In class: We will review the course objectives, syllabus, and research project requirements. Class members will give brief oral presentations (videotaped but not graded) to introduce themselves. I will collect e-mail addresses and students will sign up for conferences.
Introduction to the research project. At the end of the semester, you will present a talk and turn in a written report, suitable for a business audience, on a business topic. You will use the strategies described in Chapter 12 of Business and Managerial Communication (BMC) plus additional information obtained through an interview to conduct your research.
At your conference we will review your oral presentation and discuss your goals. Attend conference as scheduled. I want to meet with you as soon as possible.
Assignment: Sit in a comfortable spot. Sip a glass of your favorite beverage and read the whole syllabus. Highlight due dates, enter them in your calendar, or whatever you do to organize your work on a big project.
Once you have finished the syllabus, read...Pages 14 and 15 in BMC.In class: We will discuss a model of communication and corporate culture, and take part in a listening and feedback exercise. In the time remaining we will review common grammatical errors so we don't have to see them again.
Chapter 2, "Analyzing Business Situations and the Communications They Require" pp. 21 - 48, in BMC.
The Wall Street Journal articles handed out in class: "This Company Uses Sound Rules from Mother Nature," and "To Stay on Track."
Bring to class your current resume, or, if you do not have a resume, read pages 499-503 in BMC and prepare one.
Assignment: Read Chapters 3 and 4 in BMC. Photocopy Figure 4-7 (page 98) and use it to do exercise #1 on page 103 to hand in (neatly handwritten is O.K.). Be ready to discuss Strohmeyer in class. Read the American Electrical, Inc. (AEI) case handout and be ready to discuss it (do not begin work on any of the AEI assignments yet).
In class: We will review the chapters and discuss how to analyze situations and audiences. Groups will do a negotiation review exercise. We will create a comprehensive communication strategy for the Strohmeyer case and then break into teams to discuss the AEI case.
Assignment: Begin work on the strategy memo for AEI. This memo will be due on 9/25. The other AEI writing exercises will be assigned later in the course.
Read Chapter 5 in BMC, pp. 105-123 in BMC.
Read Chapter 16 in BMC, pp. 411-438 in BMC.
Choose your topic for your three-minute speech.The three-minute presentation will be on the way the organizational culture of a company or organization you know well affects its communication practices. Review pages 28-36 and exercise 2 on page 44 for ideas. What are the company or organization's values (see table on page 33)? Its heroes? Its myths? What would get a person into big trouble in this company or organization? What are the feedback times for a typical transaction? Is everything wrapped up in big transactions or are there many small ones? Could you describe the organization with Deal and Kennedy's labels: a bureaucracy, a bet-your-company culture, a macho culture, or a "work hard/play hard" culture? How do these features affect types of documents, style, oral interactions, meetings, and graphics? You won't be able to describe all of these things, so focus on the most salient characteristics (the ones that affect communication the most) and their effects.
In class: We will review oral presentation skills and prepare for your first speech on Wednesday, September 18. We will watch a 15-minute video introducing the Wetlands case which will be presented by teams on October 16, during Session #13. Wetlands teams will be assigned.
Assignment: Prepare and rehearse your three-minute talk (note that no Power Point presentations are allowed in this session. If you want to use visual aids, you can use objects or overheads.) The assignment for this presentation is described more fully in the assignment for Session 4, Sept. 16 .
Bring your videotape cued up and ready to go!
Finish your typed strategy memo for the AEI case.
Wetlands teams should be reading the materials from the Internet. The simulation can be accessed directly from http://www.ruf.rice.edu/~admn507/wetlands and the homepage can be found at http://www.rice.edu/wetlands
In class:
Three-minute speeches -- I'll bring the stopwatch. Each person will critique two other students. The reviewer will point out the two primary strengths of the presentation immediately after the talk, as the speaker returns to his or her seat. The videotape for this class will be placed in the BIC on September 23rd so that speakers can review their presentations. Feedback forms will be given to the speaker at the end of class and must be returned to me at the start of the next class
session.
Assignment:Read pages 345-346 in The Business Writer's Handbook (excerpts assigned are on reserve in the BIC).
Read "Strategies for Effective Interviewing," a Harvard Business Review article on reserve in the BIC.
Read pp. 200-209 on e-mail and phone mail in BMC. Check the Netiquette site.
Wetlands teams should be meeting.
Go to the west Eugene wetlands web site at http://www.rice.edu/wetlands and the communication simulation at http://www.ruf.rice.edu/~admn507/wetlands Go to the individual assignments page and click on Individual Assignment 2. This assignment will be due on Monday, September 30. Become familiar with it and begin thinking about how the concepts from Chapters 2 through 5 in BMC can be applied to a strategy memo.
Research Project Proposal Memo. It is time to begin work on your independent research project. A folder of successful research papers form last year will be on file in the BIC; you may want to look at them before selecting your topic. Read the instructions for the independent research project and prepare an e-mail memo requesting approval of your research topic and identifying the name of the person you plan to interview. Submit your proposal or attach it to an e-mail message (see research project instructions). Send the memo to driskila@rice.edu.
In class:
Deborah Barrett, Ph.D. of McKinsey and Company will show a video of a press conference and discuss the effect of word choice and presentation style on the "persona" projected by various corporate executives. MEET IN THE FARNSWORTH PAVILION at the Rice Memorial Center for this session.
Assignment:
Finish the AEI Strategy Memo.
Begin working on your individual research project. Read your return e-mail about your project proposal. Contact the individual you have chosen to set up an interview. Conduct the interview as soon as possible, making notes.
The ad on page 268 of BMC describes an increasingly familiar situation: an organization or an individual needs specific information and expects colleagues to be able to find it, right away. Early in the school's history, Jones School students developed a reputation for being able to find information expertly, as they trounced teams from other schools at case competitions. Now your time has come.
Read Chapter 12, "Research Strategies for Business Reports" pp. 261-272 in BMC.
Write a one-paragraph explanation of a research question you would like to have answered.
Give some description of your reasons for wanting to answer the question. Be prepared to do research on this topic or another that may be assigned you. Any question that a manager might reasonably ask a colleague to use business time to research will be acceptable. (It would NOT be acceptable for this session to ask a colleague to find the names of good restaurants in a particular city, for example, even though it might be necessary to plan entertainment for a VIP, because non-business sources would be most appropriate for the research.) The point of the exercise is to do research similar to that you might have to do in a business setting with the business resources available through a business library such as those at the BIC.
In class: Meet in Room 104 Mudd for this session.
Wetlands teams announced in class and on the web. We will work in teams on computers to practice on-line business research.
Assignments:
Reading. Read pp. 227-233 and 248-258 from Chapter 11, "Letters and Memos." Review "Strategies for Interviewing," a Harvard Business Review article assigned earlier on reserve in the BIC. Review Chapter 3 to go over concepts of relationship management.
Continue working on your research project. Set up and conduct the interview for your research project (telephone is O.K.). Type up your notes including the company, title, name, and telephone number of the person you contacted, your interview questions, and notes on responses. Make a copy of the thank you letter you sent. This assignment is due to be handed in by Session #11 - Wednesday, October 14. Don't delay getting started; what if the person you want to interview is away on travel, or doesn't return your call immediately? Please plan ahead because I won't accept late assignments.
Meet with your team this week to review the Wetlands Case. At a convenient time, each team should review the wetlands case materials and consider the best approach to the audience in its assigned situation. You will prepare visuals and a fifteen-minute oral prsentation for Session 13, Wednesday, October 16th. The first two minutes should be an introduction for the rest of the class abou the pertinent facts of the situation, such as location, identity of the audience for the presentation, and so on.
Working alone, prepare Individual Assignment 2 from the west Eugene wetlands case. No collaboration is permitted on the preparation of this assignment, although you may certainly discuss the TEAM assignment with your team.
In class: Turn in Individual Assignment 2 from the west Eugene wetlands case. Compare answers in class. Interview exercise. We will discuss the two remaining assignments for the AEI case: a press release and a communication to employees. These two writing assignments will be due on Wednesday, October 2. During class I'll assign teams and individual tasks for the upcoming AEI briefing.
Assignment:
Review the AEI case and finish your press release and announcement to AEI employees. See instructions in case.
Prepare a 5-minute briefing geared to the audience you have been assigned (for example, one person may be asked to prepare remarks to the shareholders, while another might be addressing the executive committee). Visual aids may be used if you feel it is appropriate. Bring your videotape to class cued up and ready to go.
Go to the BIC and scan recent business periodicals to identify a business-related topic for your next speech, a "TV guest spot," which will be six minutes long and must include visual aids. Send me an e-mail message requesting approval of your topic.
In class: Meet in the breakout room designated on your assignment sheet. Each team will be responsible for videotaping briefings. All briefings should be finished within 45 minutes from the start of class. Return to the regular classroom and bring your tapes. (I will grade presentations from the tapes.)
Turn in your AEI press release and announcement.
In the remaining class time we will finish our review of letters and memos and review methods of organizing and writing memo-reports and longer documents. We will discuss how to structure an argument, elements of executive summaries, and how to approach several sample report-writing scenarios.
During class I will hand out the second major case writing assignment. You will receive all the materials you need to write a 3-4 page memo-report -- no additional research is necessary (or allowed!) A DRAFT of this 3-4 page memo-report will be due Monday, October 14. Your revised draft will be due Wednesday, October 23.
Assignment: Read Chapter 15, "Graphics: Visual Persuasion," pp. 371-402 in BMC. Bring in an overhead you have seen or used at work (white out any confidential information). We will be using these in class for "eye training."
In class: In time remaining we will have an "eye training" session to evaluate graphics. Groups will meet to discuss the sample overheads from offices. View video excerpts from "The Nightly Business Report" and "Wall Street Week" in class.
Assignment:
Six-minute talk: Thought you would never be a star of silver screens? Portfolio managers, marketers, and top executives find themselves on video explaining things to clients, employees, and the general public. For this class session, we'll have a couple of studios" devoted to a Jones School version of "The Nightly Business Report."
To prepare for your guest spot, choose a current business question about which you have some knowledge thanks to your experience, personal interest, daily reading of The Wall Street Journal, or other course work. Practice a presentation that answers this key question and sub-questions that contribute to the audience's understanding of your answer. Note that this will be a seated presentation.
Turn in your question to the instructor at the beginning of class, who will arrange for you and your question to be introduced to the video audience. You will respond to the question as though you had been asked to do a guest editorial on the show. In actual fact, the guest comments are never six minutes long, but we will give you a longer opportunity on JONES TV.
Report design: Read Chapter 13 in BMC.
In The Business Writer Handbook, read "Five Steps to Successful Writing," (pages x-xvii), "Executive Summaries" (pages 237-239), and "Methods of Development" (pages 417-419).
In class: Go to the "studio" to which you have been assigned. Each person will appear on "The Morning Business Report." All presentations will be videotaped and graded afterward by the instructor. In the remaining time we will talk about report design and organization.
Assignment: Complete work on your bibliography and be ready to turn it in.
Finish a draft of your 3-4 page memo-report on the case assigned on October 2. Make two copies to bring to class.
From The Business Writer's Handbook excerpts on reserve in the BIC, read "Layout and Design" (pages 374-384).
Bring a business brochure or any publication you think is either well designed or poorly designed. Be prepared to discuss why you have this opinion.
In class: Hand in your interview notes, your bibliography, and the thank you letter. Bring two copies of your draft memo-report so team members can edit your work. During the second half of class we will meet in groups to discuss document design and evaluate publications.
Assignment: Have a final meeting with your team to prepare visuals and a fifteen-minute oral presentation (note that all members of the team must have a speaking role). The first few minutes should be designed to introduce the class to your team's situation, identity, etc. Practice your presentation. Bring one videotape to class, cued-up and ready to go! (Team members may meet later to review the tape or arrange to have it copied.)
In class: Each team will have 15 minutes to present its Wetlands case. We will videotape all presentations.
Assignment: Read Chapter 8 and part of 9, "Creating Coherence" in BMC, pp. 156-171 and 174 - 181.
Revise your 3-4 page memo-report and have it ready to hand in during class. Be prepared to explain your approach to the class. ALSO bring a copy of this report on disk so that it can be projected via computer and an LCD panel as you explain your document.
In class: Hand in memo-report you first drafted for Session 12. Some students will be asked to demonstrate their revision techniques in class.
Assignment: Bring in the first draft of your research paper.
In Class: During class we will review some of the wetlands tapes. Peer editing groups will assist writers by responding to the research paper drafts. Sign up for final presentations.
Assignment:
If you have signed up to give your research presentation today, prepare and rehearse the presentation, which will be based on the research report you have been working on since September. When it is your turn to present, bring your videotape cued up and ready to go.
In class: On this day and on November 4 and 11, five or six class members will have ten minutes to present findings from their research reports and answer questions. Class members will be encouraged to ask pertinent questions during the presentation, so organize your materials with parts that can be omitted if time is running short. Class members will fill out feedback forms for speakers.
Assignment: Complete your final research paper. Make sure the executive summary is strong and proof your work carefully.
Prepare and rehearse your final presentation, which will be based on the research report you have been working on since September. When it is your turn to present, bring your videotape cued up and ready to go.
In class: Hand in your final research paper.
Each class member will have ten minutes to present findings from his or her research report and answer questions. Class members will be encouraged to ask pertinent questions during the presentation, so organize your materials with parts that can be omitted if time is running short. Class members will fill out feedback forms for speakers.
This is a special message for those of you who have read the whole syllabus (as assigned for Monday, Sept. 9): Thank you! You will be well prepared for this course by knowing what is ahead. Ask questions early and often -- you will be rewarded! To confirm that you have read this far, please send me an email before noon on Monday, September 9 (driskila@rice.edu).
In class: Course evaluation. Class will last for twenty minutes only.
Assignment: If you are scheduled to present during this session, bring your videotape to class - cued up and ready to go.
In class: Final presentations will be delivered (See format and feedback guidelines above.)
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