Principles of Management
MGT-350
Instructor: Shawn M. Russell
Spring 2010
Wednesday 6-8:45pm, Cameron Hall 214
Office: Cameron Hall 200F
Phone: 910.962.2195
Office Hours: By appointment
E-mail: russells@uncw.edu
Course Description: Study of theories, research and concepts underlying the structure and processes of complex
organizations. Emphasis is placed on problem-solving issues and applications in organization planning, leadership,
motivation, and interpersonal communication.
Course Objectives: This course surveys various perspectives of how a manager can better plan, organize, lead, evaluate
and coordinate his/her organization. You should begin to develop your approach or style for the successful
management of human, financial, and societal resources in business organizations. Development of critical thinking
skills, problem solving skills, communication skills, and the ability to adapt to change are emphasized.
Course Prerequisites: Junior standing.
Required Text: Understanding Management, sixth ed. By Daft & Marcic. South-Western, 2009.
Please bring your textbook to class every day as we will be completing exercises from the text during class time.
Students have access to an on-line library through CengageNow.
Course policies:
1. Class attendance and participation in discussion of exercises, current events and chapter topics is expected and
taken into account when grades are calculated. NOTE: Physical attendance does not constitute participation!
Only discussion counts! Chapters, cases and exercises should be read prior to class. Be prepared to participate
or be called upon.
2. Absences are frowned upon. Since we only have 16 class periods, missing more than ONE class, may affect your
final letter grade. Attendance is taken each scheduled class period at the beginning of class so it is important to
be on time and for the duration of the entire class.
3. You are required to develop a resume and begin a career development plan as part of this course. Members of
the Cameron Executive Network have agreed to review your resume and work with you to improve its
presentation. This is a rare and unique opportunity for students, so take it seriously.
Classroom climate: The Cameron School of Business is a professional school providing education and training for
careers in the business world. Classroom climate is designed to assist students in developing habits of behavior that will
contribute to their success in the business world. Classroom policies that do this are:
Good manners, including courtesy and respect extended to all.
Wearing appropriate clothes and shoes while in the classroom.
No food in the classroom.
Please turn OFF all cell phones and other electronic devices. If there are any special circumstances please notify
me prior to class start time.
Grading Scale:
A 91-100
B 81-90
C 71-80
D 61-70
F < 61
Breakdown of Course Points:
Exams
3 @ 25 points each
Homework
(as assigned)
75
15
Current events paper
15
Participation
10
Total
115
NOTE: The Cameron Resume Assistance Program (RAP) is mandatory and carries a 2pt. penalty of your final grade if
appointments/reservations are missed (1pt.) and/or if the assignment is late (1pt.). In addition, if the assignment is not
completed a grade of incomplete will be imposed. Please read letter from Dean Clark on the last page of this syllabus for
specific details. It is the student’s responsibility to complete and follow up on the RAP requirement.
Exams: There will be three exams given in this course. Anything that is in the text, homework , class discussions or class
exercises is applicable material for the exam. Exams are a combination of T/F, M/C , and short answer questions. Exam
dates are denoted in the schedule and students are required to meet these announced dates. There will be no make-up
exams unless there are extenuating circumstances.
Current event paper: I require a 3-4 page paper on one subject from the text. This paper has to be from one of a
limited number of journal titles such as Harvard Business Review, Academy of Management Executive, and Business
Week. Be sure to get your journal article approved, prior to completion. In addition, the article should not be any earlier
than January of 2009. The subject matter is your choice. The paper needs to be done at the time we cover the chapter
in the class. (Hint: Last chapter is over control and you won’t find many articles on it, so don’t wait until the last
minute!). The idea is to show you how new learning is constantly taking place and how you have to keep up with
readings to be valuable to firms in the future. You might be asked to present your current event. A 5-10 minute
presentation to the class with visual aids and opportunity for questions will be the criteria.
Participation: There are a number of ways a student can participate in class. Posing and answering questions, being
active in group discussions, providing examples from your work experience, bringing in new material from readings are
all ways to participate. I sometimes hand out articles for discussion purposes and also assign articles form popular
journals for class discussion.
Ethics: The usual university policies apply here. The student Honor code is on P. 84 of the 2009-10 Catalog. This area
also includes plagiarism issues—not giving credit where credit is due. Any student caught cheating or plagiarizing their
paper will earn an F for the course and be brought up for disciplinary action by the school.
University Learning Center
The University Learning Center (ULC) provides free programs and services that support students as they develop
independent learning strategies, personal responsibility, intellectual maturity, transferable skills, and a respect for
diverse learning experiences. It is important to remember that tutoring is not remediation: The ULC serves all students
who want to increase the quality of their learning. The following programs offer different levels of support, each
staffed by faculty-recommended and trained peer tutors.
Writing Services provides one-on-one and small group writing consultations for all students for any academic
writing purpose. Face-to-Face and Online tutoring is available.
Math Services helps students improve their math skills by providing tutoring for all Math and
Statistics courses or any course with a math or statistics component. No appointment is needed during open
lab hours.
Learning Services provides content tutoring for all Basic Studies courses. Learning Services also provides
Study Skills support for students seeking to strengthen their general academic skills. All Learning Services
tutoring is by appointment only.
The University Learning Center is located on the first floor of Westside Hall (WE 1056).
Phone: 962-7857; Website: www.uncw.edu/ulc
Schedule:
Be sure to read the Dear Dr. Dorothy vignettes in each chapter!
1/6 Introduction. Please download a copy of the article “New manager development for the 21st
Hill. Academy of Management Executive, 2004, Vol. 18 #3 p. 121-126.
Chapter one - Innovation for Turbulent Times
1/13 Chapter one continued-Innovation for Turbulent Times
Do Group learning individually.
Prepare to discuss the case Electra Products.
Chapter two-The Environment & Corporate Culture
1/20 Chapter 2 continued: Do “Working in an Adaptive Culture” p. 74
Be prepared to discuss Ethical Dilemma, p.76 & Case-Rio Grande Supply p.77
Chapter three-The Global Environment
1/27 Chapter 3 continued: Prepare to discuss the case Shui Fabrics-p. 113
Chapter four-Ethics and Social Responsibility
2/3 Chapter five-Planning and Goal Setting
Read H.I.D. Case p.193
Be prepared to discuss the Ethical Dilemma on p.147
Read case Empress Luxury Lines on p. 147
2/10 Exam #1
2/17
2/24
Chapter six-Decision Making
Read case: Pinnacle Machine Tool
Chapter seven—Designing Adaptive Organizations
Read Ethical Dilemma p.282
Chapter eight-Change & Innovation
century” by Linda
3/3
RAP program – Mandatory participation in class the first 50 minutes. Chapter nine-Human resources and
Diversity. Read case Waterway Industries for discussion p. 365
3/10
Spring Break – No Class
3/17 Chapter ten-Dynamics of Behavior in Organizations
3/24
Exam # 2
3/31 Chapter eleven-Leadership
Read case Mountain West Health Plans for discussion p.439
4/7 Chapter twelve—Motivation
Read Ethical Dilemma, P. 476
4/14 Chapter thirteen-Organizational Communication
Read Hunter-Worth Case, p. 515
4/24
Chapter 14--Teamwork
Reade Ethical Dilemma, p. 552
Chapter fifteen-Productivity through Quality Control Systems
4/28 Final Exam #3
Cameron School of Business
January, 2010
To:
Students Enrolled in MGT 350
Spring Semester, 2010
RE:
Resume Assistance Program (RAP)
Greetings: This semester, as a part of your enrollment in a section of MGT 350, you will be expected to complete our
Cameron Resume Assistance Program (RAP). I wish to briefly discuss this matter with you.
RAP is a Cameron School of Business initiative that was developed to assist students to become better prepared to seek
a possible internship opportunity and ultimately initial career job. It was created as a result of alumni feedback that
urged such a program to help Cameron students be more competitive in the marketplace. We continue to modify RAP
from feedback we receive from students when completing RAP and at graduation.
Southeast North Carolina is a very attractive location for retiring senior managers and professionals. Many of these
talented individuals choose to affiliate with our Cameron Executive Network (CEN), our highly respected mentor
program for Cameron students. Over 30 CEN members have committed to volunteer their time to be a part of our
Resume Assistance Program (RAP) for this spring to help you consider your future and develop a professional resume. It
is important that you respect the time and efforts of these special volunteers.
You will be required to meet with a RAP volunteer and then develop a resume consistent with the RAP template. The
template resume you create provides you what I call a default resume. You will be prepared to quickly present a resume
if, for example, a great internship opportunity should suddenly become available to you. Between now and your
graduation, you will achieve many more things, hopefully including an educational experience abroad, at least one
strong internship experience, possibly an honors project, etc. You will be able to modify your RAP resume to incorporate
these accomplishments and to otherwise best reflect your personal strengths, interests and/or career objectives. As
such, your ultimate resume may look much different from your RAP resume.
I will visit your MGT 350 class with some RAP team members to provide you complete information about RAP. The basics
are that you will be expected to schedule an appointment to see a RAP volunteer, make the appointment and complete
your resume within a specified time period. If you fail to keep your reservation and/or are late in completing your
resume I will request that your instructor impose a penalty of two course points. If you do not complete RAP I will
request that you be given an incomplete grade for MGT 350 (that will automatically convert to an F for your final course
grade if not resolved). Compliance with RAP expectations is easy and ultimately most beneficial to your competitiveness
in seeking an internship or first career position.
Any questions, concerns or requests (including the need to re-schedule an appointment) associated with RAP should be
addressed to our External Programs Office staff, not your course instructor. This office is located in CH 131. Ms. Deb
Helin (962-7452 or helind@uncw.edu) and/or Ms. Barb Biehner (biehnerb@uncw.edu) will help you. Any problems will
be forwarded to me for resolution, including the development of the ultimate list of students to receive a two point
penalty or incomplete grade for the course. I look forward to your cooperation in respecting the time and efforts of our
RAP volunteers.
Sincerely,
Larry Clark
Larry Clark
Dean, Cameron School of Business