External Degree Program
BUS-4070-JX01 Strategic Decision Making
Summer, 2012
Professor:
Norm McElvany
Office:
218 Martinetti Hall, JSC office phone: 635-1302 (direct)
Cell: 802.363.8605
Norm.McElvany@jsc.edu
home: 878-8605
How to Contact me: Office hours: By appointment. Call anytime (but please not after 9:30 pm) e-mail
anytime.
Location:
CCV in Winooski (Directions found at: www.ccv.edu)
Note that parking is limited at the CCV Winooski center but is available in the city’s
nearby parking garage. Students registered for classes taking place at the Winooski
campus can purchase parking passes. For information about purchasing a parking pass
please visit http://www.ccv.edu/locations/winooski/parking/index.html or call 802-654-0505.
1. Text & Required Materials
Strategic Marketing Problems, 12th Ed., Kerin & Peterson, Prentice Hall, 2010, ISBN 10: 0-13610706-0
Capstone Business Simulation Version, 2011, MSI, Northfield, IL (handed out in first class.)
Texts are available through the JSC bookstore. Call 802-635-2503 or go to www.jsc.bkstr.com.
2. Course Description
This course is designed to be a capstone to the business discipline. Students will be placed in a position
to use previously acquired knowledge and to apply that knowledge to case studies of actual companies
and through participation in the Capstone Business Simulation. The course will be conducted through a
combination of student presentations and execution of an 8 year strategy with the Capstone Simulation.
3. Course Learning Objectives
The primary objective of this course is to place students in the position of senior decision makers within a
wide variety of businesses and non-profit organizations both domestically and internationally. Their tasks
are to make decisions with imperfect information and to justify those decisions from among the many
possible courses of action available to them. This will be accomplished through both case studies and a
complex business simulation played the entire semester. This course requires substantial individual
student effort as well as comprehensive team decision-making activities.
A second objective of the course is to help students demonstrate presentation and writing skills. At each
class session, student teams make a case presentation to the class accompanied by a complete written
analysis of the case study and of their decisions.
4. Policies
Conduct in Class
Students should conduct themselves in accordance with the Student Handbook of Rights and
Responsibilities.
Grading
Students will be evaluated from a combination of participation in class, written case analyses, oral
presentations and from the results of the Capstone Business Simulation.
Attendance
Students must attend every class. Due to the nature of this course and its delivery through EDP, no
unexcused absences are permitted. One missed class will result in a failing grade for the course. If you
know that you cannot attend all the classes, do not sign up for the course.
Tardiness
Students are expected to be in class on time.
Late Assignments
For 3000 and 4000 level courses, late assignments will not be accepted.
Incomplete Policy
For a student to receive an incomplete, he or she must be passing and must have completed a significant
portion of the course work. Students will not be given an incomplete grade in the course without sound
reason and documented evidence.
Disabilities Policy and Academic Accommodation
In compliance with the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA), all qualified students enrolled in this
course are entitled to “reasonable accommodations.” Students who have an academic need may receive
support in the following areas: testing accommodations for students who have a documented disability,
assistance with test taking strategies and study skills, intensive advising, personal counseling, tutoring,
and support for non-traditional students through the department of Academic Support Services and the
Learning Resource Center in Dewey Campus Center. Some services may require meeting eligibility
requirements. Please call extension 1259 or 1464 or stop by their office in room #126 or room #114 in
the Dewey Campus Center for more information. Please notify the instructor during the first week of class
of any accommodations needed for the course.
Extra Credit
Policies regarding extra credit are at the discretion of the individual instructor. In this course, extra credit
is not an option.
Academic Integrity
We expect all of your work, including group projects, to be independent and original. This includes
providing proper citation and credit when utilizing information from outside sources. JSC’s policy on
academic honesty will be strictly enforced in this class.
..."Students are expected to be honest in all their academic work at
Johnson State College. Academic dishonesty in any form is prohibited
and unacceptable. Acts of dishonesty for which a student may be
disciplined include, but are not limited to, receiving or providing
unauthorized assistance on an examination and plagiarizing the work of
others in writing assignments. The American Heritage Dictionary defines
plagiarism in the following way: "To steal or use (the ideas or writings of
another) as one's own." Students are responsible for knowing what
specific acts constitute plagiarism; if students are uncertain whether a
particular act constitutes plagiarism, they should consult with their
instructors before turning in assigned work."
5. Grades:
Specific grade breakdown will be provided on a separate handout sheet.
6. Course Outline and Schedule:
The class outline schedule is on a separate sheet.
7. Note:
All written work must be typewritten and double spaced.
BUS-4070 Strategic Decision Making
Summer, 2012
Course Grade Breakdown
Team Presentations
#1
#2
#3
5.0%
10.0%
15.0%
30.0%
Rebuttal to Cases (Written & Oral)
20.0%
Individual case analyses & homework
10.0%
CAPSIM Business Simulation
40.0%
Total
100.0%
Weekly Case Presentation Grade Breakdown
Oral Presentation
20.0%
Written Paper
-Grammar
-Rhetoric
-Mechanics
20.0%
Content
-Logical thinking
-Thoroughness of analysis
-Consistency
-Completeness
60.0%
Total
100.0%
Bus 4070
Professor: Norm McElvany
Summer, 2012
Strategic Decision
Making
Course Syllabus
Class
#
1
Day
Sat
Date
TEAM
#
Student #
2-Jun
CASE
#
Assignment
Introduction
9:0011:00am
Port Marine & J.J.'s Women's Clothing Case Study
Introduction
Capsim Registration
This short meeting is intended to introduce each of
you to the requirements of the course, help you get
registered with the CAPSIM website, and answer any
questions related to the course. As you can see from
the Syllabus, you will then have 2 weeks to complete
the preliminary course work before we meet for the
entire day on Saturday 16 June.
2
Sat
16-Jun
8:30-5:00pm
a.m.
p.m.
All
Port Marine case discussion, JJ's Women's Clothing
Store case discussion
form CAPSIM teams
CAPSIM practice rounds 1 & 2
CAPSIM practice round 3
CAPSIM practice round 4
3
Sat
30-Jun
8:30-5:00pm
a.m.
Rayovac Corporation: The Rechargeable Battery
Opportunity
Kraft Foods: The Coffee Pod Launch
Amber Inn & Suites, Inc.
p.m.
CAPSIM Debrief Practice Rounds
Competition Round 1 & 2
CAPSIM Comp Round 3
CAPSIM Comp Round 4
4
Sat
28-Jul
a.m.
8:30-5:00pm
CUTCO Corporation
Superior Supermarkets: Everyday Low Pricing
A-1 Steak Sauce: Lawry's Defense
p.m.
CAPSIM Debrief Comp Rounds 3 & 4
Comp Round 5 & 6
CAPSIM Comp Round 7
CAPSIM Comp Round 8
5
SUN
29-Jul
a.m.
8:30-5:00pm
Baxton Technology
Mercan Systems, Inc.
Qingdao Haier Ltd.: Considering the Maytag Acquisition
p.m.
Mon –Fri
30 Jul - 10 Aug
Annual Stockholder's Meeting
COMP XM on-line