Business Policies and Strategies - Dr. Tony Muscia Ottawa University

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Course Description

Capstone®; course in which participants develop a major case study of business administration issues, programs and policies in a current organization. Draws from and utilizes concepts, theories and skills developed in previous courses. Prerequisite: Completion of all core courses in the MBA program or approval of advisor.

Course Learning Objectives Upon successful completion of this course, the student will be able to:

All graduate business students can obtain additional program information by logging into Blackboard with the user name = business and password = blackboard.

This syllabus is a guide and may be modified or revised as necessary during the term. Students will be informed, in writing, of any changes.

Textbook(s):

There is no text required for this course. However, students must register and pay for the Capsim®; at www.capsim.com . We may have multiple industries. Please wait for instruction before registering for a Sim id# . 

About your Instructor:

Dr. Tony Muscia is Director of Graduate Business Studies and Director of Enrollment Management at Ottawa University . His background includes a unique blend of corporate, entrepreneurial, and educational experience.

Prior to joining Ottawa University , Dr. Muscia served as Chief Executive Officer of the Speakers Academy and he has owned and operated ten businesses. His corporate experience includes senior management positions in several multi-million dollar companies, and he also served as a marketing and management strategist for the Small Business Development Center .

Previously, Dr. Muscia served as Director of the Small Business Management Program and the Gaming Management Program at Scottsdale Community College . He has also served as Chair of Graduate Business Programs and Chair of the Marketing Department at Western International University . In 2000, he was selected as a Distinguished Educator in Who's Who Among America's Teachers.

Dr. Muscia has his Doctorate in Management, an MBA, a Master's Degree in Psychology, and a Bachelor's Degree in Journalism/Advertising.

Competency Assessment:

You will have several OPPORTUNITIES to demonstrate your knowledge and understanding of the principles taught in this course. The primary means of evaluating your work will be through PRACTICAL APPLICATION of the material. Please remember that instructors do not randomly assign grades. Students earn them and everyone has the same opportunity to earn a good grade!

In the event that you have difficulty completing any of the assignments for this course, please contact me immediately. My email address and telephone number are listed on this syllabus.

Description of course assignments:

CLICK ON THE ASSIGNMENTS TAB TO SEE DETAILED DESCRIPTIONS OF YOUR ASSIGNMENTS.

1) MBA & University Wide Learning Outcomes (15 Outcomes; 10 points each; 150 points total)
To graduate with an MBA from Ottawa University , you are required to demonstrate competency in 10 MBA Program and 5 University-Wide Outcome areas .  Each outcome is listed in LiveText . You should have completed assignments in some of your coursework that demonstrate your competency in each of these areas. 

2) Readings Applications (9 Assignments; 10 points each; 90 points total)

Write a brief summary of an article/book/essay, etc. that discusses and/or illustrates current theory or application related to each of the core courses in your program.  Then, answer the following questions related to your reading:

POST THESE ASSIGNMENTS IN LIVETEXT.

3) Weekly Management Simulation Briefings (8 briefings; 20 points each; 160 points total)

Your assignment is to make simulated business decisions using a spreadsheet program downloaded from the Capsim ®; website.  This assignment allows decision-making across major functional departments within a company under your control.  

The program crunches all the numbers as you enter your decision variables and then provides you with proforma financial reports that are based around your sales forecast projections.

Details and instructions for this weekly assignment can be found under the CAPSIM ®; menu tab .  You must post your decisions each week by the scheduled deadline .  Results of the decisions for each week will be posted in the CAPSIM ®; menu -> CAPSIM Reports folder.

Starting in Round 1, you are required to submit a one-page Management Briefing that identifies your rationale for the decisions you made to begin the competition.  What decisions did you make, and what results are you seeking based on your decisions?

Then, after you receive the results of your Round 1 decisions, AND AFTER THE COMPLETION OF EVERY OTHER ROUND IN THE COMPETITION, you will submit a Management Briefing that discusses the results from the previous round and then explains how you will adjust future decisions (IF YOU WERE TO CONTINUE IN YOUR ROLE) to improve your performance and competitive position.  The simulation runs promptly at noon Arizona time on the given dates on your syllabus.  Therefore, your management briefings must be posted before noon Arizona time on those same dates (in Blackboard); otherwise, it is considered late.

You will post these briefings in the corresponding Assignment weeks in Blackboard.

4) Final Shareholder Debrief " 50 points

It's time to face the Board of Directors as President of your company to explain the results of your tenure at the helm. Where are you and what have you learned that leads us to believe that you should continue in this position of responsibility? In AT LEAST TWO PAGES , discuss your strengths and weaknesses based on the success indicators and tell us¦

5) Oral Presentation - 50 points

In a 5-10minute presentation, you should cover the highlights and lowlights of your tenure as CEO. Visual aids will enhance your presentation.

6) Star Summary & Analyst Report " 100 points each (200 points total)

At the end of 8 Rounds, you will receive points for your overall performance. See the rubric below for grading criteria.

Analyst Report


100 Pts

95 Pts

90 Pts

85 Pts

80 Pts

75 Pts

70 Pts

65 Pts

Cumulative Points (After 8 Rounds)

8000-6000

5999-5600

5599-4800

4799-4400

4399-4000

3999-3600

3599-3200

Less than 3199

Star Summary


100 Pts

95 Pts

90 Pts

85 Pts

80 Pts

75 Pts

70 Pts

65 Pts

Cumulative Stars (After 8 Rounds)

40-32

31-28

27-24

23-20

19-18

17-16

15-14

13 or less

6) Surveys

Complete the Course Evaluation, Exit, and Program Surveys in LiveText.  Click on the corresponding Form to complete the evaluation. These responses are recorded anonymously.

¢  Capstone®; Simulation Support

toll free number (877) 477-8787 Extension 228, Monday to Friday, 8:00 AM to 6:00 PM Central time, as well 
via Email  This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it  -- or use support center located on student website.

Assignment Summary

MBA & U-wide Outcomes

150 points

Reading Applications

90 points

Weekly Management Simulation Briefings from Capsim ®;

160 points

Final Shareholder Debrief

50 points

Oral Presentation

50 points

Star Summary

100 points

Analyst Report

100 points

TOTAL

700 Points

Grading Scale

90 to 100%

= A

80 to 89%

= B

70 to 79%

= C

60 to 69%

= D

< 60

= F

Course Schedule

Due Dates

by 12pm Arizona Time

Assignments

Sat. March 31

No assignments due: Face-to-Face class session. Register for Simulation & Read Tutorials;

Wed. April 11

Rehearsal Round Due: No Debrief Required; Complete LiveText Portfolio for BUS 7000 & BUS 7100

Wed. April 18

Practice Round Due: No Debrief Required; Complete LiveText Portfolio for BUS 7200 & BUS 7450

Wed. April 25

Round 1 Decisions Due: Submit Debrief; Complete LiveText Portfolio for BUS 7500 & BUS 7600

Wed. May 2

Round 2 Decisions Due: Submit Debrief; Complete LiveText Portfolio for BUS 7700 & BUS 7800

Wed. May 9

Round 3 Decisions Due: Submit Debrief; Complete LiveText Portfolio for BUS 7900

Wed. May 16

Round 4 Decisions Due: Submit Debrief; Complete LiveText Portfolio for BUS 8500 COURSE PORTION ONLY

Wed. May 23

Round 5 Decisions Due: Submit Debrief; Complete LiveText Portfolio for BUS 8500 University Wide Outcomes 1-3

Wed. May 30

Round 6 Decisions Due: Submit Debrief; Complete LiveText Portfolio for BUS 8500 University Wide Outcomes 4 & 5

Wed. June 6

Round 7 Decisions Due: Submit Debrief

Wed. June 13

Round 8 Decisions Due (final round): Submit Debrief

Saturday, June 23 from 12-2pm in Phoenix

(or by phone conference--June 18 @ 10am or June 20 @ 3pm)

Oral presentation & Final Shareholder Debrief Due

Class Policies

Late Assignments:

I accept late assignments for up to two days after the due date. You will lose 10% for each day the assignment is late.

Attendance Policy

You are expected to attend all scheduled classes and to participate actively in discussing the assigned material.

Final Materials :

To comply with the Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act (FERPA), Instructors are prohibited from leaving graded papers or projects at the front desk of any site. If the student wants the graded paper or project returned (other than in a class session), the student must provide a stamped and self-addressed envelope of the appropriate size and postage to the instructor for return to the student after grading.

Editorial Format for all Written Assignments

All written work must conform to standard APA format. Work should be double-spaced; using 12 point font in Times New Roman, Courier, Arial, or similar font (no -exotic- or script fonts). S tudents can access APA format information from the OU Blackboard.

Academic Integrity

Plagiarism and cheating will not be tolerated at any level-on any assignment. The reality of cyberspace has made academic dishonesty even more tempting for some, but be advised that technology can and will be used to help uncover those engaging in deception. If you ever have a question about the legitimacy of a source or a procedure you are considering using, ask you instructor. As the University Academic Council approved on May 29, 2003, -The penalty for plagiarism or any other form of academic dishonesty will be failure in the course in which the academic dishonesty occurred. Students who commit academic dishonesty can be dismissed from the university by the provost/director.- Consult your student handbook for information concerning all university regulations.