MGMT 303 Master Syllabus - Hybrid

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MGMT 303: Principles of Management Master Syllabus - Hybrid

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Course Website: Canvas

Course Format

This course has two components a lecture and a recitation for your convenience the two courses have been merged into one Canvas shell. Your lectures are delivered by your lead instructor, Dr. Rosenbusch and your weekly assignments are graded by your recitation instructors which vary for every section. Click on contact instructor tab in Canvas for the name of your recitation instructor. Contact your recitation instructor first with any course related questions. You are always welcome to reach out to the lead lecture instructor if you need further assistance. Please make sure and include name and section when emailing us. 

Recitation Instructors

Recitation Instructor Email Sections Time/Location
       
       
       

Required Text

Kinicki, A. & Breaux Soignet, D. (2024). Management: A practical introduction. McGraw-Hill: Irwin, NY. CONNECT Access is required. 

This course will be participating in First Day—a special program that will allow immediate access to your textbook on the first day of classes. George Mason University will bill you directly for the text after Add/Drop date. This textbook comes with an online management system called CONNECT and SmartBook It combines your eBook with questions to test your understanding of key concepts and to pinpoint the topics on which you need to focus (SmartBook) and has interactive activities to apply your knowledge (CONNECT). See more information and FAQs about First Day.

**Students with visual impairments may have difficulty with SmartBook and Connect depending on the nature of the assignments. Please reach out to the instructor for an alternative homework assignment. 

Course Description

This course examines the nature of managerial work under a range of business models and under rapidly changing business conditions. Managerial functions and activities such as planning, organizing, leading and controlling are examined in depth and in the context of current organizational examples and scenarios. Students will look at the variety of pressures contemporary managers face; clients and competitors, leaders above and colleagues that report to you, organizational demands and personal goals. Students will also examine the ways in which managers attempt to balance all of the conflicting demands. 

Technology Requirements

Canvas will be used for this course. Login and click on the “Courses” tab. You will see two MGMT 303 courses lecture and recitation. Since we have copied all the lectures into the recitation for your convenience you will not need the lecture section in Canvas—go straight to recitation section for all course information. NOTE: Username and passwords are the same as your Mason email account. You must have consistent access to an internet connection in order to complete the assignments in this course.

Please see the Costello College of Business minimum computing requirements, listed here (see the section, “Laptop Policy”). Honorlock, a Google Chrome extension, will be utilized while taking exams, which requires a webcam and microphone. Exam takers don’t need to download software to use Honorlock. Instead, exam takers only need to add the Honorlock Google Chrome extension plug-in, which can be removed after the course. Get the Honorlock Chrome Extension here.

  • Operating System: Windows 10, macOS 10.14+, Chrome OS 
  • Browser: Google Chrome (93+)
  • Internet Speed: Speed: 1.5 Mbps download, 750 Kbps upload 

Participation

Learning can only happen when you are playing an active role. It is important to place more emphasis on developing your insights and skills, rather than transmitting information. Knowledge is more important than facts and definitions. It is a way of looking at the world, an ability to interpret and organize future information. An active learning approach will more likely result in long-term retention and better understanding because you make the content of what you are learning concrete and real in your mind. Although an active role can look differently for various individuals, it is expected in this class that you will work to explore issues and ideas under the guidance of the professor and your peers. You can do this by reflecting on the content and activities of this course, asking questions, striving for answers, interpreting observations, and discussing issues with your peers. 

Rules and Expectations

In correspondence/communication students will be expected to: 

  1. Be professional and respectful in correspondence 
  2. Make reasonable requests of the instructor. We will be happy to clarify course material and answer legitimate questions; however, please exhaust other information sources (e.g., syllabus, Canvas) for answering your question before contacting me and remember, “Poor planning on your part does not constitute an emergency on my part”

* You should direct all course-related questions, concerns, problems, etc. to your recitation instructor for the recitation section in which you are enrolled after referring to the course syllabus. If the recitation instructor is unable to help you, he/she will forward issue to Dr. Rosenbusch. Please find recitation instructors emails on Canvas. 

Students are expected to complete and submit all course assignments on the dates scheduled.  Accepting an assignment after the scheduled close of the class on its due date is at the sole discretion of the instructor.  If you will be unable to complete and submit the assignment by the due date and time, the student must obtain the instructor’s approval prior to the start of class on that date. The instructor will deduct 10% for every day that the assignment is late.  

If you suspect that you are sick or have been directed to self-isolate, please quarantine or get tested. If the campus closes or class is canceled due to weather or other concern, students should check Canvas for updates on how to continue learning and information about any changes to events or assignments. *Make up of assignments will only be offered to those who provide proper verification from health check and testing. 

Plagiarism and the Internet

Copyright rules also apply to users of the Internet who cite from Internet sources. Information and graphics accessed electronically must also be cited, giving credit to the sources. This material includes but is not limited to e-mail (don't cite or forward someone else's e-mail without permission), newsgroup material, information from Web sites, including graphics. Even if you give credit, 3 you must get permission from the original source to put any graphic that you did not create on your web page. Shareware graphics are not free. Freeware clipart is available for you to freely use. If the material does not say "free," assume it is not. Putting someone else's Internet material on your web page is stealing intellectual property. Making links to a site is, at this time, okay, but getting permission is strongly advised, since many Web sites have their own requirements for linking to their material. 

Hybrid Grading

Assignments
Team Project & Presentation
Phase I: Team Contract + Team Meeting 10pts + 5pts
Phase II: Organizational Profile + Interview Qs 80pts + 20 pts
Phase III: Zoom Interview 10pts
Phase IV: Managerial Analysis Team Paper + Team Presentation  80pts (Paper)
Phase V: Team Participation Evaluation 20pts (Presentation)
Individual Assignments
Self-Reflective Journal (3 @ 10 pts each)  30pts
Personal Development Action Plan 20pts
Self-Assessments (2 pts per assessment) 30pts
SmartBook Assignments (6pts per chapter) 90pts
Quizzes & Exams
Quizzes (4 @ 25pts each) 100pts
Midterm Exam 180pts
Final Exam 180pts
Participation
Recitation participation (In class + Intro Video)  65pts
Connect Cases (5pts per case) 25pts
Research Credit  25pts
Course Feedback 10pts

All Assignments are worth up to 1000 points. No rounding will occur. Details are below: 

  1. The benchmark standards for grades are described by the following criteria: A: The student demonstrates an excellent understanding of the topic by showing a thorough, correct, and accurate understanding of the concepts, theory and/or research, as well as the ability to evaluation critically the topic.  This understanding is shown in written and/or verbal communications that are clear, precise, grammatically correct, and well-formed in logic and presentation.  The student shows a mastery of the subject under discussion and can integrate concepts within this course and from other areas of application.  While not necessarily original, the work is of superior quality.  The A grade is reserved for students who demonstrate outstanding achievement in all aspects of the assignment or activity. 
  2. The student demonstrates a fundamental understanding of the topic.  While the key and essential concepts, theories and research are adequately covered, there may be other relevant aspects of the topic which are not treated adequately, either in written or verbal presentations or in class discussion.  While written assignments are generally in good form, there may be periodic lapses in grammar or logic.  In general, the work is of good quality.  This is the minimal level of performance expected of graduate students. 
  3. The student shows an adequate but not fully correct understanding of the topic.  Some key points are addressed, but other points are left out or are not covered at all.  There are specific problems, weaknesses and/or gaps in accuracy, correctness and/or logic in the presentation of the assignment.  In general, the work is marginally acceptable at the graduate level. 
  4. Unacceptable and unsatisfactory for any of several reasons, including: non-completion of the assignment, nonattendance or non-participation, submitted work of unacceptable quality, and any other failure to meet minimum standards of course preparation, completion or participation.

Grading Procedure

Generally, all written assignments will be given a letter grade: A, B, C, D or F; + and – grades may be added to the A, B or C grades.  The numerical equivalent of each letter grade is as follows:

A+ 970pts and above 
A 930 – 969.99pts
A- 900 – 929.99pts
B+ 870 – 899.99pts
B 830 – 869.99pts
B- 800 – 829.99pts
C+ 770 – 799.99pts
C 700 – 769.99pts
D 600 – 699.99pts
F Below 600 

Assignments Descriptions

TEAM ASSIGNMENTS (23%) 
Contract, Organizational Profile, Interview Questions, Managerial Analysis Paper  
You will work in teams of approximately four to five students to complete a semester-long project culminating in a business-style final report and a presentation to the rest of the class. Take advantage of this great opportunity to gain in-depth knowledge about a company and practice your management skills. The project is designed to encourage creativity, critical thinking, networking and enjoyment! When selecting a manager-the individual MUST have direct reports OR supervise other individuals. 
*You may NOT interview a person that you have interviewed for previous university courses e.g. BUS 303; a relative or a manager on George Mason University campus i.e. Panera Bread, Bookstore 
**There will be a TurnItIn Checkpoint for major team assignments—this is to allow your team to make sure no one plagiarized without other team members knowing. 

Team Contract   
This contract will serve as a strategy for your collective learning experience. It should outline group policies and procedures as well as a timeline for development of your team case analysis and final project. You should recognize that this contract is a dynamic and changing document that may be revisited and updated throughout the process. Grading of this assignment will be dependent upon the thoughtful reflection by all group members. See guidelines on Canvas for more detailed instructions. 

Organizational Profile 
Each team will develop an organizational profile as well as understand the skills needed for one organization. Your team will analyze the company’s culture, their strategy & structure as well as the skillsets needed to work in that organization. This assignment will give your team an understanding about the management principles at the organizational level. You must include at least 5 references on a reference page along with in text citations and a list of the contributions of each team member. This assignment should be about 3-5 pages double spaced. See guidelines on Canvas for more detailed instructions. 

Interview Questions 
Each team will interview a manager that is currently working in one business organization and conduct an interview in person with the entire team to better understand the manager’s job. You may not interview someone in the immediate family of a team member or from a previous course (i.e. BUS 303). Develop a sound list of questions you will ask in order to complete your managerial analysis—It is helpful to look at the guidelines for the managerial analysis to formulate the questions. You should have at least 10-12 quality questions. Once approved by your recitation instructor you will interview the manager either in person or via Zoom. You must upload your Zoom recording or a transcript to Canvas. All team members must be present for the interview and viewed on camera in the interview. This assignment should be about 1-2 pages. See guidelines on Canvas for more detailed instructions. 

Managerial Analysis  
The team will also gather information about a current issue or problem the manager is facing and write a paper that provides an in-depth analysis of this issue or problem using principles learned in this class, concluding with a recommendation to the manager. This assignment challenges you to connect the reallife experiences of a business manager to the theoretical principles of management and to draw your own conclusions about how to approach problems that managers face in the business world today. This assignment will give your team an understanding about the management principles at the individual manager level. You must include 5 academic references on reference page which is not counted in your total page count. Each student should label which section they wrote. Please include the manager’s contact information in the final paper so the instructor can send a thank you note to the manager. This assignment should be about 8-10 pages double spaced. See guidelines on Canvas for more detailed instructions. 
**The work should be divided evenly. Each student must write at least two sections—please label which section each student contributed to. You will also identify which section you wrote in the peer evaluation. 

Team Participation 
Peer evaluation will be used as the basis of assigning individual grade to team members and ensuring every member contributes equally to project completion. At two points in the semester, each member of the team will submit a peer evaluation of themselves and their team members individually (and not in group) to your recitation instructor providing informal feedback on how well each team member has added value to this project assignment. You will receive a zero if this peer evaluation is not completed. 

Presentation  
Each team will make conduct a 6-minute review of the significant findings of your research efforts: preferably using PowerPoint presentation. Teams are encouraged to select their three most interesting findings from this project. The presentations will take place in the recitation sections. Please email the recitation instructor with your presentation the night before your team presents so they can be queued for class. You will receive a separate handout with further details about the project, including specific requirements and deliverables. Failure to contribute fairly to the team project and related assignments can also result in a zero for team assignments. Take advantage of this great opportunity to gain in-depth knowledge about a company and practice your management skills. The project is designed to encourage creativity, critical thinking, networking and enjoyment! 

INDIVIDUAL ASSIGNMENTS (17%) 
Course Lectures 
For each module there is a set of narrated PowerPoint slides that explain course concepts and provide additional supplemental materials. It is important that you listen to the online lectures prior to your recitation and completing your Connect Assignments in order to be maximally successful on the evaluated course components. 

Reflective Exercise: Self-Assessment and Journal  
Part of learning to be a successful manager is to learn about your own strengths and opportunities for improvement. You will complete self-assessments which are automatically graded in Connect. The assessments will shed insights on skills that you may be good at or areas of opportunity for growth. You will make goals based on the results of these assessments and begin to work toward achieving those goals. In general, the assessments consist of a series of questions requiring your response and reflection. Each assessment will be worth 4 pts.--You will work on these at your own pace throughout the semester and turn them in as indicated on the course schedule. Each video journal should be 2-4 minutes in length.

Personal Development Action Plan 
Your final journal will be a personal action plan on how to improve your managerial skills and competencies. You will outline your strengths and weaknesses that you discovered while completing the reflective journals. You will provide 3-5 areas that you hope to improve over the next year. Your action plan should be 2 pages in length.

SmartBook Assignments 
Start by reading the paragraphs highlighted in yellow. Those are the key concepts in that chapter. To complete your assignment, you will need to toggle between reading and answering questions (please note a button in the left bottom corner of your screen called “Practice”). The “practice” button will flash to remind you it is time to check on your progress. You will notice that the paragraphs highlighted in yellow will turn green after you answer the questions pertaining to those concepts correctly. It means you are ready to move on to the next section/paragraph. Please note that you are expected to read the entire chapter, not just the highlighted paragraphs. Make sure that you press submit for the grade to push to Canvas. 

**All assignments must adhere to APA format—Double Spaced, 12 pt. Font, 1 inch margins with page numbers and a cover page. WATCH THE VIDEO ON CANVAS. For help visit the Purdue Owl. 

**All assignments must be submitted through CANVAS within designated timeframe. If your paper is not submitted on Canvas 10% of the overall grade will be deducted. You cannot submit assignments past the due dates unless approved by your instructor. 

Quizzes & Exams (46%) 
There will be five quizzes given throughout the semester to test your knowledge and understanding. They will be true/false, multiple choice and short answer. Each quiz will be worth 25 points. We will drop your lowest quiz grade at the end of the semester. Only 4 quizzes will count toward your final grade. (When calculating your final grade make sure you drop the lowest quiz and base your grade out of 1000 points—the 5th quiz would be out of 1025 points).  

Because we will be dropping one quiz there will be no make-up of quizzes missed. If you have to miss more than one quiz because of COVID symptoms—you must present a doctor’s note with a positive test result to make-up a second quiz. No other exceptions will be made. Two exams will be given – midterm and final. The midterm and final exam will be CLOSED BOOK/NOTE and will be true/false, multiple choice and short answer format. Missed exams may only be made-up with a university validated excuse.  

Two exams will be given – midterm and final. The midterm and final exam will be CLOSED BOOK/NOTE and will be true/false, multiple choice and short answer format. Missed exams may only be made-up with a university validated excuse. 

PARTICIPATION (13%) 
Recitation Participation 
As stated earlier in the syllabus, participation is very important to your learning in this course. You will participate in activities, dialogue, and discussion at each recitation. Being in class is crucial to the connection of the theories from the lectures. Learning to apply course concepts to realistic situations is critically important. Reading, analyzing, and discussing cases will help clarify course concepts and provide practice applying management principles to challenging situations. We will read several cases and relevant articles throughout the semester. These readings and activities will help us to understand the concepts and see how they relate to a practical example. Each recitation you have the ability to earn points for your participation in both the face to face OR online interaction as well as the completion of the assignments in Connect. The points given will be at the discretion of your recitation instructor.  

Course Surveys & University Evaluation 
You will be asked to provide feedback at middle and end of the semester. These surveys help inform the instructors on what is working or things that may need to be changed. It is helpful that you are honest so we can make modifications if needed. You will be given points based on your participation in these surveys—all of them are anonymous. 

RESEARCH REQUIREMENT (2.5%) 
As scholars and educators in the College of Business, the faculty strives to add value to the knowledge of future managers. We do this by teaching principles and practices that are based in fact and supported by evidence – thereby stressing the importance of evidence-based practice in our teaching.  This ensures that when new claims come along, managers will be better able to evaluate their validity and potential usefulness. To this end, students must be familiar with the relevance of research to management practice. We believe this is accomplished through direct experience with academic business research. Students should be able to understand where research is used to inform practice, how research should be done, what research tells us about business issues, and why such systematic inquiry is useful above and beyond direct experience. 

As a result, all students in Marketing and Management 303 courses must participate in one halfhour (one credit) of “research activity” for each course (this will make up 2.5% of the class grade).  The specific requirement is for students to take part in one half-hour activity (1 credit) for each 303 course. Credits must be earned for each 303 class (MGMT and MKTG) separately – they do not double count (so if you are in both Marketing and Management 303 courses you will need to participate in a total of two (2) half-hour activities in order to complete full course requirements for both classes).  These activities include either participation in actual business research/experiments or attendance at alternative, research lectures.    

Two Options for Research Credit: 

Option 1:  Experiments.  Sign-up and participate in a half-hour experiment.  Participation in a single experiment is worth 1 credit and 2.5% of your final grade and fulfills your requirement for a single 303 class (MKTG or MGMT).  Information and sign-ups for the experiments will be posted on the College of Business Research Participation SONA website. (you must participate in College of Business experiments at this specific URL.  Participation in Psychology studies on the Psychology SONA site (or any other GMU SONA site) does not count). 

Important Notes

  • Do NOT self-register on the SONA site. A SONA administrator will register you on the site and you will be able to log in with your Mason credentials beginning September 9th. 
  • Although there will be sufficient slots available during the semester, there is no guarantee that they will be available at the very end of the semester.  Therefore, if this is an option you would like to choose, do not delay in signing up for participation in an experiment as they become available.   
  • Students who fail to complete a scheduled experiment may not be allowed back into the experiment at the discretion of the researcher.   
  • If you have participated in a specific experiment in a previous semester, you may not be able to participate in that specific experiment again.  

Option 2: Research Lectures.  If you would prefer not to participate in experiments or there are no available experiments for you to participate in, you may also participate in a half-hour lecture to earn 1 credit and 2.5% of your grade.  These lectures will be offered a few times over the course of the semester and will focus on the importance of research in understanding and refining marketing and management practice.  Information and sign-ups for the research lectures will be posted on the SONA website. 

* Students need to complete a single half-hour activity (1 credit each; lecture or experiment) for each 303 class in order to fulfill course grade requirements.  You will receive partial credit if you complete fewer*

WHAT YOU NEED TO DO: 

  1. Starting September 9, 2024 use your Mason log on credentials to access the Costello College of Business SONA site and sign up for experiments and lectures as they are available. Do NOT self-register prior to this date.

    ***PLEASE NOTE – This is the specific College of Business SONA site.  ALL participation must be done on this site.  There is also a Psychology SONA site – it is NOT a part of this Course requirement and participation in the Psychology SONA site (or any other SONA site) does not count for the 303 requirements** 
     
  2. Research participation opportunities might not be available during the first few weeks of the semester. You will receive an automated email from SONA each week notifying you of any available research opportunities.
     
  3. You may track your progress at any time by choosing the My Schedule/Credits option from the top toolbar.  When you view this page, at the top, you will see at the list of the number of credits you are expected to earn in addition to how many you have already earned thus far, and the number of unexcused no-shows you have earned if you have them.  Remember, you need one credit (one 1 credit activity) for each class you are enrolled in.   

Semester timeline

September 9, 2024    -- End of the Second Week of Classes: ** All students will be registered by a SONA administrator on the Costello College of Business SONA site by this date.**  Once registered use your Mason log-on credentials to log in and monitor research opportunities. 

December 6, 2024:  Last possible day to participate in experiments/lectures if available (Please note:  There is no guarantee experiments will be available on this date so you should actively look for opportunities throughout the semester). 

Please direct all questions, problems, or concerns about research credit to: somstudy@gmu.edu, not to your professor or lab instructor.  Note that you will received an automated email response to frequently asked questions and will not receive an individual response if your question is addressed by the automated response. You can also check the SONA System - Student Information and FAQ document provided by your instructor. 

Absence Policy

Excused absences must be reasonable and should not impact significant portions of the course (i.e., one, no more than two, scheduled class sessions). It is not reasonable to expect a faculty member to provide extensions that cover significant portions of the course.  

Excused absences can be known ahead of time or be unexpected. Regardless of the case, students must:

  • notify instructors of an excused absence in a timely manner and in writing  
  • provide appropriate (verifiable) supporting documentation at the time of notification; or, in the case of unexpected absence, notify the instructor of when the documentation will be sent.  
  • obtain any content covered for the course time they are absent for.  
  • seek and adhere to instructor-provided accommodations for the work missed due to these absences.
  • discuss an academic drop or withdrawal with an academic advisor, if the student missed or plans to miss significant portions of the class (more than two course sessions).  

As stated in the catalog, “absence from classes or exams for these reasons does not relieve students from responsibility for any part of the course work required during the absence.” 

Expected excused absences.  
Examples of absences known before the start of the term are (non-exhaustive list): 

  • Religious observance where the nature of the observance prevents student from attending a class session 
  • Scheduled necessary medical procedures and medical conditions. 
  • Participation in university-sponsored activities (intercollegiate athletic competitions, music performances, debate, conferences, research visits, etc.) 
  • Military service 
  • Scheduled court appearances 

For absences known by the student ahead of time, the student must notify the instructor in writing and with verifiable supporting documentation. As outlined in Mason’s Catalog (AP. 1.6.1) “It is the obligation of students to provide faculty, within the first two weeks of the semester, with the dates of major religious holidays on which they will be absent, and the dates for which they are requesting an excused absence for participation in any university-sponsored activity scheduled prior to the start of the semester”. Examples of supporting documentation for known excused absences include (non-exhaustive list): 

  • Letter from a university official with all dates and times for any university-sponsored activity that conflicts with class  
  • Religious calendar showing dates of religious observations 
  • Court summons 
  • Doctor’s note with date of medical procedure that prevents students from attending class in person or online (specifics of the procedure are not required) 
  • Military Orders

Unexpected excused absences.  
During the academic term, issues and emergencies can arise that cause a student to miss class unexpectedly. Examples of unexpected excused absences are (non-exhaustive list): 

  • Student illness or injury (including covid-19) 
  • Death of immediate family member  
  • Court appearance 
  • Military activation 

For unexpected excused absences, students must notify the instructor in writing and with verifiable supporting documentation before the impacted class period when possible, or no fewer than 24 hours after the class period where pre-class notification is not possible. In an instance where verifiable supporting documentation is not immediately available, the student must include an estimated time period in their notification of when they will be able to submit their documents. Examples of supporting documentation for unexpected excused absences (non-exhaustive list): 

  • Doctor’s or medical note with dates of student’s illness and exclusion from class (medical information or specifics of the procedure are not required) 
    • This includes covid-19 and related community health concerns. Students will need to provide medical documentation excluding them from courses 
  • Death certificate or other documentation indicating dates of death/related observances. 
  • Court summons 
  • Military OrdersInternship Journals

You will maintain six (6) journals of your work experiences: Five (5) journals will be written and one (1) journal will be spoken. You should make at least one entry per 2 weeks. Journal topics and the Voice Journal directions will be provided in Blackboard under the Course Content tab. The purpose of the journal is to: 

  • Record a history of your work experience. 
  • Encourage reflection on your experience in relation to the business world. 
  • Integrate workplace recommendations from coursework and student interactions.  

Unexcused Absences
Unexcused absences are any absences that do not qualify as an excused absence outlined above. No accommodations will be provided to the student for an unexcused absence. Examples of unexcused absences are (non-exhaustive list): 

  • Absences stemming from work duties 
  • Absences due to traffic/transit problems 
  • Absences due to vacation/travel
  • Absences due to anything not recognized as an excused absence.

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