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BMGT 3600 Syllabus

Course Syllabus

BMGT 3600 - International Management

3 Credit Hours

Course Information

Course Description:

This course explores the theory and practice of “managing across borders.” It demonstrates how cultural factors influence behavior in the workplace and examines the skills needed to manage across national borders. This course is about learning global management.

Course Outcomes:
  1. Practice and knowledge of managing global business practices
  2. Knowledge of business environment within which the company operates on the factor of national and organizational culture.
  3. Knowledge of the influences of national culture on the internal arrangements of a company.
  4. Knowledge of how internal arrangements influence the strategy of a company.
  5. Practice and knowledge of International Human Resource Management issues in making the company strategy work.
  6. Knowledge of cross cultural negotiations and communications.
  7. Experience in interviewing and interacting with people from other countries/cultures.
Prerequisites & Co-requisites:

General management course

Course Topics:

See assignment and team project section.

Specific Course Requirements:

See assignment and team project section.

Textbooks, Supplementary Materials, Hardware and Software Requirements

Required Textbooks:

Please visit the Virtual Bookstore to obtain textbook information for this course. Move your cursor over the "Books" link in the navigation bar and select "Textbooks & Course Materials." Select your Program, Term, Department, and Course; then select "Submit."

Hardware and Software Requirements:

Minimum hardware requirements can be found here.

Minimum software requirements can be found here.

Common applications you might need:

Web Resources:

Purdue OWL Online Writing Lab (for APA, MLA, or Chicago style)

The Writing Center Online Writer's Handbook

Student Resources:
  • Technical support information can be found on the TN eCampus Help Desk page.
  • Smarthinking virtual tutoring is available FREE of charge. to access Smarthinking, visit the course homepage and select Smarthinking under Course Resources. You also view sample sessions to see what Smarthinking offers and how it works.
  • Information on other student issues or concerns can be located on the TN eCampus Student Resources page.

Instructor Information

Please see "Instructor Information" in the Getting Started Module for instructor contact information, virtual office hours, and other communication information. You can expect to receive a response from the instructor within 24-48 hours unless notified of extenuating circumstances.

Participation, Assessments, & Grading

Testing Procedures:

Testing done on-line.

Grading Procedures:

TOTAL 1000 points 
15 quizzes...10 points each. 150 points TAKE THESE BY THE DUE DATE/TIME.

Assignments TOTAL 100 points - Dropbox BY DUE DATE AND TIME.

Assignments One, Two and Three are 10 points each.
Assignments Four, Five, Six and Seven are 20 points each.

Assignment Eight Final paper submitted to Dropbox BY DUE DATE AND TIME 100 Points

Country, Company, Case, Cultural (CCCC)@ Presentation 400 points

Participation 250 points-Four Discussions at 20 points each. Team and Week of Management participation at 170 points.

Grading Scale:

Grading Scale: @ While there will be input from peers on some assignments, the instructor reserves the right to adjust student input from peer grading.

1,000-930 93 A
929-850 85 B
849-770 77 C
769-700 70 D
699-0 F

Grades will be assigned on the scale presented above. There will be no rounding up a letter grade at the end of the course. There is no extra credit available in this class.

The grading scale emphasizes assignments, projects, and student participation in the learning community as well as timed quizzes and periodic examinations.

Assignments and Projects:

RECOMMENDED GUIDE...TAKE THE 15 Quizzes when you are ready by the due date/time.

HELPFUL HINTS FOR GROUP PROJECT

The purpose of the group project is to bridge theory and practice. The student will work in a group, which will perform the following activities:1. Choose a Country, Company, and Case, Cultural (CCCC) and become subject matter experts in the area by researching the country, the company, the culture and interviewing a person from the region. As a group of experts, you will present your case (biography, autobiography, movie of a person's life), country, company, and culture to the class on line. Helpful Hints: Decide if you want a leader of the group. Exchange phone numbers and schedules. Discuss what skill sets exist in the group (i.e., presentation skills, research skills, writing skills, technology skills, etc.)Remember: This is a group project. All members of the group will receive the same grade, which presents team-based dynamics in organizations. You may want to discuss how you will handle team behavior that is dysfunctional to the group's overall performance. The instructor will not become involved in group issues.

Discuss your core competencies. Discuss each individual’s strengths and development needs. Understand your group composite and build on your strengths. Create roles to support your strengths and also develop your "soft" spots.

Be creative in your planning...Incorporate ARTIFACTS from your research. What business customs will you demonstrate in your presentation?

2. Choose a global company or organization that is located in your chosen country/region. Analyze the organization using Baldrige Organizational Profile (on line) discussed in Process PPTs. Gather information on the country, the company and the culture. Use on line sources. Source a current or historical figure from the country/region. Design research questions to ask the literature about the person. As a group of experts, you will present your findings on the case, the company, the culture, and the countryHelpful Hints: You may want to identify local companies that have GLOBAL locations (i.e. TRW, Cummins, Honeywell, Dell Computers, etc.)As a group, design questions that you will ask. The literature based on the E-Baldrige Organizational Profile is available at the Baldrige website at http://www.nist.gov/baldrige/publications/upload/2015_2016_Organizational_Profile_Business_Nonprofit.pdf The purpose of the case is to gain experience in research. Thus each member of the group is to research one historical or current figure from the country. For example, if there are 3 members of your group, you will source and identify 3 different current or historical figures from the country or region. You will use secondary sources (videos, URLs, biographies, autobiographies, etc.) For example, The Hero's Walk by Anita Rau Badami or viewing a movie of a person's life (i.e. Ghandi). Also, design questions you will ask the literature on the country and culture. Include the questions you asked and findings in your final report.

If you interview a person, you must provide an informed consent form. Ask instructor for specifics. You will need to follow the guidelines as outlined by The Institutional Review Committee for the Protection of Human Subjects at Tennessee Technological University (TTU).

Do not use case names when presenting your information. All cases will remain anonymous with simple fictitious names used that are not meant to represent any existing individuals. Do not use specific information such as address, age, etc. After you research, you will prepare and present your (Case, Country, Culture, Company) CCCC presentation.Teaching is learning. You will become the subject matter experts. You will be teaching the CCCC and bringing into the classroom "real time" knowledge from the case/companies/countries, and cultures. In order to effectively accomplish this, you will need to triangulate sources (use various sources of information). Factor this into your decision on "who does what" as part of the team process and your schedules. Also, be creative in your presentation. Incorporate country customs, business protocol, prepare food common to the region to share with the class, source information on the Web that highlights your presentation and brings CCCC to life.3. Present the final product on the last day of class. The final product will consist of, but not be limited to:

Company Analysis the Baldrige Organizational Profile Content 3-4 pages E-Baldrige Organizational Profile assessment tool available at: https://www.nist.gov/baldrige/self-assessing/improvement-tools/easyinsight-take-first-step-toward-baldrige-self.

Country Analysis - 2 pages
Cultural Analysis- Hofstede's or the 7d Model of Culture (Chapter 2) or another model of your choice 2 pages.
Case Analysis-2 pages of interview questions.
Individual Reflection of the overall project & group experience 1-2 pages
10-page Group Paper
1-2 page Individual Reflection paper are to be presented on line with supporting materials (project management plan, interview questions, etc.).
 
Helpful Hints:The Company and Cultural Analysis and Country Description are intended to be done by the group. The interview was done individually and can be included in this section as well. As a group, decide who will do what. The Individual Reflection paper (2 pages) addresses the following questions:

What was your group role in the project? What concretely did you do? Describe specifically your actions in securing the organization, analyzing the organization, writing the sections, the class presentation, etc. What did you think and feel about what you did? What did you learn about . . . Country/Culture -the person you interviewed the organization you analyzed working in a team working globally. What will you do differently the next time you . . . analyze a company, culture, or country - research a case work in a team. As we have learned, self-managed teams function well because of the potential for varied and unique contributions by members toward the team's goal. Please appraise the contribution and performance of each of your team members. You should allocate 100% across all group members, including yourself. For example: Don Adams 10%, Bob Barker 25%, Joe Cool 10%, Your name 25%, Pepper Patty 30%.

Class Participation:
  1. Students are asked to communicate with other students in the chat room.
  2. Students are expected to communicate with the instructor as a learning resource.
  3. Students are asked to check the course bulletin board frequently for announcements. 
  4. Students are asked to actively participate in threaded discussion events.
  5. Students are asked to work in your assigned teams to create your presentation and company research.
Late Policy:
  1. Merely showing up will not cut it in the world of business. It is expected you will be an enthusiastic, contributing member of an organization. If you are not, you will not be employed for very long. At times, you may be undergoing personal crisis and not feel like being at work, but you must get psyched up and convince people you want to be there. You can’t afford to look,act bored and distract others, for it will be noted, and you will demotivate your organization.
  2. It is assumed that when you registered for this course, you would complete the assignments on time. Please read this syllabus carefully. I will maintain an even playing field for all participants.
  3. All assignments must be turned in by the due date appearing on the class calendar. In the business world, a bid submitted after the closing date will not be considered. Non-completion of a federal or state contract on the agreed-upon date can result in severe financial or court adjudicated penalties. In this class, a late paper, presentation, or assignment receives zero points. However, it still must be completed to receive a final grade.
  4. Students are required to be prepared and to participate in assignments, discussion groups, cases, quizzes, presentations, and simulations as a vital part of the learn-by-doing process.
  5. The instructor retains the privilege of making periodic changes in this syllabus throughout the semester, and the dropping of a student from the course due to excessive absenteeism, improper conduct, or other just cause. THE SYLLABUS IS EVERGREEN and WILL BE CHANGED. The class will be notified of changes via email and tips.
  6. Course assignments, written and non-written, will be described fully in additional assignments.
  7. All text, lecture, and simulations are fair game for tests.
  8. Any necessary course changes to the syllabus will be sent to the student by e-mail and posted on the bulletin board. Ensure that you read all correspondence. I am more than happy to clarify ambiguity or respond to issues I may have missed.

Course Ground Rules

The following two statements (1., 2.) were derived from the TBR System-wide Student Rules document, released January 2012:

RULES OF THE TENNESSEE BOARD OF REGENTS STATE UNIVERSITY AND COMMUNITY COLLEGE SYSTEM OF TENNESSEE SYSTEMWIDE STUDENT RULES CHAPTER 0240-02-03 STUDENT CONDUCT AND DISCIPLINARY SANCTIONS

Read the document in its entirety here.

1. Standards of Conduct:

  • Students are required to adhere to the same professional, legal and ethical standards of conduct online as on campus. In addition, students should conform to generally accepted standards of "netiquette" while sending e-mail, posting comments to the discussion board, and while participating in other means of communicating online. Specifically, students should refrain from inappropriate and/or offensive language, comments and actions.

2. Review the TN eCampus Academic Integrity/Academic Honesty Policy:

  • In their academic activities, students are expected to maintain high standards of honesty and integrity. Academic dishonesty is prohibited.

Such conduct includes, but is not limited to:

  • an attempt by one or more students to use unauthorized information in the taking of an exam
  • to submit as one's own work, themes, reports, drawings, laboratory notes, computer programs, or other products prepared by another person,
  • or to knowingly assist another student in obtaining or using unauthorized materials.

Plagiarism, cheating, and other forms of academic dishonesty are prohibited.

Students guilty of academic misconduct, either directly or indirectly through participation or assistance, are subject to disciplinary action through the regular procedures of the student’s home institution.  Refer to the student handbook provided by your home institution to review the student conduct policy.

In addition to other possible disciplinary sanctions that may be imposed, the instructor has the authority to assign an "F" or zero for an activity or to assign an "F" for the course.

Other Course Rules:

Students are expected to:

  • Participate in all aspects of the course
  • Communicate with other students
  • Learn how to navigate in Brightspace
  • Keep abreast of course announcements
  • Use the assigned course management (Brightspace) email address rather than a personal email address
  • Address technical problems immediately:
  • Observe course netiquette at all times.

Guidelines for Communications

Email:

  • Always include a subject line.
  • Remember without facial expressions some comments may be taken the wrong way. Be careful in wording your emails. Use of emoticons might be helpful in some cases.
  • Use standard fonts.
  • Do not send large attachments without permission.
  • Special formatting such as centering, audio messages, tables, html, etc. should be avoided unless necessary to complete an assignment or other communication.
  • Respect the privacy of other class members

Discussions:

  • Review the discussion threads thoroughly before entering the discussion. Be a lurker then a discussant.
  • Try to maintain threads by using the "Reply" button rather starting a new topic.
  • Do not make insulting or inflammatory statements to other members of the discussion group. Be respectful of other’s ideas.
  • Be patient and read the comments of other group members thoroughly before entering your remarks.
  • Be cooperative with group leaders in completing assigned tasks.
  • Be positive and constructive in group discussions.
  • Respond in a thoughtful and timely manner.

Library

The Tennessee Virtual Library is available to all students enrolled in TN eCampus programs and courses. Links to library materials (such as electronic journals, databases, interlibrary loans, digital reserves, dictionaries, encyclopedias, maps, and librarian support) and Internet resources needed by learners to complete online assignments and as background reading will be included within the course modules. To access the Virtual Library, go to the course homepage and select the Virtual Library link under Course Resources.

Students with Disabilities

Qualified students with disabilities will be provided reasonable and necessary academic accommodations if determined eligible by the appropriate disability services staff at their home institution. Prior to granting disability accommodations in this course, the instructor must receive written verification of a student's eligibility for specific accommodations from the disability services staff at the home institution. It is the student's responsibility to initiate contact with their home institution's disability services staff and to follow the established procedures for having the accommodation notice sent to the instructor.

Syllabus Changes

The instructor reserves the right to make changes as necessary to this syllabus. If changes are necessitated during the term of the course, the instructor will immediately notify students of such changes both by individual email communication and posting both notification and nature of change(s) on the course bulletin board.

Disclaimer

The information contained in this syllabus is for general information purposes only. While we endeavor to keep this information up-to-date and accurate, there may be some discrepancies between this syllabus and the one found in your online course. The syllabus of record is the one found in your online course. Please make sure you read the syllabus in your course at the beginning of the semester. Questions regarding course content should be directed to your instructor.


Last Revised on July 12, 2021