), and complete the exercises – simple attendance at the sessions is not sufficient, and full attendance (not arriving late or leaving early) is necessary to receive the bonus.

Assessments/Grading: Your final mark will be calculated based on the different assessment tools outlined below. It is your responsibility to ensure that work is of good quality, appropriately referenced, and submitted on time. All work is due to the MyLearningSpace dropbox BEFORE 4PM EST on the due date (no physical hardcopy hand-in is necessary). Work submitted late will receive a grade of zero. If exceptional circumstances prevent you from meeting the submission deadline and if you can provide sufficient irrefutable evidence of these circumstances, you may appeal to your Professor (not your TA) to have your grade included with a late penalty. Given technology challenges that may arise, it is important to give yourself enough time to submit your assignments. The marks in the course will be divided as follows: 22 marks – individual lab and lecture assignments/assessments 28 marks – team-based lab assignments/assessments 25 marks – midterm exam 25 marks – final exam 100 marks total

22 marks – Individual Lab & Lecture Assignments/Assessments: •

5 marks – Pitch Delivered in Lab # 4 – the week of June 8th

•

3 marks – DISC/EQi Reflection Assessment Deadline Thursday, July 2nd BEFORE 4PM Reflection DUE Thursday, July 16th BEFORE 4PM

•

14 marks – Engagement • 4 marks for lab preparation (through on-line quizzes on MyLearningSpace) • 4 marks for contribution in labs • 3 marks for lecture preparation* (through on-line quizzes on MyLearningSpace and in the e-text) • 3 marks for engagement and participation in lectures* (through REEF iClicker and breakout group assessments) 7

*In addition to your attendance and engagement in labs, preparation for and attendance at lectures is also critical to your success in the course. This is especially important given critical content will be delivered through pre-lecture videos in addition to the synchronous Zoom sessions. 3% of your final grade will come from engaging with the material and doing the lesson quizzes in the e-text or MyLearningSpacec based on the pre-lecture videos before the respective lecture. The quizzes will be accessible 2 weeks ahead of when the material is scheduled as per the course outline and will remain open until the Wednesday before, with feedback accessible the day after the deadline. 3% of your final grade will be for your attendance at and participation in lectures, as measured through the use of iClickers and breakout group assessments. •

1.5 Optional BONUS marks – Supplementary Instruction As explained under Extra Resources above.

28 marks – Team-Based* Lab Assignments/Assessments: •

28 marks total – New Venture – From Idea to Business: o 6 marks – Primary Research Video and Value Proposition Canvas Due Thursday, June 4th BEFORE 4PM o

6 marks – Business Model Canvas and Video Story Due Thursday, June 18th BEFORE 4PM

o 10 marks – Final Report Due Thursday, July 23rd BEFORE 4PM •

Progress Check-ins will take place in Lab #7, the week of June 29th . Details are included in the project requirements. Pay close attention to the requirements for this meeting as it will be graded as part of your final report rubric and the more progress you have made by this check-in, the more feedback you will receive and the better you will ultimately do on the final report.

o 6 marks – Final Presentation Delivered in Lab #11 – the week of July 27th Presentation Slides due Monday, July 27th BEFORE 4PM *NOTE: You will be required to submit individual peer evaluations for all group work. Peer evaluations are to be submitted on the course website BEFORE 11:59PM on the due date. Peer evaluations submitted late will receive a 10% penalty if submitted within the first 72 hours after the deadline, an additional 10% penalty if submitted within the next 24 hours, and a final 10% penalty (total 30%) if submitted within the following 24 hours. Peer evaluations that are not submitted will cause the individual concerned (not the group) to receive a grade of zero on that particular assignment. 8

As explained earlier, this means that you will be also be evaluated by your peers and must keep this in mind not only for development purposes but also for grading, as conduct that does not meet expectations will result in lower individual grades on team-based assignments. You will be evaluated on the basis of the following, and should read the rubric very carefully to ensure you are meeting the requirements: • Involvement in and preparation for team meetings o It is expected that you will attend all meetings fully prepared, be on time and stay until the meetings are completed, and help set up and facilitate meetings. • Follow through and equal sharing of workload o It is expected that you will meet all deadlines, follow through with tasks without reminders, and volunteer to take an equal share of the workload. • Quality of work completed o It is expected that you will understand all assignment requirements, seek feedback to complete the highest quality work possible, meet guidelines set by the team, and submit work th...