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BA 466
Integrated Strategic Experience
MW 12:00PM to 1:50PM
321 Bexell Hall
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Instructor: Dr.
Donald Neubaum
Office: 400E Bexell Hall
Phone 541-737-6036
Email don.neubaum@bus.oregonstate.edu
Office Hours: TT 3:00 – 4:30PM,
or by appointment
Required Materials
Strategic Management:
Competitiveness and Globalization (Concepts, 8th Edition)
ISBN 978-0-324-58112-6
An ebook version of this text can be purchased
below for about $65.00
http://www.ichapters.com/tl1/en/US/storefront/ichapters?cmd=catProductDetail&ISBN=9780324581126&cid=APL1
Business Strategy Game
Everyone MUST register
on-line for the BSG Simulation. It requires a credit-card purchase.
Overview
In this course, students
will be introduced to the basics of strategic management principles. Along side
class lectures and discussions, students will form teams and run a large global
manufacturing organization in a business simulation. Teams will compete head to
head and make both strategic and operating decisions. This exercise will force students to think clearly
about strategy and hone their skills in making sound decisions based on logic, analysis,
and gamesmanship. Team performance is
based on the quality of its decisions relative to its rivals.
Course Assignments and Grading
Grades will be determined
as follows:
Individual Grades – 50%
Midterm Exam 20%
Final Exam 20%
Article Summary and Presentation 10%
Game Quiz 5%
Group Grades
Game Performance 20%
Game Assignments 10%
Strategic Presentation 15%
Final grades will be
determined based on the following percentages:
A 93-100 A- 90-93
B+ 88-90 B 83-88
B- 80-83 C+ 78-80
C 73-78 C- 70-73
D+ 68-70 D 63-68
D- 60-63 F 60 or lower
Individual
Grades
Midterm and Final Exams
Midterm and final exams
will be a combination of multiple choice and short answer questions (probably
about 60% multiple choice, and 40% short answer). For the most part, questions will come from
the lecture notes. However, your text has a number of bolded terms in each
chapter. Those terms are certainly fair game for multiple choice questions. As
the quarter progresses, I will give you study guides to help you prepare for
the exams. In general, make-up exams are discouraged. Should you have a prior
conflict, please see me about arranging a mutually agreeable time to take a
make-up exam. Failure to make
arrangements to take the first exam in a timely fashion could result in the
final exam being worth 40% of your grade, substituting for your first exam score.
Strategic Issues Summary
In an effort to avoid
subjecting you to the cruel and unfortunate fate of having to listen solely to
me the entire quarter, I am soliciting your skills to help relieve you and your
classmates of this punishment. In particular, you are required to identify an
article related to a specific aspect of strategy. Articles from the Wall Street
Journal, Fortune, Forbes, Business Week and alike are best suited for this
assignment. You can also easily find articles related to business and strategy
at Yahoo, MSN, and Google as well.
You are required to:
1) write a two-page, double spaced summary of the
article. In particular, explain the article and how it relates to strategy. You
will hand in this summary for grading
2) create a SHORT PowerPoint presentation
(approximately 3-5 slides, about 3-5 minutes) summarizing the article for the
class. You will also hand in a copy of your slides for grading.
3) provide 2-3 questions at the end of your
powerpoint presentation intended to stimulate class discussion of the topic.
This assignment is worth
10% of your grade. I will pass around
sign-up sheets so that you can sign up for specific days. You will be graded
50% on your paper and 50% on your presentation. Ten percent of your grade will
be deducted if you are not ready to present on the day you signed up. If you
miss your assigned day, you are expected to present the next class session.
Points will continue to be deducted (10%) until you present and complete your
written summary.
Please bring an extra copy
of your powerpoint slides to class so that I may use them to grade your
presentation.
Group Assignments
Early in the quarter, you
will be divided into groups (or better yet, you will divide yourself into your
own groups) of four or five. In these groups, you will work together on
ungraded activities, as well as a computer simulation, which will require a significant
investment of your time and represents a substantial portion of your final grade.
The
Business Strategy Game
As suggested above,
students in this class will form teams and compete against one another in a
business simulation. Each team (composed
of 4-5 students) will manage a company in the Business Strategy Game (BSG). The
teams will make a series of decisions over the course of the term, where each
decision represents a year of business operations. There will be two practice rounds at the
beginning of the simulation. It is strongly recommended that teams use these
two practice rounds to learn about company operations, coordinate team decision
making processes and hone your company’s strategy. The initial years of the BSG
are critical to your success. Times and dates for decision entry deadlines will
be posted and announced at the beginning of the course. Be aware of these
deadlines. Late decisions or missing a
decision will have devastating effects upon your team’s performance. Before the
start of the game, there will be an on-line quiz, designed encourage the
players to study and understand the mechanics, procedures and details of the
game and its play. This quiz is worth 5%
of your grade.
This
simulation is a critical feature of this course. It demands practical decision
making and application of managerial concepts, and engages you in a competitive
way. The industry in which you will be competing is the athletic footwear
industry. This is an industry with a product you are intimately familiar and
features industry practices easily grasped by all, which increases the
effectiveness of a simulation from a teaching/learning perspective. The
simulation features competition in several continents, enhancing the global
aspect of the game. Products are
manufactured and sold in four geographic regions or the company’s Web site. A
Decisions
to be made include production and operations, plant capacities and location, worker
compensation and training, shipping, pricing and marketing, celebrity
endorsements, manufacturing technologies, and financing. Each team’s challenge is to craft and execute
a competitive strategy that results in a respected brand image in footwear, keeps
their company in contention for global market leadership, and produces good
financial performance as measured by earnings per share, return on investment,
stock price appreciation, and credit rating.
A
competition-based simulation gives you an opportunity to practice what you have
read in the textbook chapters. As mentioned above, company co-managers have to
wrestle with charting a long-term direction for their company, setting
strategic and financial objectives, and crafting strategies that produce good
results and perhaps lead to competitive advantage. Within the context of the
simulation, you are provided cost benchmarks and comparative financial
statistics allowing you to diagnose the company’s market standing vis-à-vis
rivals.
On
the last day of class, each team will make a presentation to the class which
will act as the firm’s Board of Directors meeting. The presentation will
include the firm's strengths and weakness and evolving strategy including
budgeted vs. actual financial results. Problems solved during the semester, and
issues and or problems still facing the team will be discussed along with
recommendations for future strategy. Teams will use audiovisual aids and
handouts to enhance their presentation. (A written report to the instructor is
NOT required.) Your grade on the simulation game will be based on 1) the Quiz,
2) your team’s overall performance as determined by your success or failure
relative to the other teams with up to 10% based on trend of sales, profits,
etc. as determined by the Professor, and 3) the Final Report to the Board of
Directors. Team grades will be adjusted by your individual contribution as
reported by your team mates on the peer evaluations.
Strategic Plan –
Presentation
– As a team, you will conduct an analysis of a firm of your choosing. You,
however, must get prior approval of your choice from me. Your research will
culminate with a 20 minute presentation of your analysis, including recommendations.
Your analysis and plan will be presented to the class on either March 10th
or March 12th. Specific presentation
days will be assigned later in the term. Teams must bring me a copy of their
slides on the day of their presentation.
This assignment is worth 15% of your grade.
Peer Evaluation
Two times during the terms,
your peers will evaluate your effort using an on-line Peer Evaluation form. The first evaluation, which will occur right
after the midterm, is merely for feedback, letting you know how your peers view
your performance thus far. The second
evaluation, which will occur at the end of the term, will be used to calculate
an individual Peer Evaluation. These scores may then be used to adjust
individual grades on group projects up or down by the amount warranted by your
peers’ evaluation of your contributions.
If your group members report you did little to no work throughout the
quarter, then your grades will reflect this. Your group grades will be a
reflection of the effort you invested. If your group members report you went
beyond the call of duty to aid the group, then your grade might get boosted upwards
accordingly. Grades can be adjusted up
and down by as much as 50%, depending on the severity or strength of your
peers’ feedback.
One Minute Papers
At the end of some classes,
I will ask you to write what I call a “one-minute paper.” This is an ungraded
assignment, but is considered part of your class participation. In a one minute paper, you may write on a
variety of topics, including 1) something you learned in class, if anything; 2)
giving an example of a topic we spoke of in class; 3) asking a question or
seeking clarification; 4) making a comment about class; or 5) anything else. I
will read these after each class and respond, if necessary, to your comments or
thoughts.
I will also assess your
attendance, participation and one-minute papers throughout the quarter.
Students who regularly participate will receive more credit than those students
who are either not prepared or do not contribute during these exercises and
assignments. While your participation and attendance are not specifically
graded, final letter grades might be adjusted upwards, or downwards, (up or
down a full letter grade) based upon my assessment of your level of engagement
throughout the quarter. Students present
every class session for the entire quarter will earn 5 bonus points on their
final exam.
Academic Dishonesty
Cheating is a violation of student academic
behavior standards. This may include:
a) Unauthorized assistance
or communication to another through written, visual, or oral means.
b) Presentation of material
which has been obtained by someone else's effort and used as part of an exam,
assignment or project.
c) Unauthorized possession
of course related material.
d) Plagiarism, whereby
another's work is used without any indication of the source, thereby attempting
to convey the impression that such work is the student's own, including the
failure to credit ideas or material taken.
e) Students who assist
others in any of these activities can be considered equally responsible.
When a violation of student academic behavior
standards becomes known, the instructor shall take appropriate measures,
including the assignment of an F for the class grade to the recommendation of
further disciplinary action. This action
is permitted by Academic Regulations and Procedures as described in the
Schedule of Classes. I expect you to know and understand these policies and
procedures. If there is any doubt about their meaning and interpretation, ask
me for an explanation.
Saying “I did not know” is not considered a viable
excuse because now you know.
See http://oregonstate.edu/admin/stucon/achon.htm
for more information.
Standing-O
To earn a five-point bonus
on your first exam, I allow you the opportunity to do a standing-O. In a
standing-O, you come to the front of the class and announce a recent
accomplishment or achievement you have received. After you tell us of your
experience, everyone in the class will applaud your efforts. While you may do
as many Standing-Os you want in the quarter, you can only earn the 5 point
bonus once. Standing-Os can be done anytime during the quarter. Those done after
the mid-term can still be used to add 5 bonus points to the mid-term exam
grade.
Team Specials
Throughout the quarter, I
will be offering a series of activities, bonuses, tasks, or assignments worth a
variety of points. These may be academic (like a chapter quiz), or just
something goofy (name a piece of art contest). Each team is responsible for
keeping track of its own points. Each team will create their own team specials
folder to keep track of these assignments. Team special scoresheets are available
on my website. You can keep track of
your progress on these sheets. At the end of the semester, the teams with the
most points will be awarded the following awards:
Third
Place - Opt out of one short
answer question on the final
Everything is Relative
As you will learn in class,
everything in strategy is relative. Your performance in the class is evaluated
not only by some standard I set, but also by your performance relative to your
classmates. What does that mean for you? It means this class is competitive.
You are competing against your classmates when taking your exams, writing your
papers, and doing your presentations. In
other words, you might inadvertently LOWER your grade by help another classmate
boost theirs. Do you own work.
SCHEDULE FOR WINTER 2009
(EXAM AND ASSIGNMENT/PRESENTATION DATES ARE FIXED; THE LECTURE SCHEDULE
MIGHT HAVE TO BE REVISED BASED ON PROGRESS)
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Dates |
Content |
Assignment Deadlines |
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Week 1 |
Mon 9/28 |
Course Introduction Tale of Three Tales Chapter 1-2 |
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Wed 9/30 |
Robin Hood BSG Introduction Chapter 1-2 |
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Week 2 |
Mon 10/5 |
Chapter 1-2 |
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Wed 10/7 |
Chapter 3 |
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Week 3 |
Mon 10/12 |
Chapter 3 |
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Wed 10/14 |
Chapter 3 |
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Week 4 |
Mon 10/19 |
Chapter 4 |
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Wed 10/21 |
Chapter 4 |
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Week 5 |
Mon 10/26 |
Chapter 4 |
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Wed 10/28 |
Chapter 5 |
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Week 6 |
Mon 11/2 |
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Midterm |
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Wed 11/4 |
Chapter 6 |
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Week 7 |
Mon 11/9 |
Chapter 6 |
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Wed11/11 |
Chapter 8 |
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Week 8 |
Mon 11/16 |
Language of Leadership |
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Wed 11/18 |
Chapter 8 |
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Week 9 |
Mon 11/23 |
Chapter 9 |
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Wed 11/25 |
Chapter 9 |
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Week 10 |
Mon 11/30 |
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Presentations |
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Wed 12/2 |
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Presentations |
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Finals |
Wednesday, December 9th,
6:00PM |
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Final Exam |