MGNT4200, Leadership Skills

Fall 2007

Class Meets:  Monday and Wednesday, 5:00 to 6:15 p.m. Pound Hall 318

Last modified:  August 10, 2007

You do not lead by hitting people over the head – that’s assault, not leadership.

Dwight D. Eisenhower

Management and Course Description

INSTRUCTOR: Dr. Schnake

OFFICE: 208 Pound Hall

TELEPHONE: 245-3822

OFFICE HOURS: 9:30 to 11:30 a.m. Mon, Wed, and Fri;  and by appointment. Most questions can usually be handled via email.

EMAIL: mschnake@valdosta.edu  (Note:  If you email me from a computer lab such as the Decision Center and you're not logged in to a personal email account, the email will have a generic return address and I will not be able to reply).

REQUIRED TEXTS: Baldwin, T.T., W.H. Bommer & R.S. Rubin (2008)  Developing Management Skills:  What Great Managers Know and Do.  Boston: McGraw-Hill/Irwin.

COURSE DESCRIPTION: Corequisite:  MGNT3250.  An examination and practical application of leadership theories, rules, and responsibilities in a dynamic business environment.  Through experiential learning, case analysis, readings, and interactions with practitioners, students develop leadership skills in decision-making, communicating, managing conflicts, and motivating individuals and groups.

 GRADING

A = 90% and above B = 80% to 89% C = 70% to 79%

D = 60% to 69% F = Below 60%

Exam Policies

Exams may include true-false, multiple choice, and essay questions.  There will be no make up exams except in the case of a genuine emergency with documentation.  You must notify your instructor prior to the exam if such an emergency occurs and obtain clearance for missing the exam.  An unexcused absence during a scheduled exam will result in a grade of zero.  Make up exams will consist of all essay questions.  The comprehensive final exam will also consist of all essay questions.

You should be in class ready to begin scheduled exams at the beginning of the period. If you arrive for a scheduled exam 20 or 30 minutes late, you have until the last student, who was there on time, completes the exam. Your exam will be collected at that time.  Regular exams will consist of true/false and multiple choice questions.  The final exam will be made up exclusively of relatively short answer essay questions.  Your answers should be well thought out and well written.  At least two versions of each exam will be administered. Some exam questions may be based on experiential exercises, video cases, and/or the service leadership project.

Service Leadership Project (SLP)

The SLP is a team-based experience in planning, organizing and delivering a project.  During this experience you will have the opportunity to experience a leadership role and/or working within a team.  Details about the project and examples are provided at the SLP web page.  Click on the link below: Dr. Schnake's Web Page

SLP Web Page

Students may sign up for volunteer service credit at Volunteer Services in the Student Life Office.  Once a student has documented 200 hours of volunteer service, he/she will be eligible to receive a service transcript listing all of their volunteer service while at VSU.  For more information:

http://www.valdosta.edu/stulife/volunteer/

CONTRIBUTION/PARTICIPATION

You should conduct yourself as a professional and project an image of being intelligent, competent, helpful to fellow students, and prepared for class on a consistent basis. People need to be able to trust your ability to complete a job on time, under budget, and way above the minimum standards. One obvious indication of your ability to conduct yourself as a professional is your class participation. Behaviors such as talking in class reading the newspaper, staring out the window, etc. are examples of clearly inappropriate behaviors. Do NOT talk in class. Frequent talking in class or other nonproductive behaviors will result in a deduction of 10 points from your final total points for each event and exclude you from any additional bonus points or  a curve on any exam. 

No computers, cellphones, etc. are permitted in class.

ATTENDANCE

Class attendance and being prepared to participate in the discussion of the assigned material are part of the requirements of this course. Do not make appointments for times when this class meets!  If you cannot attend regularly, you should drop this class immediately and plan to register for it again when your schedule permits regular class attendance. In order to be successful in this course, you must attend class regularly and frequently participate in discussions by asking questions, giving examples, criticizing theories and concepts, etc. Attendance with no participation is marginal attendance, at best. Leaving early or arriving long after the class starts counts as one absence. Walking out in the middle of class, if you are not terribly ill, will not be tolerated and will result in a deduction of 20 points from your final total points.  It has been my experience that students who do not attend class regularly, or who don't pay attention while they are there, do not make it through this class on their first attempt. Excessive absences will exclude you from participating in any "curve" on exams or extra credit projects (if offered); based solely on the judgment of the instructor. Consistent with VSU policy (see catalog), missing 20% of the scheduled class meetings will result in a grade of F for the course.

Consistent with university policy, missing 20% of the classes and team meetings in this course WILL result in a grade of F for the course.

AMERICANS WITH DISABILITIES ACT

Students requiring classroom accommodations or modifications because of a documented disability should discuss this need with the professor at the beginning of the quarter. VSU's Office of Special Services works with students with special needs. Students not registered with the Special Services Program must contact the Special Services Office in Nevins Hall, Room 1115. The telephone number is 245-2498.

Academic Dishonesty

Various academic dishonest and plagiarism detection technologies may be employed in this course.

You should review the VSU Academic Honesty web page:  <Academic Honesty at VSU>

The minimum penalty for any instance of academic dishonesty in this course will be a grade of F for the course.  Depending on the severity of the offense, it may be pursued beyond this level.

Academic dishonesty is defined as conduct that violates the fundamental principles of truth, honesty, and integrity. The following conduct is specifically dishonest:

· supplying or using work or answers that are not one's own;

· providing or accepting assistance with completing assignments or examinations;

· interfering through any means with another's academic work;

· faking data or results.

From this, it's obvious that you can't -- or at least shouldn't:

· turn in an exam, paper, or project that is not wholly your own work;

· copy answers from another student's exam or test;

· get questions and/or answers from students who have already taken an exam or quiz you are scheduled to take;

· have another person take a test for you;

· submit the same paper for two or more classes;

· use other authors' ideas and phrases without proper attribution; and

· collaborate with other students on projects or assignments without your instructor's permission.

How can I avoid even being suspected of cheating?

Innocent behavior may attract negative attention from instructors. But research suggests 1 in 3 students will cheat under certain conditions.  To protect yourself from any suspicion of cheating, try the following.

When taking quizzes, tests or exams:

· keep your eyes fixed firmly on your blue book or score sheet;

· don't take any unauthorized gear to the test site, (e.g., study notes, textbooks, calculators, cell phones);

· place your personal belongings under your desk and out of sight;

· don't fiddle (e.g., tap your pencil or fingers, rearrange your clothing);

· take your cap off; ... better yet...don't wear one during exams.

· if you are required to provide blue books, be sure they are void of even the slightest hint of notes and no pages are missing.

When completing lab projects, term papers and take-home tests:
 

· if previous assignments required team projects, ask your instructor if he or she expects students to collaborate on the test, and if so, whether each group is expected to submit a single response or each member of the group is expected to submit separate responses independent of one another;

· stay far away from Internet paper mills and files full of other students' exams or term papers;

· know what plagiarism is so you can avoid it. [Plagiarism (from the Latin plagiarius, an abductor, and plagiare, to steal): Plagiarism is defined as presenting another person's work or ideas as one's own.]

TENTATIVE SCHEDULE OF ASSIGNMENTS

You are responsible for any changes to this tentative schedule if you miss the class in which they are announced

Mon,  Aug 13– Introduction to the course.  Introduction to the Service Leadership Project (SLP).

Wed,  Aug 15– Video examples of previous Service Leadership Project presentations.

                           Assignment to SLP teams.

Mon, Aug 20– Video examples of previous Service Leadership Project presentations.

Wed, Aug  22–   Chapter 1- Personal Effectiveness.

Mon, Aug  27 – Project Management.  PERT/CPM analysis.

Wed, Aug  29 – Chapter 2:  Communication

Mon, Sept 3 – Labor Day Holiday.  Class will not meet.

Wed, Sept 5 – Chapter 3:  Problem Solving and Ethics

Mon, Sept 10 – Exam #1 (Chapters 1, 2 and 3, project management, PERT)

Wed, Sept 12 – Chapter 4: Motivation

Mon, Sept 17 – Chapter 4 continued.

Wed, Sept 19 – Chapter 5:  Performance Management

Mon, Sept 24 – Chapter 5 continued

Wed, Sept 26 – Chapter 6:  Power and Influence

Mon, Sept 28 – Chapter 6, continued.

Wed, Oct 1 – Exam #2 - Chapters 4, 5 and 6.

Mon, Oct 8 – Chapter 7:  Leadership

Wed, Oct 10 – Chapter 7 continued.

Mon, Oct 15 – Fall Break.  Class will not meet.

Wed, Oct 17 – Chapter 8:  Team Effectiveness and Diversity

Mon, Oct 22 – Chapter 8 continued.

Wed, Oct 24 – Chapter 9:  Conflict and Negotiations

Mon, Oct 29 – Exam #3 Chapters 7, 8 and 9

Wed, Oct 31 – Chapter 10: Making Change

Mon, Nov 5 – Chapter 10, continued.

Wed, Nov 7 – Chapter 11: Building High Performance Organizations and Great Places to Work

Mon, Nov 12 –  Chapter 11: Building High Performance Organizations and Great Places to Work

Wed, Nov 14 – Chapter 11:  Building High Performance Organizations and Great Places to Work

Mon, Nov 19 – Exam # 4 - Chapters 10 and 11

Wed, Nov 21 – Thanksgiving Holiday.  Class will not meet.

Mon, Nov 26 – PRESENTATIONS – Pound Hall Auditorium

Wed, Nov 28 – PRESENTATIONS – Pound Hall Auditorium

Mon, Dec 3 – PRESENTATIONS – Pound Hall Auditorium

Final Examination Time Scheduled by Academic VP.  Friday, December 7, 7:15 to 9:15 p.m.

ATTENDANCE IS MANDATORY – Absence will result in an Incomplete in the course and the student will have to schedule a time the following semester to take a comprehensive essay final examination in order to complete the requirements for the course.